Sofia Vergara's real-life explained including divorce, drugs and new boyfriend

25 January 2024 , 14:00

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Sofia Vergara in New York City last week (Image: GC Images)

Colombian actress Sofia Vergara is starring in a new series that has just come out on Netflix.

The veteran comedian, best known for her role as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett in the ABC sitcom Modern Family, now stars as Griselda Blanco in a series created by Eric Newman and Andrés Baiz. The drama, named Griselda, is made up of six hour-long episodes and is inspired by a savvy and ambitious Colombian businesswoman who created one of the most profitable cartels in history.

Newman said: "There has never been a woman who came close to achieving the power, wealth, and respect that Griselda did. And no trafficker, woman or man, ever elicited the same level of fear." Newman told Netflix Tudum that despite the notorious character being quite different from anyone Sofia has played before, he was not surprised she could pull it off.

READ MORE: Sofia Vergara finally reveals heartbreakingly honest reason for Joe Manganiello split

Sofia was described as 'a force of nature' (GC Images)

She is starring in the new drama Griselda (GC Images)

He said: "She's a force of nature and there is no doubt in my mind that whatever she sets her mind to, she can accomplish. She was perfect for the role, not only because she, like Griselda, is a single mother who came to America from Colombia with nothing and built an empire, but because it was unexpected of her to do [so].

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"Sofia has been thought of one way – a beautiful and brilliant comedic actress – and she is so much more than that." Here, we take a look at Sofia's personal life, including her recent split from Joe Manganiello, her drugs confessions, and a new boyfriend she is rumoured to have.

Marriage breakdown

The new series has released just days after the actress confessed the reason why she split from her husband Joe Manganiello. The star and her ex Joe, 47, shocked fans when they announced last year that they were separating after seven years of marriage. In a statement, they said it was a "difficult decision" to divorce, but at the time, they refused to comment on the reason behind their surprise split.

They added: "We have made the difficult decision to divorce. As two people that love and care for one another very much, we politely ask for respect of our privacy at this time as we navigate this new phase of our lives." Two days later, Manganiello filed for divorce, listing the date of separation as July 2.

Sofia and Joe Manganiello shocked fans when they announced they were splitting (Getty Images for Turner)

In a new interview with Spanish newspaper El Pais, Sofia candidly discussed the breakdown of her marriage to the Magic Mike star, and blamed an ongoing disagreement over having children was the reason they split. "My marriage broke up because my husband was younger; he wanted to have kids and I didn't want to be an old mum," she explained. "I feel it's not fair to the baby. I respect whoever does it, but that's not for me anymore."

The actress is already mother to son Manolo, 32, whom she shares with ex-husband Joe Gonzalez, and admitted she was "ready to be a grandmother" rather than have any more babies of her own. Sofia also insisted she would only date again if her future partner "had his own children".

New relationships

Since their separation, the pair have each moved on, as Joe is dating actress Caitlin O'Connor while Sofia has been photographed on multiple dates with orthopedic surgeon Justin Saliman. However, she has not confirmed her relationship status publicly.

According to an online bio, the silver fox completed a fellowship at Stanford University and has a medical degree from the University of Colorado School of Medicine. The medical professional is "a sports medicine and arthroscopy-trained orthopaedic surgeon specialising in the joint-preserving treatment of injuries to the shoulder, hip and knee," per the site. Dr Saliman was previously married to actress Bree Turner, who is best known for her roles in Grimm and Bring It On Again.

The actress attending the Clooney Foundation for Justice's 2023 Albie Awards at New York Public Library in September 2023 (WireImage)

The pair tied the knot in 2008 at the Casa Del Mar hotel in Santa Monica. Speaking about the wedding to InStyle, Bree said that the theme of their special day "was serendipity." She added: "It was fate that our paths crossed in life."

The couple share two children, a daughter Stella Jean, seven, and a son Dean, five. In 2018, Bree cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for her split from him after a decade of marriage. She requested joint legal and physical custody of their children and asked for spousal support.

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'Drugs' confessions

During an episode of The Tonight Show, Sofia confessed to doing drugs but was forced to clarify after finding herself tongue-tied. In a chat with Jimmy Fallon, Sofia praised Griselda's director Andres Baiz for teaching her everything she needed to know to play the drug lord on-screen.

She confessed: "I didn't know anything. He taught me how to smoke, he taught me how to do cocaine. He taught me a lot." The audience burst into laughter as Jimmy replied: "Alright, hold on, hold on."

Sofia went on to say: "It was amazing because I was 51 years old and I didn't even know how to, you know, how to light a cigarette. I've never done cocaine. So it's like, it was amazing. It was like, a great experience."

But she clarified that while the acting was real, everything else, including the cocaine and the cigarettes, were fake. She said: "The cocaine that I did was fake. But I had to pretend. The cigarettes are also fake. Everything was, it's fake. But the acting was real."

Chiara Fiorillo