Jaclyn Jose, multi-awarded actress, beloved showbiz icon; 60

Jaclyn Jose

Jaclyn Jose, the prolific film and television thespian who made history as the first Filipino and Southeast Asian to win the best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival, died on March 2 of a heart attack. She was 60.

She is survived by her daughter Andi Eigenmann and son Gwen Garimond.

“It’s with great sadness that I announce the untimely passing of my Nanay, Mary Jane Guck, or better known as Jaclyn Jose, due to a myocardial infarction or a heart attack,” Eigenmann said at a televised announcement on Monday.

“We would like to thank everyone who has since extended their prayers and condolences to us as our family tries to come to terms with this unfortunate incident. Please provide us the respect and privacy to grieve and I hope this puts all speculations to rest,” she said.

Jose was born on Oct. 21, 1963, in Angeles City, Pampanga. Her mother, Rosalinda Sta. Ana, was a bar singer and zarzuela actress. Her father, whom she has never seen since she was 4, was an American soldier stationed at Clark Air Base. Her half-sister Veronica Jones, on the other hand, was an actress in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

While some family members were inclined to entertainment, acting or performing didn’t really appeal to Jose when she was young.

It was her mother who encouraged her to pursue an acting career, accompanying her to auditions—like that fateful one at Baby Pascual Film and Associates, which produced her launching film, the adult drama “Chikas,” in 1984.

Although Jose was considered a sexy actress in her early years, her talent was already apparent in Chito Roño’s “Private Show” (1984) and Lino Brocka’s “White Slavery” (1985), which earned her nominations at the Famas and Gawad Urian, respectively.

Two years later, she proved her acting mettle by winning her first Gawad Urian best actress trophy for William Pascual’s “Takaw Tukso.”

Her work on television was just as prolific: “Familia Zaragoza” (1995), “Mula sa Puso (1997), “The World Between Us” (2021), “Bolera” (2022) and “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo” (2023).

Crowning moment

Jose is one of the most decorated actresses in show biz, with five wins at the Urian, four at Star Awards, two at Luna Awards and one each at the Famas and Metro Manila Film Festival. Her undeniable crowning moment, however, came in 2016, when she took home the best actress trophy at the Cannes Film Festival for her performance in Brillante Mendoza’s “Ma’ Rosa.”

As an embattled mother and small-time drug dealer, she delivered an understated yet powerful portrayal that exemplified her signature “no-acting style of acting.”

“It felt like my soul left my body. And I stayed on my seat after my name was called,” she recalled in a previous interview with the Inquirer. “It will stay in my mind forever—one of the most beautiful experiences I have ever had… I told myself, OK na. Even if I don’t win another award, I will be fine.”

Jose’s death came as a shock to her colleagues.

Vilma Santos described her friend’s death as a “big loss” to the industry. “I’m so sad. It’s so sudden. Nakakagulat,” Santos told the Inquirer.

Despite her stature in the biz, Jose made herself available to independent filmmakers at a time when mainstream stars crossing over to indies wasn’t as common.

“She always championed for us,” television and film director Adolf Alix Jr. told the Inquirer. “It’s still unbelievable. We have gotten close through the years as she was part of the cast when I did my first film ‘Donsol’ in 2006. Cinema was what bonded us.”

READ: Senate resolution honoring late actress Jaclyn Jose filed

Alfred Vargas, one of Jose’s costars in “Pieta,” which was among her last films, said working with her was one of his “greatest honors [as] an artist and a human being.”

Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, who filed a resolution to honor Jose, said her Cannes victory led to the filing of Senate Bill No. 1032 or the proposed World-Class Filmmakers’ Incentives Act, which seeks to promote the production of world-class Filipino films by granting tax perks.

But more than her career achievements, it’s her life itself, Eigenmann said, that will be her greatest “obra maestra.”

“Her undeniable legacy will definitely forever live on through her work, her children, her grandchildren and the many lives she has touched.” —WITH A REPORT FROM TINA G. SANTOS INQ