Showbiz Roundup: MTRCB’s ban on ‘Dear Satan’; Richard Gomez hits ‘ungas’ writers

‘Dear Satan’ stars Paolo Contis and Sienna Stevens (left); Richard Gomez (right). Images: Instagram/ @_siennastevens; File Photo

The Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) said the “X” rating of the upcoming film “Dear Satan” which stars Paolo Contis and Sienna Stevens, is banned from public viewing, citing it as an “attack” on Catholic and Christian faiths.

Meanwhile, Richard Gomez drew criticism after lamenting the traffic in EDSA after being stuck for hours, with many netizens reiterating his position as a lawmaker.

Eager to brush up on your weekly showbiz fix? Look no further as we look back at INQUIRER.net’s biggest entertainment headlines from August 30 to Sept. 5.

‘Dear Satan’ X rating final — MTRCB

A poster of the film “Dear Satan” starring Paolo Contis and Sienna Stevens. Image: Courtesy of Mavx Productions, Inc.

The MTRCB is upholding its decision to ban “Dear Satan” from public viewing, stressing that the film’s positive portrayal of Satan is “an attack on the fundamental belief of the Catholic and Christian faiths.”

MTRCB chairperson Diorella “Lala” Sotto-Antonio earlier said in a Senate hearing that the upcoming Paolo Contis-led film – whose title has apparently been changed to “Dear Santa” – was given an X rating as it was found to be violative of the Presidential Decree (PD) No. 1986.

She also stated in the hearing that the film “offended [her] as a Christian” and that it “has a different depiction of Satan becoming good.”

The regulatory board then specifically noted that it was violative of Presidential Decree No. 1986, Chapter IV, Section F, Subsection (c), which prohibits the exhibition of contents that “constitute an attack against any race, creed, or religion.”

“The Committee that reviewed the film found that the material depicts Satan as capable of transformation, saying it is a distortion of Catholic and Christian teachings. The review committee said the film’s narrative, which presents the possibility of Satan being redeemed, is deceiving to the eyes of the viewers,” the agency said.

MTRCB also underscored that it balances upholding the cultural and moral values of the Filipinos, and the right to freedom of expression.

Mavx Productions, the production company behind the film, has yet to comment on MTRCB’s ruling.

Paolo Contis on changing ‘Dear Satan’ title

Paolo Contis (right) and Sienna Stevens in “Dear Satan”—PHOTOS COURTESY OF MAVX PRODUCTIONS/YOUTUBE

“Changing the title will not change the whole movie,” declared Paolo Contis on the decision of Mavx Productions, producer of “Dear Satan,” to simply come up with a new title after the project drew negative reactions from netizens, claiming this might send a wrong message to children.

“Changing the title just means we’re being sensitive to what people are saying. We’d rather do that than not get the film shown. The movie is finished. It’s been fully edited, and it’s beautiful,” said Paolo, who also admitted that the film is actually based on his concept.

Paolo said the title change also means that he and the production respect what the public is saying. “It’s a movie. It’s fiction. Its main concept is the battle between good and evil. It features a child, who is pure at heart, and Satan. If you want the clearest depiction of good and evil, who do you think is the best person to show evil other than Satan? That’s just my opinion. Then again, it’s fiction,” he pointed out.

He added that, while filming, he and the production team made sure they were sensitive to the needs of their child actor, Sienna Stevens, both physically and emotionally. “I guess people were just reacting to the title. You cannot judge the whole film based on that. It’s the concept of the movie—the child, who was writing to Santa, made a mistake and misspelled it as ‘Satan.’”

The actor went further by sharing what he thought was the true message of the film. “We always hear people say, ‘You should have child-like faith.’ This is the literal depiction of that. No matter how bad I am—as Satan—to the kid, she is still kind to me. For me, the message is beautiful. It’s just sad that people chose to connect it to all sorts of issues,” he said.

Paolo then admitted to being surprised with the public’s reaction to the title. “I honestly thought they would see the difference between art, of a fictional movie, and [real-life issues]. The movie didn’t say we should idolize Satan. I think the trailer was very clear that I’m trying to influence her [to become bad], but it never happened because her faith is strong.”

Paolo said he personally sat down with Mavx head Lucky Blanco to discuss the issue prior to releasing a formal statement about it during the weekend. “Lucky wanted to be sensitive to what the people were saying. I just wish they would give the movie a chance. I guess one of the things they noticed was that Satan is still too nice… I could portray Satan at his worst, but that will not look good either because we are working with children,” he explained.

“I also believe that, yes, you go to the cinemas to watch and learn from what you’ve seen. But the lesson should still be discussed at home. Again, we made sure that by watching the movie, the kids would not question their faith. It will just show that a person with a strong faith in God will not be swayed to do bad things,” Paolo declared.

Richard Gomez after EDSA traffic remark

Richard Gomez

Richard Gomez expressed his annoyance toward “stupid writers” who wrote about his criticized sentiment.

Gomez previously aired his dismay after being stuck in Edsa traffic for hours. “[Two] hours in EDSA traffic and counting. From Makati, Ayala, nasa SM Edsa pa lang ako up to now. Eh [Quezon City] ang punta ko. [One to two] hours pa ba?!” he said on Facebook.

“Ilang bus lang ang gumagamit ng bus lane, bakit hindi buksan during heavy traffic para mas lumuwag ang traffic?” he suggested.

This, however, irked netizens, with some pointing out how Gomez is “self-entitled” and detached from the reality the public commuters in the country face on a daily basis.

Gomez then took to his Threads page to speak on the matter, although he did not immediately address the criticisms.

“Paki-check nga kung deleted yung post ko? Pakisabi sa mga ungas na writers tingin-tingin din kapag may time,” he stated.

Catriona Gray robbed in London

Catriona Gray. Image: Instagram/@catrionagray

Catriona Gray was traumatized after she lost her belongings to robbers in London, who broke the rear window of her car while she was having lunch.

The beauty queen shared her and her family’s traumatic experience, showing the broken window of the vehicle through her Instagram Stories last Aug. 31.

“Robbed in the middle of London whilst stopping for lunch on the way to the airport. Our passports and belongings [are] gone,” Gray lamented. “Traumatized.”

Gray did not expound on the incident, although she earlier shared through her Instagram page that she is in the United Kingdom with her family. She also documented their trip to England and Scotland through separate posts.

MTRCB reclassifies ‘Alipato at Muog’ to R-16

“Alipato at Muog” director JL Burgos and his mother Editha hold a protest at the MTRCB. Image from Burgos’ Facebook account

The MTRCB reclassified the controversial documentary film “Alipato at Muog” with an R-16 rating following a second review by a five-member board committee.

In a resolution, the MTRCB committee decided to grant the appeal made by the producers and several individuals to revoke the X-rating, or a total ban on public exhibition of the film, citing its supposed subversive content.

“The Committee considered the importance of balancing the interests not only of the constitutionally protected right to freedom of expression with the State’s interest in maintaining public order and integrity,” the regulatory body said in a statement following the reclassification.

The MTRCB review committee also determined that “a more mature viewer is necessary to understand, dissect, and grapple with the serious issues presented in this documentary, without compromising their own faith and confidence in the government.”

The R-16 rating means that the movie may now be screened in cinemas, but is only suitable for audiences aged 16 and above.

“Alipato at Muog” is about the disappearance of Jonas Burgos, who was tortured and believed killed by the military on allegations that he was a member of the New People’s Army. To this day, his body has not been recovered by his family.

Burgos is also the son of the late freedom fighter and newspaper publisher Jose Burgos Jr. The case eventually reached the Supreme Court and was finalized in 2017 in favor of the Burgos family.

During the MTRCB budget deliberations earlier this week, its chairperson Lala Sotto-Antonio, said the agency is standing firm with its findings that “Alipato at Muog” is not fit for public exhibition, citing its prominent theme that supposedly tends to undermine the people’s faith in the government.

After the hearing, “Alipato at Muog” director JL Burgos, brother of the desaparecido, Jonas, urged the MTRCB to review the documentary with an “open mind.”

“Alipato at Muog,” which was first screened at the 20th edition of the Cinemalaya festival in August, had an agreement with the film festival organizers to provide its rating. The film eventually bagged the Cinemalaya Special Jury Award For a Full-Length Feature award.

JL welcomed and thanked the MTRCB for its new ruling allowing the exhibition of the movie.

“Isa itong malaking tagumpay sa mga mamamamayan… Base po sa kwento sa amin, sila [second reviewers] ay tinamaan sa puso ng pelikulang ito. Sila ay naninindigan din sa katotohanan at katarungan, kaya nais naming magpasalamat sa MTRCB,” he said on Facebook.

Rhian Ramos hops on ‘shimenet’ trend

Rhian Ramos. Images: Screengrab from Instagram/@whianwamos

Rhian Ramos drew laughs from her followers after joining in the “shimenet” trend on social media that referenced a terse moment when Vice President Sara Duterte tried to defend her office’s requested budget for 2025 at the House of Representatives.

The latest buzzword stemmed from the remarks made by Duterte when she was arguing with solons who were questioning her 2022 spending of the P125 million confidential funds within 11 days. She said: “She may not like my answer. She may not like how I answer. She may not like the content of my answer, but I am answering.”

Duterte’s delivery stuck with internet users who were following the hearing, and has since spawned many funny edits as it sounded like “shiminet” or “shimenet,” owing to her Visayan accent. Her voice and words eventually found its way to a remix of Black Eyed Peas’ song, “Boom Boom Pow.”

In a video that she posted on Instagram, Ramos lip-synched and posed on camera to her own version of the “shimenet” trend, as a remix of the song played in the background. She captioned her post, “She may like to stay home, but sometimes, #ShimenetLike….”

Fellow celebrities Carla Abellana, Samantha Bernardo, and Katarina Rodriguez were amused by Ramos’ video, as seen in the comments.

While Ramos’ followers found her post to be funny, some @_heyitsrox and @tatamk2010 called the actress out for allegedly making fun of Duterte. One even warned that she might suddenly disappear, while another alluded to a past scandal involving the actress.

Aside from Ramos, Vice Ganda and Bela Padilla previously poked fun at the term “shimenet” on the August 30 episode of “It’s Showtime.”

Meanwhile, Saab Magalona also made a reference to “shimenet” as she was having a facial.

Ella Cruz cries foul over satire post

Ella Cruz. Image: Instagram/@ellacruz

Ella Cruz slammed a Facebook page handled by anonymous netizens, which made a satirical post about the actress supposedly being against the recent class suspension due to Tropical Storm Enteng.

Cruz addressed the handlers of the account with the name “Ppop latest chika updatez,” through her Facebook on Sept. 2.

“Unang beses na pinost niyo ako, pinalampas ko. [Pero itong] pangalawa ‘di ko pababayaan,” she said, referring to the page’s post saying that the actress supposedly gave a “nonsense suggestion” regarding the cancelation of classes due to Tropical Storm Enteng.

“Gets ko naman na trabaho niyo yan, at paninira at pagkakalat ng maling impormasyon ang nagpapalamon sa inyo kaya sige, ibibigay ko na yung pansin na hinahanap niyo,” she added.

Cruz lamented how content like such has victimized a lot of social media users, leading them to believe false information.

Cruz then enumerated the fake names of the page’s administrators in a succeeding post, stressing that she would work on finding out their real names and reveal them to the public.

“Pangako, ipakukulong ko kayo,” she vowed.

The page’s handlers, however, seem undisturbed as they even released several succeeding posts that made mention of the actress.