Modern Family Star Rico Rodriguez Recalls Sofia Vergara Set Prank

The cast of Modern Family truly felt like one big family. Rico Rodriguez, who portrayed the endearing Manny throughout all 11 seasons, recently shared that Sofia Vergara, his on-screen mother Gloria, cleverly enlisted his help with various tasks during the show's run.

"It was hilarious because I spent so much time with Sofia. As many people know, Sofia sometimes likes to go off script," Rodriguez mentioned about Vergara's improvisational style on his former co-star Jesse Tyler Ferguson's podcast, Dinner's On Me. "She'd start improvising and then turn to me and ask, 'Rico, what's my line?'"

Rodriguez explained that he often arrived on set knowing not just his own lines, but everyone else's too. This habit unexpectedly led to him doing some additional favors.

"I adore Sofia, but I have to admit she outsmarted me," he recounted on the podcast. "One time, trying to be helpful when Sofia was running late for a table read, I thought, 'I know how she marks her script.' So I decided to be kind and mark her lines for her."

That single act of kindness spiraled into a running joke. "She arrived and said, 'Oh, thank you so much, Rico,' while pinching my cheeks. The following week, she was there on time. I sat down and started marking my own script," Rodriguez continued. "When we began reading, Sofia turned to me and said, 'Rico, you didn't mark my script.' I was surprised and replied, 'Wait, I didn't realize it was my job! I only did it that one time to be nice!'"

It truly became a case of life imitating art. "In that moment, I was just like Manny, always ready to assist Sofia," the actor chuckled. "But honestly, I love Sofia, so I didn't mind doing it at all," he added.

Modern Family, which first aired in 2009 and concluded in 2020, is now available for streaming on Hulu and Peacock.