Did you know that It’s Showtime host Vice Ganda is actually friends with veteran actor Aga Muhlach? And we’re able to get a glimpse of their unexpected friendship through the former’s latest vlog, wherein she got to interview the latter about his personal and career journey, as well as share how he played an important role in their romance.

Their lighthearted conversation commenced with Vice telling Aga how a significant part he is of her and her husband Ion Perez’s relationship as it was he who initially pushed them to one another. It happened during his guesting in an episode of her defunct talk show Gandang Gabi Vice in 2017, in which Ion was among the audience and Aga was the guest. Around a year later, Ion became part of It’s Showtime without her remembering that they’d already met before. Sparks have flown between them since then and the rest, as they say, is history. Thus, Vice uttered that they would never forget him.


Since he wasn’t able to join them when this vlog was shot, Ion simply sent a video message to Aga to extend his gratitude to him, wish for the success of his upcoming film “Ikaw Pa Rin Ang Pipiliin Ko,” and invite him to be a ninong once he and Vice will get married again. Aga jested that it’s going to be a challenge to gift them, but she told him that his presence will already be enough.

They then reminisced about how posters and notebooks with faces of celebrities used to be widespread during the 80s and 90s, as well as how Aga was among the most popular stars during that time as one of the cast members of the classic coming-of-age flick “Bagets.” And since photocards are the present-day counterparts of posters, Vice and her team printed out photos of Aga from his younger years and asked what would be his captions for each.

As Vice showed a photo of him and former on-and-off-screen partner Janice de Belen, the veteran actor divulged that she was actually not his first girlfriend since he had his first romance when he was 12. Thus, he couldn’t help but compare how he was to how his twins Atasha and Andres are when they’re of the same age. While many believe that he had a long list of exes, he debunked it by claiming that he only had a few.

Just when many people thought that his acting career had been consistent after the success of his first film “Bagets,” Aga recalled that what happened was otherwise as he actually hit rock bottom after that stint.

“Hindi alam siguro ng tao ‘yon, lagapak ako noon for how many years,” he started off. “Two years down the line, I was rock bottom. No one was minding me, wala akong trabaho, walang kumukuha sa akin. Until 1990 [or] 1991 when I made a comeback. People forgot already what I went through in the 80’s. The ‘80s was the most painful experience in my life. I’ve learned it very hard, Vice,” he recounted.

He might be the biggest star at that time and even received his first acting award for his performance in the 1985 flick “Miguelito: Batang Rebelde” as the titular character, yet he felt getting lost and being stepped on by his fellow artists afterward when he became a dad to his and Janice’s unico hijo Luigi.

Thus, he fixed himself, which he did by joining a religious seminar in 1990 that helped him build a relationship with God, and was able to bounce back in 1991 with the help of media executives Mother Lily Monteverde and Vic del Rosario. He did a slew of projects, which included back-to-back hit movies “Bakit Labis Kitang Mahal” opposite Lea Salonga, “May Minamahal” alongside Aiko Melendez, and the classic sitcom and film “Oki Doki Dok” in the ‘90s.

Although he was only seldom seen flexing his body, Vice and his team were able to unearth photos of him topless. While he continues to become one of the most handsome male celebrities until the present, Aga confessed that there are actually instances when he doesn’t see him appealing or he tends to get insecure, especially during his 40s. While he usually hides himself whenever that happens, his enthusiasm to work is what motivates him to come out and regain his confidence.

A snap of Julia Barretto and him was then shown by the Unkabogable Star, which was taken during the story conference of their upcoming movie “Ikaw Pa Rin Ang Pipiliin Ko.” According to him, she’s actually the fourth Barretto he got to work with after her aunts Gretchen and Claudine, as well as her mom Marjorie. Aga related how pressured Julia really was when they were making the film because she couldn’t help but compare herself to them. But instead of him being the one to steer their tandem, he said that it was the other way around because it was her who gave more.

Next was his and wife Charlene Gonzalez’s wedding photo, which prompted Vice to impart that it’s their love story that she actually provides as an example whenever she encounters discussions about how long courtship should be. She recalled Aga sharing during his GGV guesting how he and Charlene were not in a romantic relationship and were just friends before he proposed marriage to her.

“Kung nag-no’ siya, doon ako liligaw. Kukunin ko talaga siya. Alam ko talaga siya na. Alam ko siya ‘yong asawa ko. Until this day, when I come to work and even promoting or doing a film, my happiest times is when I come home. My wife and I, hindi mo talaga kami mapaghihiwalay. We travel, we work, we eat, we sleep, we wake up, we [drink] coffee, and talk, talk, talk for the past 23 years,” he conveyed.

He added that although they got to work together, it was only during one of their conversations that he realized that he liked her so much and she’s the one with whom he wanted to share life. Although he had a girlfriend then of four months, he had no choice but to follow what his heart was beating for and tell her that he wanted to get married not with her, but with Charlene, regardless of how hurtful it could be.

When asked about the greatest challenge that they encountered throughout their 23 years together, he said that there’s actually none so far. “Kung meron mang napagdadaanan sa pag-aasawa namin noon hanggang ngayon, siya ‘yong very patient sa akin. Binago niya ako,” he stated.

Aga also talked about their children Atasha and Andres, who are both starting to make a name for themselves. While other parents are scared to be irrelevant in the lives of their brood, he and Charlene are actually not as they actually let them be. Besides, it’s also going to be the best indication that they have raised them well to be able to stand and decide on their own. They also didn’t force nor motivate them to enter showbiz as they just waited for them to ask for it.

The two capped off their conversation by sharing how putting God at the center of their relationships is highly essential to making their marriage last. Aga also expressed how much he admires seeing Vice and Ion, while the Unkabogable Star shared how the actor would randomly message her every once in a while, attesting to their closeness that we do not see on cam.