How accurate is Griselda? Fact-checking all important parts of the show

Griselda is based on the real-life of Colombian drug trafficker Griselda Blanco and chronicles the ascent and decline of "the Godmother," one of the wealthiest and most lethal drug dealers in America during the 1970s and 1980s.

The miniseries that premiered on Netflix on January 25, 2024, features Sofia Vergara playing the role of Griselda Blanco, alongside Alberto Guerra and Juliana Aidén Martinez in the main cast.

In this dramatization, Vergara's emotional energy and Carlos Rafael Rivera's baroque soundtrack heighten Griselda's tragedy and villainy. The production's creators, Andrés Baiz and Eric Newman (Painkiller) worked hard to ensure that it was rooted in fact.

Newman while speaking to Tudum about his creation, said,

"Authenticity is everything to us. Authenticity not just in the place, but in the period and truths of the characters. Another driving force for us is finding that truth –– even when we can’t know the truth."

He added,

"There’s no interview you’re going to get with Griselda Blanco that tells you what she was thinking and feeling. And so creating that in the most authentic way becomes essential."

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Is Griselda based on a true story?

Yes, Griselda is based on the real-life events surrounding the renowned "Godmother of Cocaine" from Miami. However, not everything in the six-part series is factual. Newman and Baiz speaking to RadioTimes.com, said they had worked hard to balance reality and fiction in the series.

The Netflix original series begins in the late 1970s, the most well-known era of Blanco's career when she came back to the US and established herself in Miami, Florida. Blanco is said to have turned to crime at an early age, beginning with theft and pickpocketing before transitioning to the lucrative drug trade.

Regarding the drama's accuracy, director Andres Baiz stated to RadioTimes.com:

"We do all the research possible. We read books, we interview people, we watch documentaries – and once you have all this information, you're then going to tell this story of someone."

He continued,

"But you need to ask yourself: as creators, what are we saying? What is the theme of our show? And the theme of our show is women in power, women in a man's world. So then the writing and the directing is encompassed by that theme."

He further said,

"So a lot of what you see in the show – a lot of characters, events, actions – are absolutely real, but we were most interested in our theme and the inner truth of those characters."

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Did Griselda kill her second husband Alberto Bravo?

Alberto Guerra as Alberto Bravo (Image via el_guerra@Instagram)

Blanco is suspected of being involved in 40 murders in Miami, including the murder of her second husband, Alberto Bravo, which she allegedly carried out personally.

Blanco may have begun to suspect Bravo of having something to do with millions of missing funds when she returned to Colombia in 1975. Blanco, 32, pulled out a revolver during their argument. Alberto Bravo was reportedly shot in the head and died outside of Bogotá, Colombia. His six bodyguards were killed in the attack, and Blanco also suffered a stomach injury.

Bravo was the only direct death that according to June Hawkins-Singleton, a former Miami police investigator who worked on the case in the US, could be linked to Blanco.

In the series, Alberto Bravo, Blanco's husband, asks her to sleep with his brother Fernando to clear their obligation to him from a botched cocaine shipment. In a moment of anger, Blanco shoots Alberto. But there's no proof that Bravo told Blanco anything along those lines.

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Is June Hawkins real or fictional?

June Hawkins (Image via julianaaidenmartinez@Instagram)

June Hawkins-Singleton plays a police detective who is the first to discover that there's a lady behind the string of drug-related crimes plaguing Miami. This is one aspect of the character that piques viewers' curiosity.

Hawkins-Singleton was one of the first female police officers in Miami during the height of the cocaine wars, and she experienced the harassment that is portrayed in the show. She was also given an office apart from her coworkers, just like in the series.

In case viewers are curious, June Hawkins is a real person who is still alive and was contacted by the creative team for the series, Radio Times was informed by Eric Newman,

"We spent a fair amount of time with her, she was an invaluable consultant [and] resource. She did have a very similar experience – obviously, with a very different ending, June's happily married to, actually, another character in the show."

He further explained,

"She is a woman of Latin descent, a single mother in an almost equally male-dominated environment: law enforcement. She was underestimated and had to find her own way, using skills that the men didn't have."

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Is Karol G of Griselda based on a real character?

Karol G as Carla (Image via IMDb)

Actress Karol G, a singer-songwriter from Colombia, debuted in Griselda as Carla, a young employee of Griselda's who goes on to become one of her most significant workers.

As for Carla being a real character, there is a clear denial from Newman.

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How did Griselda die?

The Godmother of Cocaine (Image via griseldanetflix@Instagram)

After an extensive investigation by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), Blanco was ultimately taken into custody in February 1985. Blanco was given a 15-year sentence, but only seven of those years were served.

After a major heart attack and other health problems, the authorities had to grant her a compassionate release and send her back to Medellin.

Blanco was murdered eight years later by assassins on a motorcycle who shot her outside a butcher shop. The 69-year-old's demise was reminiscent of the same type of drive-by murders that, in her early days as a cartel member, she was suspected of ordering.

She is buried in the Jardines Montesacro cemetery, located south of Medellín. Pablo Escobar, another cartel chief, is buried there as well.

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What didn't make it to Netflix's series Griselda?

A few things had to be tweaked to fit in with the characters and story and that made them condense the timelines. As Newman, while discussing with USA Today, said,

"When you have a limited amount of real estate, you need to pull characters in sometimes through other characters. The men in Griselda's life were all part of the Medellín drug scene that "predated our story."

He said he loved how Blanco met Dario, but that was left out.

"A friend of hers had brought Griselda and Darío to a restaurant in Medellín. A couple of tables over, there were some men who recognized Griselda who were harassing her and catcalling her, and Darío very coolly pulled a gun out and shot and killed all three of them. To Griselda, it was the most romantic thing."

In the show, they first meet on the night she is made to spend with Alberto's brother.

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You can watch Sofia Vergara play the prominent Colombian drug lord in the crime mini-series online on Netflix.