In what could become one of the most controversial reactions to a historical biopic this year, Ricky Avanceña — grandson of the late President Manuel L. Quezon — has publicly blasted Quezon, the new TBA Studios film starring Jericho Rosales and directed by Jerrold Tarog.
The outspoken descendant didn’t mince words in a Facebook post that has since gone viral, accusing the filmmakers of “mangling” the memory of the Commonwealth President and turning a national legacy into a “political satire masquerading as art.”
“They canceled a Quezon from a Quezon movie”
Avanceña claimed he attended the film’s Q&A session after watching it three times to understand the creative intent behind it. But instead of answers, he said he got “silenced.”
“Jericho Rosales himself told me to stop talking,” Avanceña wrote. “Imagine that — they canceled a Quezon from a Quezon movie. What kind of respect is that?”
He said he only wanted to ask director Jerrold Tarog if the film was meant as political satire. According to Avanceña, Tarog admitted it was satire but “tried to wiggle away from responsibility.”
That was when the encounter reportedly turned heated, with Avanceña shouting that the film “profaned the memory of the dead” and that as a direct descendant, he had every right to defend his grandfather’s name.
“Pambababoy sa alaala ni lolo”
In his tirade, Avanceña lambasted the filmmakers for “peddling distortion and disrespect” under the guise of creativity. “They are selling the desecration of my Lolo’s memory,” he said. “They won’t even let me speak in defense of him. I paid for my ticket, and yet I’m told to shut up? That’s hypocrisy.”
He ended his post with fiery language that stunned even longtime followers of the Quezon clan, accusing the film of cheapening the heroism of the Commonwealth leader: “Watch it if you want, but know that this is a paid mockery. My grandfather was never a showpiece for anyone’s ‘Bayaniverse’ fantasy. He was the most incorruptible President this country ever had.”
A clash between history and art
TBA Studios’ Quezon dramatizes the rise of the late president, his political duels with Sergio Osmeña and Governor-General Leonard Wood, and his fight for Philippine sovereignty during the Commonwealth era. But for Avanceña, the creative liberties taken were too much to bear.
“What’s dangerous,” one cultural historian noted, “is that younger viewers may take artistic portrayals as historical truth. When descendants publicly denounce these depictions, it opens a larger debate: Who owns history — the artists or the bloodline?”
Silence from TBA Studios and Jericho Rosales
As of press time, neither TBA Studios, Jericho Rosales, nor director Jerrold Tarog has issued a statement responding to Avanceña’s claims. But insiders close to the production say the creative team stands by the film as a “layered and interpretive retelling” rather than a documentary.
Still, with Avanceña’s outburst stirring public opinion, Quezon may now be remembered as not only a cinematic retelling — but also the spark that reignited a bitter debate on how far filmmakers can go when reimagining the lives of national icons.