Sofía Vergara Life and Career In Photos: Modern Family star Sofía Vergara through the years

Vergara was busy being a mother to her son Manolo for much of the 1990s, but she found fame in her home country hosting TV shows.

She also managed to land her first TV appearance in 1995 in the Colombian series Acapulco, cuerpo y alma.

She starred in three episodes as the character of Irasema.

Vergara emigrated to America in 1998 after the tragic murder of her brother Rafael, who was killed during an attempted kidnapping.

“We come from a successful family, and he knew he was a target for kidnapping,” Vergara revealed in a previous interview.

“He always had bodyguards. Then one day he went out alone and was shot dead [in a kidnapping attempt]. I was devastated.”

Here, Vergara is pictured in 1999 at Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.