Reason behind ‘JoshLia’s’ potent appeal

Joshua Garcia (left) and Julia Barretto

Ex-lovers Julia Barretto and Joshua Garcia, collectively known as “JoshLia,” stressed the importance of “saving the friendship” in order to still work effectively as on-screen partners.

The two were last seen on the big screen in the zombie flick “Block Z,” released in February. While on lockdown, they also worked on the mini movie “E-numan,” which began airing on the Kapamilya Live Online platform on Aug. 15.

“I’m convinced that our friendship is really the reason JoshLia is still an effective tandem up to now,” Joshua told Inquirer Entertainment.

Julia agreed: “It takes two to tango. We chose to save the friendship. Sayang eh! We had a lot of good memories together because we were friends before we became lovers. We just opted to go back to that [stage in our lives].”

Julia said the fact that they maintained constant communication made things easier for the two of them to adjust. “I think that’s the foundation of every friendship,” she pointed out. “And if you have a good friendship, you can do everything together and in peace. We were able to work and come face-to-face with each other in peace. I’m just so grateful because our experience taught Josh and me to be more mature.” —MARINEL CRUZ