Netflix revealed the full cast and first image of Griselda, a six-episode limited series following the real-life story of Colombian cartel crimelord Griselda Blanco. Starring Modern Family’s Sofia Vergara as the titular criminal, the series is being produced by the creative team behind Narcos, which previously explored the life of Colombian drug dealer Pablo Escobar.
The first image of Griselda gives us a peek at the titular character, as Vergara looks to the camera defiantly with a cigarette between her fingers. Griselda was a prolific drug lady during the 1980s through the early 2000s, bringing cocaine from Colombia to the United States. She’s was responsible for up to 200 murders and became the first-ever billionaire female criminal. Griselda worked for the Medellín Cartel, the criminal organization founded and led by Escobar, and she was the woman responsible for introducing cocaine smuggling to the kingpin himself.
Joining Vergara in the limited series, there’s a cast of Latin stars, many of who previously worked in Narcos. The full cast revealed today by Netflix includes Alberto Guerra (Narcos: Mexico) as “Dario”, Vanessa Ferlito (NCIS: New Orleans) as “Isabel”, Alberto Ammann (Narcos) as “Alberto Bravo”, Christian Tappan (The Great Heist) as “Arturo”, Diego Trujillo (Metastasis) as “German Panesso”, Paulina Davila (Luis Miguel) as “Carmen”, Gabriel Sloyer (Narcos) as “Diaz”, Juliana Aidén Martinez (Blacklist) as “June”, Martin Rodriguez (Detrás de la verdad) as “Rivi”, and José Zúñiga (American Crime Story, Versace) as “Amilcar”.
Besides starring in the titular role, Vergara also executive produces the limited series. Together with executive producer Luis Balaguer, Vergara had been developing Griselda for eight years at Latin World Entertainment before bringing it to Netflix. The project is the latest from writer and executive producer Eric Newman (Narcos, Narcos: Mexico). Other executive producers include Carlo Bernard, André Baiz, Ingrid Escajeda (Justified, Empire), and Doug Miro (Narcos).
Escajeda and Miro work together on Griselda as co-showrunners and writers. Baiz, who’s a Colombian native just like Vergara, will direct all six episodes of the limited drama series.
There’s still no release date for Griselda, but as news of the show emerges, you can expect to ready all about it here at Collider. For now, check Griselda’s official synopsis and its first image below.
"Griselda is inspired by the savvy and ambitious Colombian businesswoman, Griselda Blanco, who created one of the most profitable cartels in history. A devoted mother, Blanco’s lethal blend of charm and unsuspected savagery helped her expertly navigate between family and business leading her to become widely known as the 'Godmother.'"