Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera
Amid the spate of breakups among celebrity couples, the relationship of Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes, collectively known as “DongYan,” stood as a beacon of hope and inspiration among fans and fellow show biz insiders.
Rivera and Dantes, show biz power couple in their own right, were asked to give their two-cents on the seemingly perennial news of a split among celebrity couples, especially those that have been together for a long time.
“Siyempre, every time na nakakarinig tayo ng mga ganitong pagkakataon sa mag-couple ay nakakalungkot talaga, so ang tanging magagawa lang natin, mga nakapaligid at kung kaibigan man natin sila ay ipagdasal natin sila na maging maayos at makayanan nila itong pagsubok na ito,” said Rivera at a recent brand launch.
(Of course, every time we hear news about couples separating, it is saddening, but the only thing we can do for the people around us, for our friends, is to offer them prayers that they will be able to fix the problem and be able to rise above the struggle.)
Recently, Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla announced their split after 11 years together. Aside from “KathNiel,” other couples hounded by separation talks are Kim Chiu and Xian Lim, Sarah Lahbati and Richard Gutierrez, and Mavy Legaspi and Kyline Alcantara.
Rivera, in a recent press conference for their upcoming Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) entry “Rewind,” the reel-to-real couple shared the secret to her and Dantes’ steadfast romance.
“Malaking factor na kahit anong mangyari, mataas man o mababa, tagumpay man or hindi tagumpay, nandyan kami para sa isa’t isa. Kung ano man kulang, pupunan mo,” said Marian.
(It’s a huge factor that no matter what happens, high or low, success or failure, we’re here for each other. What one lacks, someone will fill in the gaps.)
“Alam namin na hindi kami magiging ganito katatag kung wala ang nasa itaas. No matter what happens, ibigay ang biyaya sa’min, lahat ‘yun, ibabalik namin sa taas,” the actress said.
(We knew that we wouldn’t be as firm as we are now if it wasn’t for the Lord, so no matter what happens, we’ll return all the good deeds to Him.)
“Rewind” will mark DongYan’s comeback on the big screen after 13 years. The couple was last seen in their 2010 movie “You to Me Are Everything. This MMFF film will serve as the royal screen couple’s third onscreen partnership, with One True Love (2008) being their first ever film.
Despite their short catalog of movies starring together, DongYan has worked on various television series for their home network, GMA, starting with Marimar (2007), Dyesebel (2008), Ang Babaeng Hinugot sa Aking Tadyang (2009), Endless Love (2010), and My Beloved (2012).
The couple tied the knot in 2014 and have been blessed with two kids, Zia and Sixto.