CELEBRITY
Sofia Vergara and Netflix being sued by family of infamous drug lord Griselda Blanco
Sofia Vergara’s portrayal of Griselda Blanco has the actress facing a lawsuit in Miami filed by the family of the infamous Colombian drug lord.
Vergara, Netflix, and others involved in the streaming service’s limited series “Griselda” are being sued by the estate of Blanco, which is represented by her son and his wife.
Here’s everything you need to know:
What is the lawsuit about?
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The suit was filed last week in federal court in Miami-Dade by Blanco’s son, Michael Sepulveda Blanco, and his wife, Marie.
It seeks an emergency temporary injunction to stop the release of “Griselda,” which is set to stream on Netflix on Thursday, as well as damages exceeding $50,000.
A hearing over the suit was being held in Miami-Dade on Wednesday.
The suit claims the series and its promotional materials use the unauthorized “image, likeness and/or identity” of family members, and says “unreleased and private artistic literary work is used to depict the life story of” Michael Sepulveda Blanco and his mother, and that he wasn’t compensated.
It goes on to say that Michael Sepulveda Blanco “has devoted several years to meticulously documenting the private narratives of his, as well as his mother’s life, with the intention of publishing a book and developing a Spanish soap opera.”
The Blanco family said in a statement that the son, also known as Michael Blanco has, “conducted numerous interviews and TV shows to tell his story.”
“Michael Blanco was more than willing to share his hard work and the nonpublic details of his mother’s life with Latin World Entertainment/Netflix if he was to be fairly compensated,” the statement read, in part.
“Make no mistake, Michael Blanco is humble and thrilled each and every time someone reaches out to shine light on his mother and the Blanco family. However, in the case of Netflix/Latin World Entertainment, the Defendants approached Michael Blanco to gain his work, perspective, and insight to only turn around and act like he does not exist, in an apparent attempt to reap their own profits.”
Netflix didn’t respond to a request for comment about the suit.
What is “Griselda” about?
The six-episode series, directed by Andrés Baiz, 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,'” according to the series description.
“Griselda Blanco was a larger-than-life character,” Vergara, who also serves as executive producer, previously said in a statement, “whose ruthless but ingenious tactics allowed her to rule a billion-dollar empire years before many of the most notorious male kingpins we know so much about.”