Enrique dedicates success to late father

In Enrique Gil’s most recent movie — the Star Cinema and Ten17 Films co-production Dukot, which was written and directed by Paul Soriano — he played Carlo Sandoval, a young man from a prominent family who was kidnapped and held for ransom. Carlo’s father, played by veteran actor Ricky Davao, went to great lengths to rescue his son.

?“Dukot is about crime, but it’s also about family,” Enrique explains. “It asks the question, ‘How far would you be willing to go for your son or daughter?’”

Based on the things Enrique has told the media about his real-life father Enrique Amadeo III, the late ex-Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight attendant’s response to that question would most likely be, “I’d go as far as he or she needs me to.” Because he did — especially in the case of his famous son.

In the early days of Enrique’s career, his father was his biggest supporter. He would gladly take time out from his own busy schedule to shuttle Enrique to and from the ABS-CBN compound for acting workshops, go-sees and the like. Also, when Enrique and his older brother Javy were younger, the elder Gil also made time for what he called “male bonding” with his sons. On his days-off, he’d pick them up from school and they’d watch a movie together before finally heading home. But all that came to an end when Enrique’s father fell ill.

“My Papa had a check-up at that time. His test results were OK, except that he didn’t have a blood test. He would still take me to my acting workshops, but after a month, he felt pain in his chest area — from rib cage all the way to his back,” Enrique shares. “Eventually, it reached the point na kahit nakahiga na lang siya, konting galaw lang niya sa bed nasasaktan na rin siya.”

Further tests revealed that Enrique’s father had leukemia, and he eventually passed away — but not before having a talk with his son that prompted Enrique to take showbiz more seriously.

“Papa was about to leave for his last flight at the time,” Enrique recalls. “Before he left, he told me, ‘O, you’re the man of the house na, ha.’ Looking back, yun na pala yung parang premonition niya. He also said that I should try showbiz, check out all the opportunities being offered to me. When he said I’m the man of the house, that was the moment I told myself, ‘OK, I can’t be just a boy anymore. I have to be a man now — a man of the house.’”

That conversation Enrique had with his father sparked his desire to become a success in the industry. It also gave him enough strength to power through the things that come with a showbiz career, including countless intrigues and a grueling schedule. Enrique’s father would be proud of his son’s achievements — successful movies (Just the Way You Are, Everyday I Love You and the aforementioned Dukot), teleseryes (Forevermore and Dolce Amore) and well-attended concerts here and abroad.

On a recent trip to Canada, Enrique recalls being bowled over by how the audience reacted to seeing him and his love team partner Liza Soberano in person. “We enjoyed our time in Canada. Solid yung reaction ng mga tao, grabe. The Hershey Centre was jampacked kahit medyo may economic crisis daw or something sila ngayon.”

Enrique and Liza weren’t able to do much sightseeing on that trip, but he says that was a small sacrifice to make in exchange for a chance to give back to their fans even just a little bit of the love and support they’ve received. Dolce Amore is reportedly set to end in a few months to give way to the new projects in store for Enrique and Liza’s winning tandem, but their fans remain as enthusiastic about the show as they were when it began.

“May gagawin daw kaming movie. No details about it yet but we’re going to shoot outside the country. They’re cooking up a new teleserye for Liza and I. We are happy with all the support our fans are giving us and Dolce Amor,” Enrique says.

Enrique remains thankful to his father, who no doubt continues to guide him from up above.

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The Parable of the Lost Sheep, a musical play showcasing some of the miracles and parables of Jesus Christ, will be staged on Aug. 26, 6 p.m. at the Baguio Convention Center.

Produced by Baguio Act One Productions, Inc., a Baguio-based company, the musical play stars ABS-CBN’s Ced Torrecarion as Jesus Christ and Pastor Reuben Aslor as the Atheist. It also features actors, dancers and talents from Baguio and the Cordilleras.

The play is written and directed by Jon Achaval, with original music by Elmer Blancaflor, Jordan Mascarenas and Izi Torrecarion.

 A multi-level stage, special lights and other effects will be used for the musical presentation.

For tickets, call 0998-5365513 or 0995-4687638, visit its Facebook page: Baguio Act One Productions, Inc. for more details.