MANILA — Actor Dennis Trillo appeared to address the controversy surrounding Patrick Garcia’s recent interview about his past relationship with actress Jennylyn Mercado, with whom he has a son, Jazz.
In an Instagram Story posted Wednesday morning, Trillo, who is married to Mercado and has taken on a father figure role in Jazz’s life, wrote: “Hindi ako pabor sa bashing. Pero salamat at naalala mo si Jazz dahil na-bash ang anak mo. Spread Love not Hate ❤️”
Trillo’s post came hours after Garcia’s interview with Ogie Diaz was uploaded to YouTube.
Instagram/Dennis Trillo
Meanwhile, Aguila Entertainment, the talent agency of Mercado, said their artist will not issue any comment or interviews regarding Garcia's interview.
The actress also asks for the public to stop the hate and bashing Garcia's family especially his daughter, Michelle.
"Everyone is entitled to share their story on whatever platform they choose. In this case, Jennylyn would rather not share her side of the story out of respect for the privacy and peace of mind of both her family and Patrick's," part of the statement read.
In the vlog of Diaz, Garcia shared his side of story on why he and Mercado broke up in 2008 when the actress was pregnant with Jazz.
He said that he and Mercado got into an argument because of his answer when he was interviewed on "The Buzz," where he was asked a hypothetical question about what he would do if he found out that he was not the father of the baby.
Garcia said that after that Mercado started to avoid his calls and would not allow him to visit her house.
Patrick Garcia on breakup with Jennylyn Mercado: 'This is the story I've been holding for 18 years’
After that Garcia just saw Mercado crying on StarTalk as she gave interview about him. He also shared that he also found out that Mercado was dating someone new.
Garcia also clarified reports that he abandoned Mercado during her pregnancy.
“Sa mga bashers na bina-bash ako, they hate me so much because they're saying na iniwanan ko si Jen. No, that's not true! Hindi ko iniwanan si Jen. And sa ibang mga bashers na nagsasabi na I was never there for Jen sa pregnancy niya, that's true. I was never there for Jen during her pregnancy, not because I didn't want to be there, but because she didn't want me to be there. So, ayun ang totoo. That's my story. This is the story I've been holding for 18 years na hindi ko sinasabi kasi, you know, baka makalimutan na lang. Baka, you know, move on na," Garcia said.
Garcia opened up about his past with Mercado as he shared his concern over the continued bashing his daughter Michelle is receiving.
“Actually, one day, my daughter, si Michelle, went up to me and said, 'Daddy, I'm sad. Because every time there's good news about me, in the comment section, it's all bashing, and they're bashing me because of you. Daddy, why don't you tell your story? What really happened between you and your past?' Sabi ko sa kanya, 'Yeah, I can tell my story, but I cannot promise you na the bashing will stop, or could lessen, or it could worsen. Sabi niya sa akin, 'Daddy, it's okay, as long as they know the truth," Garcia said.
In 2015, Garcia married his non-showbiz wife Nikka Martinez in 2015. They have four children together, while Mercado married Trillo in 2021 and have a daughter Dylan Jayde.
As of writing, the name of Mercado is one of the top trending topics on X (formerly Twitter).