Kris Aquino says MMFF horror film will no longer push through

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Kris Aquino’s horror movie, “(K)Ampon,” was supposed to be one of the entries in the 2019 Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), but sadly, it won’t happen anymore.

The lead actress herself announced in a series of Instagram posts that the film will no longer push through after the MMFF’s rules committee did not approve the change of lead actor from Derek Ramsay to Gabby Concepcion because the letter of request of the production outfit behind the movie, Quantum Films, was submitted only on August 5, five days after the given deadline.

To recall, Derek backed out from the project as he has a GMA Network contract “that should be his top priority,” Kris said earlier. It was on August 4 when Gabby agreed to take Derek’s role in the film. Citing the decision, the actress said that if they would insist on having Gabby as the lead actor, their movie will be disqualified for the MMFF.

“Pinalaki po ako (I was raised) to ABIDE by RULES. Hindi po kami ang lead producer ng (We are not the lead producer of) (K)Ampon. So unfortunately, my return to horror was not meant to be for MMFF 2019,” Kris said in one of her posts.

The comment section showed how saddened her fans were at the news but the actress told them to ‘respect’ the organizer’s decision.

In another post, she said there were suggestions that she should appeal the decision but did not do it because she said she was raised with “delicadeza.”

“Two members of the executive committee are friends, one is one of my closest friends – kaya hindi ko magawa (but I cannot do it),” Kris wrote.

“Tulala ngayon kasi bukod sa hindi tuloy ang isang project na ginusto ko talaga, may ilang milyon din na sagutin kami sa (I’m in a daze now because aside from the project that I really like not pushing through, we also have to pay some millions for the) MMFF bond, prod staff, crew, and artists… no blame no game, but to clear my name, I was concerned about shooting until we had the approval of the MMFF rules committee, but I wasn’t producer in charge… as I said, #lessonlearned,” she continued.

In her third post, the actress said she hopes that her fans will learn from her experience.

“Ano nga bang pakialam nyo sa movie na hindi matutuloy (Why should you care about a movie that will not push through)? It matters to me because please learn from my pain, I hope- missed deadlines will matter a lot… holding on to your values & principles will define you NOW & in the future… and it’s okay to not always be the brave girl when something that INSPIRED you is now gone, dahil ginusto mong patunayan na pantay pantay nga tayong lahat (because you wanted to prove that we are all equal),” she said.

Among other official entries included in its 2019 run, according to the MMFF last month, include “Miracle in Cell #7” starring Aga Muhlach and Bela Padilla, “Mission Unstapabol: The Don Identity” starring Vic Sotto and Maine Mendoza, and “Momalland” starring Vice Ganda and Anne Curtis. Held annually, the MMFF usually starts every December 25, Christmas Day.