There are several ways to get through showbusiness. Others use their connection (“My dad’s best friend is the co-producer of this show” or “I’m the supporting actress’ niece, so…”), some just actually get discovered while attending an event, or shopping in a mall, while others start out as social media influencers. Looking back, however, there are stars who have fought tooth and nail to earn their spot under the klieg lights…they joined and gave their all in a talent search.
Dream. Believe. Survive. This tagline belongs to StarStruck, GMA Network’s first reality TV-based star search, the pilot episode of which was directed by Lino Cayetano and originally hosted by DingDong Dantes and Nancy Castiliogne. This breakthrough concept resulted from the suggestion of Wilma Galvante, former Entertainment Head of GMA 7 Network, who was inspired by the American TV reality series, Survivor. Galvante wanted to discover raw talent and develop them as future GMA Kapuso stars, through rigorous trainings and workshops, to finally launching these hopefuls to stardom at the end of each season. With the help of Janine Piad-Nacar, the TV Show’s program manager, and Creative Consultant Rommel Gacho, StarStruck was born.
Prior to its maiden broadcast on October 27, 2003, teenagers, aged 14 to 18, who heeded the call for a go-see, lined up at the GMA Network headquarters and at branches of a popular supermall around the metro to audition. From several hundreds of hopefuls, only 100 made it to the first cut. The number was then cut to the Top 60 and then shortlisted to the Top 30 until the final 14 finalists (7 boys and 7 girls) were chosen. The “final 14” had to undergo rigorous acting workshops, personality development, and talent training, and they were pitted against each other through challenges that tested their acting, dancing, and singing prowess from Mondays to Thursdays. The twist? One or two hopefuls had to bid goodbye during Elimination Night, scheduled every Friday.
Those eliminated made up the Starstruck Avengers who, like wild cards, were tasked to re-join the batch to prove that they deserved the spot. Ultimate “survivors” then faced their definitive moment on Final Judgement Day, when the grand winner was chosen by online and text voting (30%) combined with the decision of the Council which was 70% of their total overall score. Winners were declared through a grand live telecast billed as ‘StarStruck: The Final Judgement’ which was always jampacked. Perhaps the most popular winners (who belonged to the first batch) were Jennelyn Mercado and Mark Herras (StarStruck Season 1 Finale (The Final Judgment) (youtube.com). StarStruck’s Season 7 was its final episode; it aired its last in June 2019.
Dream
A lot of primetime stars and movie actresses started out in StarStruck. Most popular on the roster were Katrina Halili, Christine Reyes, Yasmien Kurdi, Miss World 2013 Megan Young (now married to Mikael Daez, also a StarStruck member), Mike Tan, Iwa Moto, Sarah Lahbati, Paulo Avelino, Rocco Nacino. LJ Reyes, and Sheena Halili, to name a few. Even YouTube superstar Ivana Alawi was in StarStruck Season 6, which aired in 2015. Using her real name then, Mariam Al-Alawi, weathered two rounds of competition before being eliminated.
Aside from Dantes and Castiglione, succeeding seasons were hosted by Jolina Magdangal, Raymond Gutierrez, Carla Abellana, Dennis Trillo, Megan Young, and Jennelyn Mercado. The program soon needed additional moderators for the extra segments thus, alumni like Mark Herras, Arci Munoz, Paulo Avelino LJ Reyes, Kris Bernal, Kyline Alcantara and Rocco Nacino stepped in. Joey de Leon and topnotch Director Joyce Bernal made up Season 1’s panel of judges, and they were succeeded by notable actors, directors, and star makers such as Christopher de Leon, Louie Ignacio, Lorna Tolentino, Douglas Quijano, Floy Quintos, Lolit Solis, and Cherry Gil, among others.
Being the first of its kind, the show raked in consistently high ratings as each “dreamer” had their own fan base. In fact, it was so popular that all the signature songs and dances the finalists performed became instant hits. Almost everyone knows the moves to Average Jo, Hey Yah, Milkshake, and have probably followed the dance steps by Mark Herras, dubbed then as the “Bad Boy of the Dance Floor.” Remember, this was pre-TikTok days.
From conception to execution, StarStruck trailblazed in an era where talent search-reality TV has never been done before and nailed it. The breakthrough program became hugely successful and received nominations as Best Talent Search Program, Best Talent Search Program, Best Talent Search Program and Best Music TV Award, and was conferred with several and awards, notably with the PMPC Star Awards for Television for six years. A spinoff billed as StarStruck Kids emerged and became a venue to discover child stars aired in 2004. Acknowledging StarStruck’s popularity then, rival network ABS-CBN launched its very own ‘reality artista search show’ in the same year, and called it Star Circle Quest.
Believe
StarStruck gave the audience exciting blow-by-blow updates of the dreamers’ training, workshops, rehearsals, challenges, frustrations, and daily triumphs. These eventually gave the audience a sneak peek into their true characters and how they would act and react under duress—some were discovered to exude strength and kindness, while others showed their vulnerability—all of which are a crazy mix of everything complicated and multi-dimensional. By the time the show pushed nearer the Final Judgement, some finalists were being reprimanded, others were already fighting (so did their fans), and the tension was obvious. Thus, while this show was entertaining, it also had its share of memorable (read: semi-controversial) episodes.
During the course of the show, StarStruck love teams were formed perhaps because they saw and interacted with each other almost daily, did tasks together, and helped each other out when challenges became too hard to handle. The most celebrated pairs that had massive fan base were Mark Herras and Jennylyn Mercado from Season 1, Mike Tan, and LJ Reyes (Season 2), and Season 4’s Kris Bernal and Aljur Abrenica. Eventually they became GMA 7’s official love teams that paired in movies and teleseryes.
On the flipside, when push comes to shove, contestants turn to each other to prove their competitiveness.
Live on national TV, Cristine Reyes told Season 1’s First Princess Yasmien Kurdi: “You’re kinda plastic”; to which the latter rebutted: “Actually, I find you plastic too!” A short clip of this found its way to X (formerly Twitter) in 2021 and has spawned various funny memes online.
Some of them had to maintain a brave face too, even if they didn’t like what was happening already, e.g. Kris Bernal’s haircut.
Another example: Katrina maintained a smile while being scolded by their dance instructor.
@gmanetwork #KapusoFeels: The struggle iz real #KatrinaHalili #StarStruck ♬ original sound – GMA Network
They had to be brutally honest too. Here’s Aljur Abrenica being honest about who he hates the most in his batch.
@gmanetwork “Ang pinakaayaw ko po sa grupo namin…” #aljurabrenica #starstruck #kapusofeels ♬ original sound – GMA Network
Of course, they needed to prove that they had what it takes to be a star. One of the hardest task is to film a ‘weird’ ketchup commercial.
@mariobandido Replying to @pidodidai Ketchup commercial! #jennylynmercado #katrinahalili #yasmienkurdi #ketchup #starstruck #fyp #fypシ #foryou #foryoupage #2000s #throwback ♬ original sound – Mario Bandido – Mario 🎥✨
Finalists also admitted that there were rumors of them badmouthing each other when things turned intense. There’s the case of StarStruck Avenger Rere Madrid who told Pamela Prinster that they always disagree with each other. Later Madrid was voted out of the competition as her batchmates saw her as a backstabber. In Season 3, finalists Jackie Rice, Jana Roxas, Arci Muñoz, and Sara Larsson were accused of cheating when they inadvertently opened a computer file bearing confidential StarStruck files, but it was later found out that they didn’t mean to unlock it. Because it’s a reality show, with finalists having different personalities and a singular desire to snag the spotlight, circumstances like these are bound to happen. After all, while true friendships were formed, StarStruck remained, and is still, in fact, a competition.
Survive
At StarStruck, finalist underwent a rigorous series of workshops, individually or by pair, to test and enhance their acting, singing, and hosting skills, and the training would be exhaustive and demanding. Remember when “terror” dance mentor Douglas Nieras, out of frustration, told Katrina Halili: “You actually think you look good? If you don’t follow the timing, you get out of the room. You are not going to join this competition.” After crying buckets, Halili stepped up her game.
Looking back, everything was part of honing them as future stars who should be resilient and mature enough to accept criticism. In fact, finalists who made the cut did live mall shows after a series of seemingly unforgiving rehearsals. They were trained under the best directors, were given ideal scripts, and had the opportunity to work alongside respected veteran actors—something not everyone had the privilege to have.
More than two decades after StarStruck first aired on TV, lives for the ‘dreamers’ have changed, for the better. Most of them are married now yet still remained loyal Kapuso (although there are alumni who have transferred to other networks), some are business owners, while others have chosen a more serene life, away from the stage and the spotlight. But all of them are grateful for the comprehensive and once-in-a-lifetime experience with the phenomenal TV show, which gave them their own shot at fame.
In unyielding ways, and whether we agree or not, reality TV shows like these have somehow impacted the way we see celebrities and star wannabes, and how difficult it is to go through what they went through, in the real showbiz world. From queueing up for the audition to demanding workshops, and erratic schedules—after all these indelible stories behind the camera, they deserve our utmost respect. StarStruck has, indeed, shaped us in one way or another. For the lucky dreamers, the show shaped their careers, turning the once-celebrity wannabes into brilliant actors in their own right. It proves that when one combines grit with passion, dedication to the craft, and truly fighting for it…the stars will align.
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