Vic welcomes Willie’s new show

VIC SOTTO

Vic Sotto described the coming noontime show of rival Willie Revillame as a welcome development that would benefit the viewers.

“More shows, more choices. More people will be entertained,” said Sotto, who cohosts the noontime variety program “Eat Bulaga”—now on its 33rd year—with Joey de Leon and Tito Sotto, among others.

“Wowowee,” Revillame’s old program on ABS-CBN, competed with “Bulaga” for five years before the controversial TV host moved to TV5. Revillame now hosts the game show “Wil Time Bigtime,” which airs weeknights on the Kapatid network. He is set to fold up this game show to host a new noontime program starting January 2013.

No big deal

“It’s a nonissue,” Sotto told writers during the press con for his latest fantasy-adventure flick, “Si Agimat, Si Enteng at Si Ako,” in which he costars with Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. and Judy Ann Santos.

Sotto added: “We don’t even talk about this in ‘Bulaga.’ It’s not a big deal.”

“In our show, araw-araw may pasabog (every day there’s a surprise),” Sotto said. “I especially like the ‘Sugod Bahay’ portion because it’s very unpredictable.”

The goal

The same might be said of the new “Enteng Kabisote” franchise, added Sotto. “It’s also funnier with the addition of Juday (Santos). She’s a really good actress.”

He said he and Sen. Revilla traveled all the way to Laoag, Ilocos Norte, for this project and lived under one roof. “We’ve become more comfortable with each other, and this translates to the big screen,” Sotto said.

“Si Agimat, Si Enteng at Si Ako” is one of eight entries to this year’s 2012 Metro Manila Film Festival, which begins on Christmas Day.

As to whether this would be as big a box-office success as his first collaboration with Revilla (“Si Agimat at Si Enteng Kabisote,” 2010), Sotto said he wasn’t worried at all. “I always say that what’s important to me is the success of the festival as a whole. I’d love it if all eight entries got equal viewership. Our goal is to entertain viewers.”

More Christmas time

Unlike before, he said, he’d have more time to enjoy Christmas this year. “This is because the annual Parade of the Stars will be held on the 23rd and not on Christmas Eve. I remember always rushing and not having time to bathe before hearing the midnight Mass because the parade finished late.”

The comedian added: “Christmas has always been very simple in my family, nothing fancy. I spend it with my children who are available.”

He has not made plans with rumored girlfriend Pauleen Luna, Sotto clarified.  “She has her own family to spend time with on this day,” he explained. “I have no gift for her yet [but] love is the most important gift, don’t you think?”

The past year was a good one, he said. “I’ll see to it that 2013 will be better. I always look forward to a new year. I constantly want to improve on everything, be it my career, business, movie projects, family or love [life].”