While many actors spend years auditioning and waiting for their big break, Vergara's introduction to the industry was a bit more unconventional. She was spotted on the beach by an agent who recognized that Vergara had the makings of a star. "Yeah, I was with my family, like, at the beach and some casting agent saw me and said, 'We're doing this commercial, do you want to do it?'" she told CBS. And my mom is like, 'Yes, yes, she wants to do it.'"
Vergara was a senior at a Catholic high school at the time and at first wanted to turn down the opportunity. "I'm like, 'No, the nuns are gonna kill me, I can't be in a bathing suit on a commercial!'" she said. "They're not gonna let me do it. They're gonna throw me out of school." Fortunately, she eventually agreed to do the commercial in which she appeared in a bathing suit. She wasn't kicked out of school, either — the commercial didn't air until after she had graduated.
