Sofia Vergara has filed a $15million lawsuit against beauty brand Venus Concept, accusing the brand of using her image without permission. The 43-year-old, who is currently a brand ambassador for CoverGirl, is suing the company which she says has been falsely claiming that she is endorsing their product in advertisements around the world.
Sofia Vergara shared a photo of herself trying the brand's skin tightening massage in 2014
The Modern Family actress first came into contact with the brand when she received a skin tightening massage from the brand in August 2014, as she prepared for the 66th Emmy Awards.
At the time, she posted a photo on her WhoSay account and Instagram page of herself undergoing the treatment, lying on a table in front of a large poster of Marilyn Monroe in the background.
"What's so funny Marilyn??" she quipped in the caption to her 7.2 million followers. "Legacy massage @drlancerrx."
Sofia has filed a $15million lawsuit against the brand
In the lawsuit, Sofia accuses Venus Concept of having used her image and likeness since then on adverts and promotional materials, shown at exhibition booths and trade shows – despite the actress not wishing to pursue endorsements of the product.
"[Vergara] would not use it again, and certainly would not endorse it nor agree to appear in an international advertisement campaign to promote it," stated court records, which also highlighted the fact that the Colombian beauty can charge up to $15million to endorse a product.
The actress also claims to have made "repeated demands" in past months for the company to stop using her image, but these had not been made, prompting her to take legal action.
"Sofia personally prides herself on believing in what she sells and she talks about it genuinely," a source told Us Weekly. "For someone to just slap her face and image on something that she doesn’t even like, she just feels like she’s cheating her fans."