Nora Aunor’s gifted thespic progeny

Nora Aunor

Through the decades, Nora Aunor has been, not just a Superstar, but an acting icon as well. Even more impressively, her real and adopted children have established themselves as outstanding thespians in their own right.

Lotlot de Leon began her acting career way back in 1975, when she was only a cute, little tisay tyke, with “Niño Valiente.”

By 1987, she was a certified young star, topbilling popular flicks like “Bunsong Kerubin” and “Prinsesang Gusgusin.”

At the start, she was just riding on her mother’s fame—but, in the ’90s, she was coming up with more textured portrayals in “Ang Totoong Buhay ni Pacita M” (Nora’s dramatic starrer) and “Tatlong Maria.” She kept improving as she matured, and 2004 saw her soaring with “Milan” and “Feng Shui.”

Her subsequent standout performances have been in “Caregiver,” “Kubot: The Aswang Chronicles” and “Mrs.,” as well as a number of TV drama series.

It’s instructive to note that Lotlot has remained “in demand” through the years, and that 2017 is no exception, because she’s been tapped to join the stellar cast of the new “AlDub” teleserye, “Destined to Be Yours.”

Lotlot de Leon

Lotlot’s unexpectedly long and fruitful acting career is a testament not just to her innate thespic gift, but also to the “immersive” influence of her adoptive mother’s example.

There may not have been acting lessons as such, but just being around Nora both at work and at home must have been a key “focusing factor” in Lotlot’s own growth as an actress.

To her credit, she hasn’t been referential or deferential to Nora in her own portrayals, and thus has avoided the onus of unfair comparisons to her mom, the thespic icon.

For her part, younger sister Matet also went the easy, breezy “Child of a Superstar” movie route, debuting in “I Love You Mama, I Love You Papa,” in 1986, and topbilling crowd-pleasers like “Inday sa Balitaw” and “Takbo, Bilis, Takbo.”

Matet de Leon

Truth be told, however, the well-connected child sensation was pert and cute, but a rather “generic “ performer. Happily, Matet finally found her groove and bloomed as an adult player, and has been making her crisp and sardonic mark in second-lead roles on TV and the big screen.

She currently appears to be the go-to actress when directors need an “idiosyncratic” and wise-cracking performer to make an otherwise throwaway “supporting” character interesting, or perhaps even memorable.

Thus, she’s scored on the big screen in wry and winking winners like “The Super Parental Guardians” and “Walang Forever,” and she currently plays Bea Alonzo’s with-it “sidekick” in the current TV drama series, “A Love to Last.”

Ironically, Nora and Christopher de Leon’s only “real” offspring, Ian de Leon, is a similarly gifted actor in his own right, but is currently inactive in the thespic biz. His past film outings included “Sundalong Kanin,” “Halimaw,” “Pangako ng Kahapon” and “Muling Umawit ang Puso,” and he used to be a featured player on TV, as well.

Our hope for 2017 is that Ian will be “rediscovered” by TV and film producers and directors—because, like his now more visible adoptive siblings, Lotlot and Matet, he’s “got what it takes.”

Perhaps they could all act in a “reunion” indie film with their mother before the year is over? That would be such a treat.