Sofia Vergara’s 50th Birthday: Her 5 Best Judge Moments on ‘America’s Got Talent’
Sofia Vergara joined America’s Got Talent during season 15 in 2020. Since then, she’s won audiences over with her sense of humor and kind heart. There’s never a dull moment with Vergara on the judge’s panel. So, in honor of the Modern Family star‘s 50th birthday on July 10, 2022, we’re taking a look at some of her best moments on AGT.
Sofia Vergara showed off her own talent on ‘America’s Got Talent’
As fans of Modern Family may recall, Vergara’s character, Gloria Delgado-Pritchett, took up ventriloquism in season 4. She introduced her puppet, Mr. Grumpy, and performed an act with him to impress her son. America’s Got Talent made a callback to that Modern Family scene in season 15 when Vergara met young ventriloquist Darci Lynne Farmer, the winner of season 12.
Of course, Vergara’s ventriloquism skills didn’t quite match up to Farmer’s. Her mouth moved as she spoke, and Mr. Grumpy’s speech wasn’t quite clear. Farmer had to play along as Vergara hilariously offered to perform a show together.
Sofia Vergara tried to crack a walnut with her butt
Cracking a walnut with your butt is no easy task, which Vergara learned the hard way last year. Mr. Cherry, a world record breaker from Japan, took to AGT’s stage to break the record for most walnuts crushed with his backside in 30 seconds or less. After the crew resolved a nut shortage, Mr. Cherry got to work hopping across the stage on his derriere, attempting to crush more than 71 walnuts.
Mr. Cherry broke the record with 79 walnuts, but there was still one left. And who better to give this talent a try than an AGT judge? Vergara wondered how difficult the task actually was, so she jumped on stage herself and tried to crush the final walnut with the stronger side of her butt. Unfortunately, the nut’s hard shell only left her in pain — and left the audience laughing hysterically.
Sofia Vergara pulled a sword from Brett Loudermilk’s throat
That wasn’t the first time Vergara participated in an AGT act. In 2020, Brett Loudermilk showed off his sword-swallowing skills with Vergara as his lovely assistant. She joined him on stage, saying a little prayer as she walked. Loudermilk explained the act to Vergara, but nothing could prepare her for what came next. Loudermilk pretended to choke on the sword, causing Vergara to run off the stage.
But the hilarious chaos didn’t end there. Loudermilk put the sword back in his mouth and motioned for Vergara to pull it out, but she was too nervous. The two of them joked and yelled at each other a few more times until Vergara finally worked up the courage to pull the sword out. She rose it up in the air triumphantly.
Sofia Vergara pulled an epic revenge prank on fellow ‘America’s Got Talent’ judge Simon Cowell
Last year, Simon Cowell pulled a horrifying prank on Vergara: He made her think she injured him in a daring act with a bow and arrow. She vowed to get revenge, and she fulfilled her promise just a few weeks later. Vergara hired a sculptor to create gold busts of all four America’s Got Talent judges and the host — herself, Cowell, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel, and Terry Crews — for display at the Luxor Theater in Las Vegas. While Vergara’s, Klum’s, Mandel’s, and Crews’ busts looked great, Cowell’s looked purposely awful.
Vergara helped the sculptor design Cowell’s hideous bust. She also hired an actor to present the sculptures in from of the judges. When Cowell saw his, he threw his hand to his mouth and called it “the worst thing I’ve ever seen.” Vergara called him out for being rude and revealed the prank, saying, “That’s what he gets for messing with a Colombian.”
Sofia Vergara gave her first Golden Buzzer to a 10-year-old singer
Handing out a Golden Buzzer is a rite of passage for a new America’s Got Talent judge. Vergara experienced her first Golden Buzzer moment in 2020 with Roberta Battaglia, a 10-year-old singer from Canada who said how much she loved Vergara in Modern Family. Battaglia performed “Shallow” from A Star Is Born, and her mature voice earned a standing ovation from the entire room.
Vergara expressed how impressed she was with Battaglia’s voice. After hearing that the young singer sometimes gets bullied at school, Vergara said, “Let’s see who is going to bully you after this,” and pressed the Golden Buzzer.
Sofia Vergara is still making memories on America’s Got Talent in season 17. New episodes air every Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.
