Very few actresses in television today play characters that closely resemble their real lives. Sofia Vergara is one of them.
She is Colombian, she is a divorced mother of a teenager and she is completely unassuming of her thick English accent. But the 39-year-old's rise to fame, thanks to her acclaimed role in multi award-winning show Modern Family, has been nothing but meteoric.
As she returns for the third season, the sexy actress talks about the new direction her role is taking, being a mother of a 20-year-old, her fashion line and her ability to have a good laugh at herself.
So does the fact that the show is now an established, really successful show affect you?
I'm always in a good mood. (Laughs) I always get up to go to work happy. So yeah, it does affect when things are going good. You know, you have to enjoy when things are going good because they can go bad in any second. That's what I'm trying to do — to take advantage of my 15 minutes of fame.
How do you stay in shape?
Well, I always say that I used to feel that I was very genetically blessed because I have always been voluptuous. I never had problems with my weight. I mean, I like being voluptuous or whatever, so I've always been happy.
But now, this age, I realise that I do have to work on it. I do try to eat healthy. I work out more. Before, I didn't used to work out. But I try to do everything in moderation. I love wine. I love to eat. I'm Latin. You know, I wake up thinking what I'm going to have for lunch and dinner or if I have to see someone, I always plan it around a meal. So it's just a matter, I think, of doing everything in moderation.
I had to change my mentality also because when coming from a Latin country and working in the Latin market, the concept of beauty is a little bit different. I remember when I started acting, my publicist at the time told me, "You need to lose some weight because look, the other girls look better in the pictures. They're skinnier." I said, "Yeah, they look better in the pictures, but I look better naked. What is your problem?" (Laughs)
And you have the fashion line at Kmart...
Yes. From Kmart. Comes in three colours.
There's sizes for every [body type]. That's what I wanted to do. I wanted to do — a line that was not just for Latin, voluptuous women or just for skinny American girls. No. There's stuff for everybody.
The colours are for everybody. And the prices are for everybody. That's so important right now. It's like you buy a whole wardrobe for the price of one outfit in another store. And it's a lot of cute stuff that I would wear — all of it. I wear all of it!
Why did you decide to do this line instead of a high fashion designer type thing?
I have been in the Latin market for a long time and I always had girls come to me and be like, "Where did you buy this? How do you wear that?" I always wanted to do something because I think all women want to look pretty or cute. They don't need to be Miss Universe perfect to feel cute and pretty.
If you have a nice pair of legs, wear short things. And if you don't feel that comfortable, wear tights with your short dress and still show your legs. Or if you have beautiful eyes... You know, there's always something that you have that you can take advantage of.
I wanted to create a line that was like a complete thing that you can go and find something for yourself at $39.99 (Dh146.83) and look like this. (Laughs)
Are you a bargain hunter?
Yeah, of course. Who doesn't? You know, I spend a lot of money on shoes and bags, but not that much on clothes. I think if you have taste and if you were wearing like an expensive pair of boots with like normal jeans and a T-shirt and a great bag, you have a nice outfit.
But in clothes, for example, I think for me, my job, like immediately you wear something and then you're in a picture and then that's it. You can't wear it six, seven times. So I try not to spend too much money on clothes. I think if you have good taste, you can pick stuff that is great and looks like a million dollars.
What are the similarities between you and your character, Gloria?
Well, she's Colombian. She has an accent. She has a kid. So, she's pretty much me. The writers wrote the character for me. So it's amazing. I think I'm never going to get a role better than Gloria. But, of course, I do play [with it] — sometimes I make the accent a little bit worse or, you know, she's a little bit more flamboyant, more colourful, but it's a lot of me.
And what's going to happen with Gloria?
We don't know, because every show, it's a little story. The writers don't need to know what is going to happen in ten episodes because they just work on that episode. As actors, we only know what we have filmed.
The past two months, for example, for Gloria there's a lot of jealousy [between] her and the dog, Stella. She's obsessed. She hates the dog because she thinks it's taking Jay's attention. And Gloria also gets a lot of jealousy from Manny's romantic life now that he's getting older, but that's pretty much all I know.
How about style-wise? Do you decide what Gloria wears?
Yeah. I mean, a lot. Since the beginning, I shop for Gloria. For example, there is a stylist for the show and now we work like, for example, now that I have my Kmart line, I brought most of my stuff and I'm wearing it for Gloria because it's perfect for her. But I've always shopped for her. Like if I'm on vacation and I go shopping, I'm like, "Oh, my! This is perfect for Gloria."
Stuff that I would never wear, but I think it's perfect for her. I do a lot of that. Because I wanted to make her real, like a real Latin woman, and who better than me [to do it]? I mean, the stylist, she knows, but she lets me play with it a lot.
Could you describe these differences? What would you wear and what would Gloria wear?
She wears more colours than me and more jewellery. I do wear big earrings, but she will wear big earrings and the necklace and the ring [whereas I would go for] the ring and the big earrings. She's a little bit more fearless.
Being a sex symbol, do you worry about ageing?
Of course. I'm a woman. We all worry about ageing, but what can you do? You have to accept it. But, you know, it's hard — I always like to laugh and complain. It's like "Why am I still competing on this list for the best a** when these girls are 15 years younger than me? How am I even on that list? Are these people crazy?"
It's funny. It's very flattering, but it's ridiculous.
Is it a bit of a triumph for you to be able to prove to people that you are funny?
I've always felt I was funny, but I never thought I was going to do acting or make a living out of being funny. But, you know, for me, it's like an adventure. I didn't even know what I could do as a comedian, so I'm learning, even after two seasons. I think the writers know more about what I can do than me, so it is a challenge for me to show that I can be funny.
Would you want to venture outside comedy and eventually do more dramatic stuff?
Well, if you would have told me eight years ago I was going to be nominated or awarded or considered a comedian or funny, I would have thought you were insane But now I am. Now I think "I've never done a big drama, but I guess maybe I can do it."
I believe in anything now. So, hopefully, I'll be able to challenge myself and do something dramatic that is perfect for somebody with my accent.
How does your son feel about your image?
He doesn't care. He's mostly annoyed by me in general, just because I'm his mother. Of course, he's 20 years old. He's going to college in Boston. He laughs. He's the first person that I always laugh with, because he used to help me with my auditions and run lines with me. He would be so annoyed and say, "I already corrected you. You can't say the word like that," and I would say it wrong again. He's like, "You're never going to find a role with that crazy accent."
So, the first time I got nominated, I called him, "You see? With my accent, I'm nominated."
It's funny. Of course, he doesn't see me like a hot sexy mother. He just sees me like a crazy woman that lives with him.
Don't miss it
Modern Family Season 3 is broadcast on OSN Comedy on Fridays at 8.30pm.
