Entertainment

Full transcript: Maris Racal's tell-all over Anthony Jennings issue

December 6, 2024 | 3:53pm

MANILA, Philippines — Before the clock struck noon today, Maris Racal aired her side following the issue between her and screen partner Anthony Jennings, which has been trending since Tuesday after Anthony's ex, Jamela Villanueva, posted screenshots of her and Anthony's intimate private messages.

ABS-CBN News uploaded a 14-minute video where Maris addressed the alleged cheating issue involving her and Jennings.

Here is the transcript of Maris' exclusive interview with ABS-CBN, addressing the issues that has been hounding her:

"Today I will be speaking from my heart. Lahat ng sasabihin ko ngayon galing sa puso ko. Today, I will take accountability for everything.

Nagkamali ako and I wanna say sorry for everything that I have done.

It all started last June of 2024. I was in a very dark place. I was lonely and I was getting attention from Anthony, the kind of attention that I needed.

When I sensed that there was this brewing attraction between Anthony and I, nadala ako sa emotions ko. And I know that was wrong. I came clean right away. I told my ex everything and I admitted things to him and then we broke up.

It wasn’t easy. It was very hard for me, too. I announced the breakup.

The reason why I became so, so emotional during the interview because I was holding back a truth. ‘Yun ‘yung totoo. I wasn’t really able to simmer down. I wasn’t able to reflect on what had happened.

I was working every day, for days straight, weeks straight, months straight. Bago nagsimula 'yung mga madaming trabaho namin, I told Anthony that I broke up with my ex and he also said the same thing. Mind you, I was in a very lonely place. I was so lonely and I was so vulnerable at that time.

Like everybody, na kaka-break lang, you would be so vulnerable. I was working every day at sa lahat ng trabaho na ‘yun, kasama ko si Anthony.

Aaminin ko, sa araw-araw na pagta-trabaho namin, nahulog din ‘yung loob ko. He would be very sweet to me. He would be such a gentleman to me. He would say things to me. He would tease me on the set in front of other people.

He would, he would tell all the people who were close to me that he was single. So, I was confident to act a certain way around him on the set because in the eyes of the people there, we were both single.

Araw-araw kami nagta-trabaho and September came.

We went to Italy for a shoot sa teleserye namin na “Incognito” and that doon nag-start naging deep ‘yung pagkakakilala namin sa isa’t isa. I really fell. Noong pauwi na kami ng Italy, it was my birthday and we were stuck at the airport the whole day.

He would say things to me that are sweet. He would say promises, we would tell promises to each other.

And then noong pauwi na ng Itay, I felt so happy that I had to post something on my IG story just to appreciate him during that day. And then pagka-uwi ko, I think that the next two days, I saw a post or reposts ni Jam on TikTok. Nakita ko lahat ‘yun.

At that time, ‘yung time frame na ‘yun, nasa screenshots din na ngamusta ako. I said, ‘Kamusta si Jam?’ Nangamusta ako kay Jam, it wasn’t because dahil alam ko na sila pa. Dahil alam ko she was going through something and Anthony had to take care of her.

But at that time, nagta-trabaho pa rin kami and he would still be the same way to me.

I would ask him, God knows. I asked him. ‘Nagka-balikan ba kayo?’ He said, 'No.'

'Do you still love her?' He said, 'No.' He would say things na ako ‘yung gusto niya and all.

I really asked him so many times.

And then, the first wave of bashing on Tik Tok. Masakit ‘yun para sa akin. I asked him, ‘When are you going to release a statement? Na wala na kayo? When? Because in the eyes of the public, you are taken. I know that you're not.' He wouldn't be very sweet to me.

'When are you gonna release a statement?' He would tell me he was waiting for the right moment. I didn't want to be pushy. I didn't want to aggravate things.

So, I waited and kept quiet because it wasn't my story to tell anyway. I kept quiet.

October passed. We were working still every day and, then Halloween, it was the very first night we went out na medyo sweet kami sa isa’t isa. The next day, Jam posted on her Instagram Story.

There were no names mentioned, there were no names, but people were insinuating that it was Anthony and I. So the waves of bashing came again.

I asked him again, ‘When are you gonna release a statement?'

God knows how many times I begged for a statement.

I begged him to fix this because I was so tired of getting bashed. He said, wait, he's waiting for the right moment. I waited. I still kept quiet

I was really, I really wanted to speak up, but it wasn't my story and it would look, I would look really pathetic.

This went by. The presscon of 'Incognito' happened. He released a statement.

To me, it was too late because I, at that time, I was slowly distancing myself from him romantically, the infatuation and the attraction died. But thank you for the statement.

I thought everything was in the clear. I thought everything was gonna be okay. Then this, lumabas, lumipas. The screenshots. When I saw it, when I read it. That was 10 p.m. on a Tuesday night.

When I read it, I was gutted. I was shocked. I’m truly, truly embarrassed dahil nakita lahat ng tao ‘yun without my consent, against my will.

I read the screenshots over and over and over again.

Ang pinaka-na-shock ako doon, I read it. It was the perfect narrative. There was this other woman, that there was this apologetic boyfriend and the avoidant boyfriend (toward) the other woman and the scarred woman. That's the narrative.

That's her side of the story and there's nothing wrong with that. But this is my side.

This is my side and I've been reading those screenshots, doon ko napagtagpi-tagpi lahat, na kaya pala hindi siya makapag-release ng statement, dahil sila pa pala this whole entire time.

I didn't know. I was in the dark. I didn't know. I had no idea. God knows, ilang beses akong nag-tanong. Ilang beses akong nang-hingi ng statement. Doon ko rin na-realize bakit ganoon ang reactions ni Jam.

Now I get her. I get her pain. I get her wrath. I get her anger.

Kaya pala gano'n because she was clueless about everything. I was clueless about everything.

We both believed kung ano ang mga nasabi sa amin. Maybe iba ‘yung sinabi sa kanya, and I can attest that iba ‘yung sinasabi sa akin. That's my side of the story.

I have so many things to say. Hindi nga ako makapaniwala na mapapahiya pala ako ng ganito sa buhay ko.

So, to the public, I’m sorry that you got to see that very intimate side of me. Gano'n talaga ako ‘pag nagbigay ng pagmamahal.

It was supposed to be private. It was supposed to be a private, intimate thing.

I'm sad. I'm sad na nakita ‘yun ng tao. And yes, I'm not, I don't want to play the victim here. Nagkamali din talaga ako. And I want to say sorry to those people I have hurt. I reached out to Jam last November. I did not get a reply. I think that was last November. I guess I wanted to know what's up.

So, I'm sorry, most especially, I am very sorry. And truly sorry for those people who supported me for 10 years.

Alam nila ang lahat. Pinag-hirapan ko ang career ko mapunta lang kung saan ko gusto. Ginawa ko lahat. Pinag-hirapan ko lahat sa tulong nila. Nagagawa ko ‘yung mga gusto ko. I don’t know where I’m gonna go. I don’t know saan ako pupunta.

'Yung dignidad ko, hindi ko na mahanap. Whenever I go out, whenever I walk, I feel like I'm a naked woman walking. Hindi ko alam anong gagawin ko.

I'm so embarrassed, and I'm sorry that you get to see that. But I can assure you, tuloy pa rin ako. Tuloy pa rin ang laban. Magta-trabaho pa rin ako kahit nahihirapan. Hindi pa rin namamatay ‘yung apoy sa puso ko.

I'm still looking for that little girl inside of me. It's hard to look for her now. But someday, I get to find her and I will be able to hold my shadows.

What you saw, who's not a perfect human, and far, far from being perfect, what you saw was a human being, just a human being. That’s it."