John Prats. Image: Instagram/@isabeloliprats
John Prats disclosed that at one time he almost left ABS-CBN, but was stopped by one of the network’s executives, Cory Vidanes.
The actor-director spoke about this as he recounted the ups and downs of his 30-year showbiz career, in an interview with TV host Bianca Gonzalez, as seen on her YouTube channel yesterday, Aug. 8. One of the career highlights Prats talked about was his love team with fellow actor Heart Evangelista during the early 2000s.
“After that era, ‘yun yung time na I felt na bumagsak ‘yung career ko. Nung naghiwalay kami ni Heart, ang show ko na lang nung time na ‘yon—kasi ‘di ba before may ASAP then ASAP Fanatic. Sobrang liit ng [talent fee] ko [kasi] once a week lang ako nakikita at nagta-trabaho.”
(After that era, that was the time when I felt that my career was at its lowest. When Heart and I separated [from being a love team], my show at the time was only ASAP then ASAP Fanatic. I only got a small talent fee because I only worked once a week.)
He then realized that he needed to “reinvent” himself, and went back to his “first love,” dancing. Prats then auditioned for the reality TV show “Pinoy Big Brother,” which he considers as his “second chance” in his career.
“Nagsunod-sunod ulit ‘yung projects ko and ‘yun yung feeling ko na naging blessed ako kasi parang hindi ako nawala. Until nung nagkaroon na ako ng family—buntis na si Liv no’n—na-realize namin na parang hindi enough ‘yung twice a week taping para ma-sustain, or mabigay ‘yung needs ng family mo,” he recalled, referring to his wife, actress Isabel Oli.
(My projects came one after the other and I felt blessed. And when I had my own family–Liv was already pregnant–we realized that the [income I got] from doing tapings twice a week was not enough to sustain or support my family.)
“I was about to transfer then the next day, tita Cory [Vidanes] found out, pinigilan niya ako nung nalaman niya. Syempre ako, nung nalaman kong pinigilan ako, sabi ko, ‘Sige, I’ll stay,'” he added.
(I was about to transfer then the next day, tita Cory [Vidanes] found out and stopped me [from transferring]. When I knew that she stopped me, I said, “OK, I’ll stay.”)
Prats then became part of the cast of the action-drama TV series “FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano,” where he eventually served as one of the show’s directors.
“Lahat ng nangyayari sa akin ngayon, sobrang blessed ako kasi ang dami kong natutunan,” Prats stated. “Kaya kong sabihin na lahat ng nangyari sa career ko at kung nasaan ako ngayon, pinaghirapan ko at hindi naging madali.”
(With all that’s happening in my life, I am so blessed because I learned a lot of things after everything that happened to me. I can say that everything I have achieved and wherever I am now, I worked hard for it and it wasn’t easy.)
Prats, who entered show business at the age of 8, marked his 30th anniversary in the industry last April. The actor thanked those who have been part of his journey, noting that the milestone is his “greatest achievement” in life. /ra
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