Customers enjoying lunchtime cocktails in the lobby of the opulent Four Seasons Hotel in Madrid last Monday, January 8, had no idea of the choreography being performed one floor above. A group of assistants had spent an hour preparing even the smallest detail of the meeting – in particular the photo – of this newspaper with Sofía Vergara, who lived in the house and had to wait a little longer than expected, as befits a star international his Height. When it finally arrives, Vergara is overwhelming. What big eyes, what big hair, what a big mouth, what a big voice, what a laugh, everything. Dressed in a satin gray shirt and pants with just the right amount of tension to expose the wearer's volumes without exploding, Vergara didn't seem to be in a hurry, but she didn't pause either. At around three o'clock in the afternoon we said goodbye as friends, and although it was not clear whether he had already eaten lunch, a few hours later Pablo Motos was eaten alive on the show “El hormiguero”, fighting the host's rancid questions his snappy answers. The next day we tried to get Vergara's opinion on the matter. It was not possible. The diva already had something else in mind. He had already told us this before.
She plays in “Griselda”. Griselda Blancoa drug trafficking boss. How much respect did she command?
Nowadays, confident women are in fashion, but when the story I wanted to produce caught my attention 12 years ago, that wasn't so much the case. That's exactly what seduced me. That the boss was a woman who had to become worse than any man in order to be better than everyone else.
Is that also empowering?
Griselda was a very tough woman. The thing is, women are neither holy nor perfect. The interesting and complex thing is that this woman had children, friends and employees. He was loyal to some and adamant to others. It degenerated with power, fear, ambition and insecurity. Just like a man. No more and no less.
Did you prepare the evil Griselda while playing the comic? Gloria Pritchett in “Modern Family”?
Yes, I had tremendous success with Modern Family. From the first episode, I became famous all over the world, but I'm a Latina who doesn't look as Latin, and I don't have the same opportunities as American actors. I'm not complaining that I'm ungrateful, I've done a lot more than I dreamed of, but I'm finding it harder to find roles. I can't play the scientist or the judge as I see myself. So I decided to find a life.
Can't she play a scientist?
Let's see, there's nothing wrong with being realistic. When I started “Modern Family” 15 years ago, I looked a lot more exaggerated than you see today. I'm not saying that such female scientists don't exist. But these roles are not for someone like me. When I heard about Griselda, I wanted to do it. Because I was Colombian, because I was a woman, because I lived through the drama of the drug trade, because my brother Rafael was part of this business and they killed him in 1996. Because of all of this, I knew I could do it. And I did it when I got her to trust me. I got them to give me the money because I had already been Gloria Pritchett and Sofía Vergara.
Aren't you worried that the series will be interpreted as trivializing the violence of the drug trade?
It's not like we're inventing anything. This is the story of my country. All of this happened. We Colombians are survivors. We live in terrible times and circumstances. Nobody laughs at anyone or justifies anything.
Sofía Vergara, in one of the restaurants of the Four Seasons Hotel in Madrid. Bernardo Perez
In “Griselda,” men point to the character’s “tits and ass” as the key to her success. Does that sound like you, Sofia?
But of course. It would be absurd to deny it and make myself feel guilty. On the contrary, I am grateful for life. Those huge tits and that body opened all doors for me, it was my passport into the world at 20 when I started as a model, but today I'm 51 years old and I'm still in it.
As? Because?
Because I'm not afraid of taking risks, I work like no one else, I have personality, I was always alert to what was outside and I wasn't afraid. There are women prettier, younger, with more tits and a bigger body than me, but I'm still in it because I've proven I can stay. I don't do neurosurgery, I just do entertainment, and the worst that can happen to me is that they say I look ugly or that this idiot doesn't know how to act. I can bear it.
When did you realize the effect your appearance has on others?
Very young, since high school all the boys wanted to be with me. Not that it made me feel better, but you notice that you're being treated differently. Even at a young age, I know my strengths and use them. But if all you see is my tits, then the problem is yours.
His compatriot plays in “Griselda” Karol G., as part of the gang of women put together by the “boss”. Do you also show “solidarity” with your fellow human beings?
Nowadays it is fashionable for women to band together, help each other and call each other to work. I've done it unconsciously my whole life. My cousins, my mother, my friends since kindergarten, they have always been my tribe.
What was it like acting in Spanish and with Latin actors?
I love American actors and have never had a problem with them. But performing with Latin artists was like being at home. Everything is easier for me in Spanish: love, tenderness, anger, everything. My English is still forced English. For me, it was a blessing that made up for having to put on Griselda's fake teeth and nose every day and endure the violence of the story.
Did you take the excitement home with you?
As? I came home completely lost. No wonder dramatic actors go crazy and everyone goes to the therapist. Remember, I come from the comedy Modern Family, where it felt like every day I was going to a party, being with my friends and having a great time. Thank God Griselda was only six months old. In the end I was very affected.
At 51, in the middle of your life, what phase of life do you feel like you are in?
Oh, how terrible that sounds. No: I feel very complete. I have achieved much more in my career than I dreamed of. I never dreamed of becoming an actress. It was an accident. I've been hosting America's Got Talent for four years, a show I really enjoy, I present this series all over the world, I have my own clothing and beauty brand. It doesn't even occur to me to complain about anything.
And personally?
Well, I am a woman who was recently divorced from my second husband. [el actor Joe Manganiello], who I was with for 10 years. My marriage fell apart because my husband was younger, he wanted to have children and I didn't want to be an old mother. I feel like it's not fair to the baby. I respect anyone who does it, but it's not my thing anymore. I already had a son at 19, who is now 32, and I'm ready to be a grandmother, not a mother. So when love is shown, it must come with children. I'm almost in menopause, it's a natural law of life. When my son is a father, let him bring the baby to me for a while and then I will give it back to him and move on with my life, that's what I have to do.
Your Instagram is a party.
I really enjoy it. These are remains. We Colombians have experienced so many terrible things that we always know how to see the happy side of life, otherwise we couldn't live. When I leave, I will take everything with me. Suffering does not have to be sought, it comes on its own.
Maybe now that she's playing a ruthless drug dealer they'll call her the role of a scientist.
Don't believe that. Things haven't changed that much. Maybe in 20 years, when I look older, they'll believe me as a scientist, but now they won't call me. And when they call me, I might be the one who doesn't want it. I should see it.
FROM FAME TO GRISELDA
Sofía Vergara's (Barranquilla, Colombia, 51 years old) love story with cameras began like that of many beautiful girls. One day someone saw her sunbathing on the beach in her town and suggested that she become a model. From there she went to Miami, where she not only appeared in advertising campaigns and cover girl calendars, but was also signed as a presenter for the Spanish-language television station Univisión. Until he joined the cast of the series “Modern Family” in 2009. The rest is history. Her hilarious, acerbic and intelligent interpretation of Gloria Pritchett, the young and explosive Latina wife of Jay Pritchett, the patriarch of a peculiar American saga, brought her not only the applause of critics and the public, but also worldwide fame and one of the juiciest contracts in the history of television in the United States. Meanwhile, Vergara hasn't been quiet. Now, three years after the end of the series that made her famous, she presents the result of her parallel activities and presents “Griselda”, a Netflix story that she produced and in which she starred and which is based on the based on true story of Griselda Blanco. the “Godmother of Coca,” a Colombian drug trafficker who dominated the Miami cocaine market in the 1980s and was murdered in Barranquilla in 2012. She knows her stuff, she says.
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