Elizabeth Pena Dead: ‘Rush Hour’ & ‘Modern Family’ Star Dies At 55

 

 So sad. Actress Elizabeth Pena, whose credits included ‘Rush Hour’ and ‘Modern Family,’ has died. She was 55.

Elizabeth Pena, who played Sofia Vergara‘s mother on Modern Family, passed away on Oct. 14 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, her nephew, Mario-Francisco Robles, shared.

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The actress, whose career spanned nearly 40 years, recently wrapped work on the first season of the El Rey Network’s Matador, where she played the title character’s mother Maritza, Mario wrote on Latino-Review, where he serves as a writeIn one of her most memorable films, John Sayles’ Lone Star, Elizabeth played a history teacher who rekindled a teenage love affair with Sheriff Sam Deeds (Chris Cooper).
She recently guest-starred in a pair of Modern Family episodes, but first dipped her toes in the sitcom water when she starred in ABC’s I Married Dora, a series that lasted one season from 1987-1988 and focused on a couple with a green card marriage, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

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Other credits include La Bamba (1988), Rush Hour (1998) and The Incredibles (2004).
Elizabeth is survived by her husband, two teenage children, her mother, and her sister.