Hey, everyone! How’s it going? Today I’m here to review the drama Griselda, which showcases Sofia Vergara’s career-defining transformation from comedy icon to dramatic powerhouse, telling the brutal rise and fall of one of history’s most feared drug lords with unflinching authenticity and emotional depth.
Griselda premiered on Netflix on January 25, 2024, featuring 6 episodes with approximately 60-minute runtime each. Created by Eric Newman and Andrés Baiz from the team behind Narcos, this limited series dramatizes the life of Griselda Blanco, the Colombian woman who became known as “The Godmother” of Miami’s cocaine trade during the 1970s and 1980s. The series stars Sofia Vergara in a complete departure from her comedic roles, supported by Alberto Guerra, Christian Tappan, and Vanessa Ferlito.
Griselda isn’t just another crime biography. It’s a complex character study that explores how desperation, ambition, and survival instincts can transform an immigrant mother into one of the most ruthless criminals in American history. The series examines themes of maternal sacrifice, the American Dream’s dark side, and the price of power in the male-dominated world of drug trafficking.
From Medellín to Miami: Building an Empire on Blood
Griselda follows Griselda Blanco as she flees Colombia with her three sons and arrives in Miami with nothing but determination and a small amount of cocaine. The series shows her methodical rise from desperate immigrant to powerful drug lord, demonstrating the intelligence, ruthlessness, and strategic thinking that made her one of the most feared figures in the cocaine trade.
The series excels at showing how Griselda’s maternal instincts drive her criminal empire, as every decision stems from her desire to provide for her children and ensure their survival. The narrative demonstrates how the drug trade becomes both her salvation and damnation, offering wealth and power while ultimately consuming everything she holds dear. Each episode reveals new layers of her strategic brilliance and moral compromise.
Griselda Blanco: Sofia Vergara’s Stunning Metamorphosis
Sofia Vergara delivers the performance of her career as Griselda Blanco, completely transforming herself physically and emotionally to embody the Colombian drug lord. Vergara gained weight, wore prosthetics, and adopted a completely different physicality to disappear into the role. Her performance earned widespread critical acclaim and Golden Globe nominations, establishing her as a serious dramatic actress.
Vergara’s portrayal captures Griselda’s complex psychology, showing a woman who maintains fierce maternal love while becoming increasingly ruthless and paranoid. The performance reveals how trauma and desperation can reshape someone’s fundamental nature, as Griselda evolves from protective mother to calculating killer. Vergara brings vulnerability and menace in equal measure, creating a character who’s simultaneously sympathetic and terrifying.
Darío Sepúlveda: Alberto Guerra’s Dangerous Charm
Alberto Guerra portrays Darío Sepúlveda, Griselda’s lover and business partner whose relationship with her becomes increasingly toxic as power and addiction corrupt their bond. Guerra brings dangerous charisma to the role, showing a man who’s both attracted to and threatened by Griselda’s growing power. Their relationship provides the series’ emotional center while demonstrating how criminal partnerships inevitably become destructive.
Darío’s character explores themes of masculinity and control within criminal organizations, as he struggles to maintain authority alongside a woman who increasingly overshadows him. Guerra shows the gradual deterioration of their relationship as business success breeds personal disaster, creating one of the series’ most compelling and tragic dynamics.
The Price of Power: When Success Becomes Destruction
The series’ later episodes showcase Griselda’s descent into paranoia and addiction as her empire reaches its peak. Her increasing use of crack cocaine and growing isolation from her family demonstrate how criminal success ultimately becomes self-destructive. The climactic episodes show how her ruthless methods create enemies who eventually turn her own strategies against her.
The finale explores the ultimate cost of Griselda’s choices, as her pursuit of power and security for her family ultimately destroys everything she sought to protect. Without spoiling specifics, the conclusion demonstrates how the violence and betrayal inherent in drug trafficking create cycles that consume even the most successful criminals. The ending provides both dramatic satisfaction and genuine tragedy.
The Cocaine Cowboys Era
Griselda features strong supporting performances from Christian Tappan as Arturo Mesa, Vanessa Ferlito as Detective June Hawkins, and Gabriel Sloyer as Diaz. Each supporting character represents different aspects of Miami’s cocaine-fueled transformation during the 1980s, from corrupt officials to dedicated law enforcement to rival traffickers competing for territory.
The series particularly excels at showing how the drug trade affected every level of Miami society, from street dealers to law enforcement to political figures. The supporting cast helps create an authentic sense of the era’s chaos and violence, demonstrating how Griselda’s empire both shaped and was shaped by the broader criminal ecosystem.
Success on Netflix
Griselda achieved remarkable success on Netflix, debuting at number one in 90 countries and topping Netflix’s Global Weekly Top 10. The series earned an 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes with critics praising Vergara’s transformative performance and the production’s gritty authenticity. Griselda demonstrated that audiences hunger for well-crafted crime biographies that explore complex female characters beyond traditional stereotypes.
Why This Crime Biography Demands Your Attention
If you love character-driven crime dramas that explore the human cost of criminal ambition, Griselda is the perfect series to binge on Netflix. This isn’t just another drug lord story; it’s a profound examination of how desperation and maternal love can drive someone to become both protector and destroyer, creating television that’s both entertaining and genuinely tragic.
Why This Series Redefines Crime Television
Griselda succeeds because it treats its subject with complexity and nuance, avoiding both glorification and simple condemnation to create something genuinely human. Vergara’s career-changing performance anchors a series that understands how personal tragedy and criminal success can coexist, creating television that’s both brutal and surprisingly moving. It’s gripping, authentic, and absolutely essential viewing for anyone who appreciates crime drama that prioritizes character over spectacle.
Series Details
Number of Episodes: 6 episodes
Platform: Netflix
Release Year: 2024
Current IMDb Rating: 7.2/10
Genre: Crime Biography/Drama
Status: Limited series (concluded)
Protagonists: Sofia Vergara (Griselda Blanco), Alberto Guerra (Darío Sepúlveda)
Antagonist: Law enforcement, rival cartels, and Griselda’s own destructive choices