Who is Gloria in Modern Family?

The character of Gloria, aka Gloria María Pritchett, is one of the main characters in Modern Family.

The American sitcom Modern Family is one of the most popular family sitcoms, revolving around the day-to-day lives of the Pritchett family. They are seen tackling themes like family, relationships, love, character growth, and parenting in hilarious yet meaningful ways. The Modern Family series is known to have a total of 11 seasons, created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan. Throughout its 11 seasons, the series has aired a total of 250 episodes starting on September 23, 2009, with its last episode getting aired on April 8, 2020. The series was aired under the banner of ABC with a total runtime of 22 minutes per episode.

Who is Gloria in Modern Family?

Gloria María Pritchett is the feisty, fun-loving Colombian wife of Jay Pritchett and the daughter of Pilar Ramirez and Fulgencio Ramirez in the series. Before marrying Jay, Gloria was known to be in an unsuccessful relationship with Javier Delgado who has made an appearance in the series a few times. During her and Javier’s relationship, Gloria had a son named Manny Delgado.

It was revealed that before meeting Jay, Gloria was leading quite an unstable lifestyle where she used to work as a hairdresser, taxi driver, mover, philosophy professor, and model before running into Jay at a restaurant, which changed her entire life. Gloria’s character is mostly seen as a loud-mouthed, outspoken personality. Even though Gloria has a motherly love and family-loving side to her, she is also seen as a fierce alpha woman who sometimes clashes with her stepdaughter Claire Dunphy (nee Pritchett), another strong woman in the family.

Gloria's relationships in Modern Family

Gloria Delgado-Pritchett, a vibrant individual, is one of the most caring and giving mothers. While she can be fierce and stubborn, she has a soft, loving, and nurturing side to her which is appreciated by her entire family. She was introduced in the series as Jay Pritchett's beautiful young wife during her introduction of the series. As Jay’s wife, she brings energy and humor to their marriage, balancing their age difference with love and mutual respect. Before her relationship with Jay, Gloria was a single mother to Manny Delgado, the son she had from her previous short-lived marriage. Manny is a highly special person in Gloria's books as it was he who kept Gloria going through all the tough times before meeting Jay. With Jay, the couple end up having a second child who goes by the name Joe, who ends up taking another special place in Gloria's heart.

Gloria also develops a close connection with Claire and Mitchell over the seasons, blending families through occasional comedic misunderstandings. Her larger-than-life personality often contrasts with Claire’s practicality and Mitchell’s reserved personalities, but her genuine affection for them brings them all closer together. Gloria is also seen being an amazing grandmother to Claire and Mitchell's kids, often bringing them home for a stay and even solving any personal issues that they are dealing with. While she does often behave like friends with them, she draws a line when it comes to disciplining the kids straight.

Who plays the role of Gloria in Modern Family?

The role of Gloria María Pritchett is played by Sofía Margarita Vergara, a Colombian and American television actress who has acted in various television shows. Apart from being a television actress, Sofia has starred in movies and voice-over projects as well which have earned her plaudits and fame. She got a huge breakthrough for her role as Gloria Pritchett in Modern Family. Apart from this, the actress starred in television shows like Fuego en la Sangre, Dancing with the Stars, The Cleveland Show, and Family Guy, among others.

The actress is also credited for appearing in movies like Grilled, Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns, The Smurfs, The Three Stooges, Chef, Hot Pursuit, Strays, and more. Sofia has received a total of five Primetime Emmy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations. She has received 3 awards for the category “Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series” at the Screen Actors Guild Awards.