Rico Rodriguez shares how Sofia Vergara hilariously “played” him into becoming her real-life Manny on the Modern Family set.
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Mother-Son Dynamics Off Camera
Rico Rodriguez and Sofia Vergara brought laughs to millions through their Modern Family roles.
Behind the scenes, their relationship mirrored their characters in the funniest ways possible.
Rico recently spilled the beans during Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s podcast, sharing how their off-camera dynamic took an unexpected turn.
Their real-life interactions proved that sometimes art truly does imitate life.
Script Savior Turned Personal Assistant
Sofia’s improv skills made her scenes unpredictable and hilarious.
When she’d go off-script during filming, she’d often turn to Rico with pleading eyes.
“Rico, what’s my line?” she’d ask, knowing he memorized everyone’s dialogue.
This innocent helping hand soon snowballed into something bigger. Rico became Sofia’s go-to guy for schedule reminders and more.
The Script-Marking Trap
One fateful day, Sofia arrived late to a table read. Sweet Rico, being thoughtful, marked up her script the way she liked.
“Oh thank you, Rico,” she cooed, pinching his cheeks appreciatively.
Little did he know this single act of kindness would come back around!
The following week, Sofia arrived on time but confronted Rico: “You didn’t mark my script.”
Just Like Their Characters
Rico couldn’t believe his ears when Sofia handed him her unmarked script.
He’d accidentally created a new expectation! “I was literally Manny at that point,” Rico laughed during the interview.
The young actor found himself living his character’s reality – always rushing to help his demanding but lovable mother figure.
Despite the sneaky script setup, Rico added warmly, “I love Sofia, so I had no problem doing it.”