Showbiz Roundup: Rita Avila, Coco Martin on Jaclyn Jose, and more

Rita Avila is one of the many celebrities who is reeling from the aftermath of Jaclyn Jose’s death, but she found herself on the hot seat after an Instagram post that was seen as meant to shade the latter’s children became viral.

Meanwhile, Coco Martin expressed his gratitude to the late screen veteran for trusting him to move further in his showbiz career, while recalling her final days on the set of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo.”

Sid Lucero, on the other hand, showed some love for his paternal half-sister Andi Eigenmann, who he described as the strongest among the siblings.

Megan Young also became the talk of the town after saying sorry for fixing the hair of Miss World Botswana Lesego Chombo during the pageant’s question-and-answer portion, a gesture that was not take kindly by the latter’s compatriots.

All these and more, as INQUIRER.net brings you the biggest entertainment news from March 8 to 14.

Rita Avila’s supposed lowkey shade

Rita Avila found herself in hot water after her Instagram post about her daughter Kate Cruz was perceived as a lowkey shade on the children of the late Jaclyn Jose.

Avila’s March 7 Instagram post garnered differing reactions after she spoke about hoping that Jose had a companion, just like what she had with her daughter.

The “Lilet Matias: Attorney at Law” star then recalled that Cruz was crying to her upon learning of Jose’s death, saying she was scared of losing her as well since the actress was almost the same age as the latter.

“Salamat sa Diyos Ama na may Kate ako. Sana si Jaclyn din ano, may kasama? (Para may companion sya; a friend, anak-anakan, relative. Her children are already adults who naturally have their own lives. Walang mali doon),” she wrote.

Avila then pointed out in the comments of her post that it was not her intention to compare her family situation with Jose, and clarified that it was meant to be “wishful thinking” for the latter as a “friend” of hers.

Two days later, Avila once again came to her own defense as she said in a separate post that she never questioned Jose’s situation when it came to her family and personal life.

“Sa isang post ko na ang wishful thinking ko ay sana may ‘Kate’ din si Jaclyn, mabuting wish ‘yun para sa isang naging kaibigan dahil malungkot nga daw [siya] sa pagiging mag-isa at dahil alam ko ang advantage ng may kasamang nagmamahal, nag-aasikaso at nagpapasaya sa akin,” she said. “Pero hindi ko kwinestyon ang sitwasyon niya.”

Avila and Jose worked together in the 1995 film “The Flor Contemplacion Story” and the movie “Puso ng Pasko” three years later, where their friendship bloomed off-screen. Jose died of heart attack on March 2.

Coco Martin on Jaclyn Jose

If it weren’t for people like Jaclyn Jose, Coco Martin said he wouldn’t have gotten to where he is now, not only as an actor but also as a person. He also shared that the late actress is one of those who believed in him from the start.

“The roles I did back then were really mature. And it’s a struggle when you’re a newbie actor. You have no name. You have a lot of things to prove. You will come across all types of rejections,” he said in his eulogy delivered on the second night of Jose’s wake.

Jose urged the then-dispirited actor to keep the faith and soldier on. “I will never forget being with her and Direk Dante [Mendoza] at the Cannes Film Festival where ‘Serbis’ competed. Mommy Jane told me to accept the project that director Andoy Ranay was offering which was ‘Ligaw na Bulaklak’ on ABS-CBN,” Coco said, referring to the actress using her real name.

Martin worked with Jose in Brillante Mendoza’s acclaimed movies “Masahista (2005)” and “Serbis (2008).”

The rest is history. “I attended the story conference. I learned about my character. And that’s how it started for me. After that, I did one project after another at ABS-CBN,” he said.

In his directorial debut with “Batang Quiapo,” Martin knew that, amid all the uncertainty, there was a familiar face he could always count on.

“When you’re starting something new, you go to the people close to you … the people who believe in you. So, I asked Mommy Jane to come on board as an actress. I was so happy. She went to the set and accepted the project,” Coco said. “At hindi s’ya nagpabayad sa ‘kin.”

Jaclyn joined the show’s second season as Dolores Espinas, the corrupt chief superintendent who oversees the jail in which Tanggol (Coco Martin) and some of his friends are kept. Her character was supposed to be cold and no-nonsense. And so Coco found it peculiar, he said, that Jaclyn seemingly broke out of character in her final scenes with him and Ivana Alawi, who plays Bubbles.

The concern Jose showed him, Martin said, he never even got from his real parents. “Kung ano man ang meron ako at ang pamilya ko, kung ano man ang inabot ko sa buhay, lahat ‘yun dahil ikaw ang nagkumbinsi sa’king pumasok sa ABS-CBN.”

Sid Lucero on Andi Eigenmann

Sid Lucero expressed love and admiration for his half-sister Andi Eigenmann who he said is the strongest among them half-siblings, and who is now dealing with the death of her mom Jaclyn Jose.

At the press conference of his new movie “Miss Probinsyana,” Lucero said Eigenmann is tough enough to endure the pain of losing, first, their father Mark Gil, and now her mother.

“She’s the only one out of all of us na pareho nang wala, but fitting rin because, not to sound insensitive, out of everybody, she’s the strongest, so siya ‘yung makakakaya n’un,” he said.

Lucero shared that he was there on the first day of Jose’s wake, where only family and close friends were allowed to attend. When asked how he is showing support to his half-sister, he said letting Eigenmann grieve is the least he could do for her.

Coming from a big, blended family that has dealt with the loss of several family members over the years, Lucero underscored that they will always be there for each other.

“I think I speak for the rest of the family, I’m trying to focus more on my sister because, of course, that’s her mom. I can only pretend to be the son… It doesn’t matter if I never spend time with your mom, if it’s your mom, she’s my mom, that’s how we are,” he said.

Megan Young sorry after fixing Miss Botswana’s hair

Megan Young apologized after she was slammed by netizens for fixing the hair of Miss World Botswana Lesego Chombo during its question-and-answer (Q&A) portion.

Young drew the ire of African pageant fans after fixing a tendril of Chombo’s hair from her face before she was asked to give her pitch to the “sharks of Shark Tank India” during the coronation night of the 71st Miss World on March 9.

This led to netizens accusing the Miss World titleholder of “witchcraft” and “jeopardizing [Chombo’s] standing” in the pageant, with many flooding her Instagram posts with criticism.

This led to the former beauty queen saying sorry through a statement on her Facebook page on March 11, as she pointed out that she wanted to “offer a helping hand” but failed to “oversee the bigger picture.”

“This could have caused distress during that moment and I have been made aware that culturally, this is unacceptable,” she wrote.

Young said she and Chombo “spoke privately at the hotel” where she apologized for the incident in private. “To those who witnessed the incident, I also want to apologize for any discomfort or confusion my actions may have caused. It was a thoughtless and disrespectful act, and I take full responsibility for it. said.

Meanwhile, Chombo appealed to her countrymen to be “kinder” to Young and the recently crowned Krystyna Pyszková of Czech Republic, whose win also drew flak from African netizens, on her Facebook.

“Batho bame (My people), I appreciate that you are all looking out for me, but it really doesn’t make me feel good when you bring other people down in my name or for my sake. Please be kinder. To Krystyna, to Megan, be kinder,” she wrote.

Sarah Geronimo’s ‘doubts’ over being a mom

Sarah Geronimo confessed that while she’s excited to have a child with her actor husband Matteo Guidicelli, she fears she may not be “equipped” enough to be a mom.

The actress-singer made this confession in a YouTube vlog with celebrity doctor Vicki Belo on March 7. “When is the baby coming?” Belo asked, to which Geronimo replied, “Kung ano po, kung ibibigay naman po ni Lord.”

Geronimo further disclosed that she and Guidicelli are just “relaxed” and not undergoing procedures that may prevent or help her from getting pregnant.

“Excited naman po [ako to be a mom]. May mga fears but kung ibibigay ni Lord, so be it,” she admitted.

Expounding on her answer, Geronimo said, “Madami [akong fears]. Syempre [you need] to be really equipped to be a mother. Open book naman po sa tao na late bloomer po ako. Medyo may mga doubts na gano’n, pero if ibibigay ni Lord, okay naman po ako — if it’s really His will,” said the singer, who wishes to have at least two kids.

Jaclyn Jose’s last message to Philmar Alipayo

Philmar Alipayo recalled with wistfulness the final message sent to him by award-winning actress Jaclyn Jose, the mother of his partner Andi Eigenmann, before her death on March 2.

Alipayo took to his Instagram Story on March 11 to share a screenshot of Jose’s last message to him, although he didn’t disclose when the text was sent to him by the screen veteran.

“Any which way, take care of my daughter and to my apos. Alam mo? Mahal kita Philmar, you are the father of my apos. Maraming salamat,” Jose’s message read.

In another Story, the Siargao native also reshared a post dedicated to him by Jose in June 2021, where she greeted him on Father’s Day while noting him as a “champ.”

In a previous post, Alipayo expressed how much he would miss the screen veteran in Cebuano while thanking Jose for “all the time that you cared for us and for loving us.” He also said that he and his family would “love [her] forever.”