Some local stars who made names for themselves did some daring roles that were their stepping stones to stardom.
They had to go through brave, challenging, and provocative roles and decisions.
Know them, one by one!
13. Chanel Latorre.
Chanel Latorre is an actress who started her career in Babagwa and assumed the role of an overbearing girlfriend who connived with people for money using a facebook account as part of an elaborate scheme devised by his manager.
After having played a sexy role in Babagwa, she became known for her role in Woman of the Ruins (2013), Magkakabaung (2014), and Excuse Me Po (2018).
She was nominated as Best Supporting Actress for Women in the Ruins of Cinema One Originals Digital Film Festival 2013.
She also posed for a Playboy Philippines’ magazine cover in December 2018 issue.
Thank you Playboy Philippines! My page has been inactive for quite some time, but have I got a wonderful surprise for 2019!! For now, let us watch and support our local films! 🙂
Posted by Chanel Latorre on Thursday, December 27, 2018
12. Sandino Martin.
He belongs to a new generation of actors who have crossed from stage to screen.
Before the screening, Martin took Theater Arts in UP-Diliman and was active along with the contemporaries JC Santos and JM de Guzman–are among the new generation of talented young actors who have successfully crossed over from theater to mainstream entertainment.>
It was via an R-16 movie, Esprit de Corps with JC Santos, where most of his scenes are n naked. The said film was part of the Cinema One Digital Film Festival and gave him the Best Actor award.
11. Nathalie Hart.
Hart is known for having a sexy body. Her career was launched through a sexy movie, Siphayo. She even revealed that she almost backed out from the movie because of the frontal nudity that she had to do.
“From the films I’ve done before, it’s always pa-sweet, pa-tweetums. Tapos ngayon ay eto na I mean, it’s not a porn movie, pero super daring po talaga. Kasi, mayroong frontal nudity and may back nudity. Not naman na kita iyong ibaba, of course!
“Sa shooting naman, we always have plaster. Pero para sa isang babae na maghububad ka na maraming tao sa paligid, napakahirap po niyon.”
The 28-year-old Hart is Princess Tinkerbell Cristina Marjorie Pedere Snell. She was one of the finalists in the fifth season of StarStruck. In February 2019, she gave birth to her daughter, Penelope, in Sydney, Australia. Later on, broke up with the father of her daughter, an Indian businessman Mayank Sharma.
10. Kiko Matos.
Matos starred in the movie, You, Me and Mr. Wiggles–to which the story revolves around a man struggling with the challenges of having erectile dysfunction.
Like any actors, he was fearless in the frontal nudity for the said Cinemalaya short film entry.
“True to its goal of truth and raw emotion, You, Me and Mr. Wiggles is a one-shot film. No chance for the characters to hide in camera angles and cuts. We did lots and lots of rehearsals, and it took us 22 takes to get the actual shot!”
Posted by Kiko Matos on Friday, September 28, 2018
9. Max Eigenmann.
Eigenmann is of showbiz royalty in the Philippines due to her clan’s history. She is the daughter of the late Mark Gil and Bing Pimentel. Gabby Eigenmann, Sid Lucero, and Andi Eigenmann are her siblings. She is the granddaughter of Rosemarie Gil and Eddie Mesa.
She was named Best Actress for her role in the court drama film Verdict at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards in 2019.
She once starred in a sexy role in the movie Dagitab (2014), a Cinemalaya film, that won awards led by Eula Valdes and Nonie Buencamino. Her other popular films are Ned’s Project (2016) and Kulay Lila ang Gabi na Binudburan Pa ng mga Bituin (2017).
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8. Kokoy de Santos.
Up-and-rising star Kokoy De Santos was mostly known for his role in a Boys’ Love (BL) series, Gameboys, with Elijah Canlas as his partner. Afterwhich, he had another BL project with iWant TFC, with a self-confessed bisexual actor, Alex Diaz in Oh, Mando!
F#*@bois was one of the most-talked-about Cinemalaya film entries in 2019. De Santos had a sexual engagement with Royce Cabrera.
In an interview, he shared how he had mixed emotions toward the Netizens’ reactions to Ricky Davao and Royce Cabrera‘s intimate, delicate scenes in the Cinemalaya film, which went viral on YouTube and facebook.
7. Mercedes Cabral.
Cabral, is an actress who starred in the Philippine arthouse and independent films, Brillante Mendoza, such as Serbis (2008). She had a controversial sex scene with Kapamilya actor Coco Martin.
She is best known for her appearance in Philippine arthouse and independent films, notably those by Mendoza such as Kinatay (2009), Captive (2012), and Thy Womb (2012). She was Evelyn, Young-du’s Filipino girlfriend in the South Korean film directed by Park Chan-wook, Thirst( 2009).
Ligo na Ü, Lapit na Me (2011) was her Cinemalaya entry with Edgar Allan Guzman as her leading man. Rosita, a film she starred in 2016, was a film that won Best Director for Danish filmmaker Frederikke Aspöck at the Moscow International Film Festival.
6. Coco Martin.
This maybe shocker to those who only know Coco Martin as Cardo Dalisay in FPJ’s Ang Probinsyana on TV. Unlike others, Martin did mature scenes before going wholesome on primetime TV.
In 2005, Martin made his debut movie with an independent film Masahista as Illiac. The film is co-story and directed by Brillante Mendoza. It essayed the life of a young masseur for gay men in Manila and had a relationship, too.
The Brillante Mendoza-directed film won Martin’s accolades as an actor, but not without doing justice to his role as the titular masseur-which meant that he had thrown his clothes on the screen.
He even shared in an interview that he has doubts to strip bare for the camera, but he did it, anyway.
“Dumating na ‘yong time na mayroong pinakamalalang eksena, ‘yong kailangan kong maghubad ng brief. Sabi ko, ‘Kaya ko ba ‘to?’ Syempre ang daming tao sa set. Akala mo ‘pag pinanood mo sa pelikula, kayo lang ng camera.”
Other notable films he did were: Daybreak (2008), Serbis (2007), Noy (2010), and Captive (2012). In Star Cinema, he was paired with Angeline Quinto, Julia Montes, and Toni Gonzaga in romantic-themed films–Born to Love You (2012), A Moment in Time (2013), and Maybe This Time (2013), respectively.
5. Maria Isabel Lopez.
Maria Isabel Lopez was the 1982 titleholder of the Binibining Pilipinas-Universe and represented the Philippines at the 31st Miss Universe in Lima, Peru. She became controversial as the Filipino beauty queen acting in sex films.
During the height of her popularity, Lopez began more intense sexual and romantic films. Lopez became even more controversial because of her highly sexualized roles.
Her first sexual film was Sana, Bukas Pa Ang Kahapon (1983). She played Candy who left her boyfriend Dick (Raoul Aragon) for a much older but wealthy man Peter (the late Eddie Garcia).
Her other notable film projects were Silip (1985) by Elwood Perez, Isla (1985) by Celso Ad Castillo, Hubo Sa Dilim (1985), Mga Nakaw Na Sandali (1986), Dingding Lang ang Pagitan (1986).
She won the Golden Screen Award Best Supporting Actress Award for Kinatay in 2009.
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4. Royce Cabrera.
Cabrera was the winner for Mr. Mapua Cardinals Search. He was introduced via the film, Baklad the same year (2017), an official entry to the ToFarm Film Festival.
His torrid kissing scene with 52-year-old actress, Yayo Aguila in the controversial 2019 Cinemalaya film entry, F#*@bois.
In the said film, he also bared himself in the nude via his bed scene with veteran actor-director Ricky Davao and Kokoy de Santos.
3. Tetchie Agbayani.
Veteran actress Tetchie Agbayani also had her share of doing frontal nudity in cameras.
The 1979 Mutya ng Pilipinas-Tourism titleholder before she pursued her career in Hollywood, sometimes credited as Carol Roberts. Her films include John Boorman‘s The Emerald Forest (1985), a cameo in The Money Pit (1986), a leading lady in Gymkata (1985), and as a geologist in the Australian film Rikky and Pete (1988).
Agbayani also appeared in an episode of the British television series Yellowthread Street.
Her appearance in a regular issue of German Playboy and a special American edition titled, Women of the World created quite a stir, but made her the first Filipina to pose for that publication.
But in 2018, during a press conference, she admitted that she got traumatized after modeling for the 1982 Playboy Magazine.
“Na-trauma ako dun Kasi, ahh… yung nakikita nilang ‘yon, yung nasa picture, it’s a persona. Like, in Playboy, you have to be attractive. And when they asked me to do that work, I wanted to stress the beautiful shape of a woman. After I leave that job, I revive my being me.”
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2. George Estregan.
Estregan made his film debut in 1963 with Jose Nazareno, Ang Taxi Driver. He was often cast as a villain and was infamously known as the Penetration King of erotic Philippine cinema.
He was a three-time FAMAS Award-winning Filipino actor. Estregan won critical acclaim for many of his performances.
In 1972, he was named FAMAS Best Actor for Sukdulan, and won two other FAMAS Awards for Best Supporting Actors for Kid Kaliwete (1978) and Lumakad Kang Hubad sa Mundong Ibabaw (1980).
He was nominated for the FAMAS Award three other times, as Best Actor for Lumapit, Lumayo ang Umaga (1975) as well as for Lalake Ako (1982), for Best Supporting Actor in Magkayakap sa Magdamag (1986).
He also received a nomination from the Gawad Urian as Best Actor for Hostage: Hanapin si Batuigas (1977).
His older brother is former Philippine President and former Manila Mayor, Joseph Estrada.
Estregan died when he was 49 years old after an eight-month battle with bone cancer.
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1. Rosanna Roces.
Roces, is one of the hottest actresses in the early 1990s. She was a contract star of Seiko movies from 1994 to 1996, originally introduced as Ana Maceda.
She was dubbed as the Sex Goddess of Philippine Cinema.
In a recent interview, she revealed that there was a point in her career that people looked down on her because of her previous movies.
The actress said that it was difficult for her to have serious drama films or shows because people would judge her as a sexy actress based on her previous films.
“Pinakamahirap na stigma sa showbiz ay ‘yung nasa loob na rin ng showbiz (nagmula). Parang sinasabing, ‘ay wala namang alam gawin ‘yan kundi maghubad.’ So naging mahirap para sa akin sa pagtawid (drama roles) lalo na pag awards night, magaling ka naman pero hindi ka pananalunin kasi sexy star ka lang.”
After her years with Seiko, she starred in Reyna Films via a critically-acclaimed film Ligaya Ang Itawag Mo Sa Akin (1997), which finally paved the way for her transition to serious acting.
Today, she is starring in an upcoming film Paglaki Ko, Gusto Kong Maging Pornstar, under Viva Films and VinCentiments.
Additional Texts by Jude Cartalaba.
