The real-life Griselda was notoriously ruthless and began killing when she was a child. At the age of 11, she and some kids in Medellin kidnapped a young boy from a rich family. They demanded ransom, and when the boy's family refused to pay, Griselda shot and killed the boy.
Sofia Vergara wore extensive prosthetics on her face - from around her eyes, to her nose, to her chin - as well as fake teeth - in order to better represent Griselda. She was nervous people wouldn't take her seriously in a dramatic role.
It was announced in Jan. 2024 that Sofia Vergara was being sued by the real-life Griselda Blanco's family for allegedly using their family's image and likenesses without authorization, according to court documents obtained by TMZ. The Colombian drug lord's adult children, as representatives of her estate, are reportedly aiming to halt the Netflix series' release by requesting an injunction. The publication reports that her son, Michael, claimed to have spent about 13 years giving interviews to folks who were aiming to compile his mother's life story with the intention of eventually developing it into a script and a book. Michael said that they pitched the project to a producer, but that he was later told that, while they were interested in his mother's story, Netflix didn't want to use any of his material. But Michael then alleged that the show did utilize information obtained from his myriad of interviews for which he never received any form of payment.
Alberto Ammann plays Griselda's husband Alberto Bravo in the first episode. Ammann played the lead role of Pacho Herrera, a leader of the Cali Cartel in Netflix series Narcos.
The woman that plays Griselda's longtime friend, Carmen, is played by Vanessa Ferlito.