Dina Bonnevie admits confronting Alex Gonzaga over work ethics

VETERAN actress Dina Bonnevie named Alex Gonzaga as the person she confronted for being unprofessional during a TV project they were working on some time ago.

She said so on Tuesday over GMA Network's “Fast Talk With Boy Abunda” but clarified that a viral press conference which recently resurfaced happened in 2018, seven years after working with Gonzaga for TV5's “P.S. I Love You.”

“Yes it was Alex Gonzaga. But let me explain that that happened 12 years ago. We were doing a teleserye then, and it didn't come naman without reason. I mean we were working together. Kaya lang kasi, it didn't only happen once. It happened once, twice, thrice, so hindi lang naman ako,” she said.

“There were other co-workers who were getting irked about [her] working habits and the way she was working with us. So napagusapan na ako ang spokesperson. Nobody has the strength or the audacity to come up to her and talk to her,” Bonnevie continued, adding the decision was made among co-stars Gabby Concepcion, Cheska Iñigo and Nadine Lustre.

She then confronted Gonzaga for her tardiness but denied yelling at her. She recalled one taping day when Gonzaga arrived late in the morning, then went out for lunch break and returned with visibly wet hair with no makeup on which left them waiting for another three hours.

She also revealed that Gonzaga had a hard time crying and detailed, “Sabi ko sa kanya, 'You know Alex kaya hindi ka makaiyak because you're not connected with your emotions. You know honestly I want to talk to you, we don't like what you are doing. Tapos sabi niya, 'Eh, marami akong ganap, e, ganyan-ganyan.' Sabi ko, wait a minute, I just want to talk to you.' And then sabi niya, 'Hindi, eh, hindi n'yo kasi alam yung side ko.' Gumaganu'n na siya.”

She added, “Sabi ko hindi pa ipinapanganak ang babastos sa akin Alex, kinakausap kita nang maayos. If you want to stay long in this business you have to be professional. Lagi kang late, you know, you can't even memorize your lines, hindi ka makaiyak. I'm not talking to you like this because I want to pull you down, I want you to succeed in your career, I want you to be big in this business.”

According to Bonnevie, they both made up the same day she confronted her.

“Ang ending nag-iyakan kami, and then okay na. Kumbaga naiyak din ako because nagsalita ako because I have to spill my heart out. Kasi pagod na rin ako. Okay kami, tapos na yun. Nag-explain din ang mommy niya na dumating sa set. Nagkataon lang nung presscon may nagtanong sa akin kung meron bang artistang nag-primadonna sa yo, sabi ko marami,” she said.

“Then sinabi nila, totoo ba yun na si Alex Gonzaga ganyan-ganyan. Sabi ko huwag na nating pag-usapan yan matagal na yun. Hindi ako galit kay Alex. I even guested on her show (noontime program). Tapos she was very nice to me. Nag-usap pa kami sa taping. Masaya kami, nagbiruan kami,” Bonnevie added.

In the end, Bonnevie reminded everyone the importance of treating other people at an equal level.

“I'll say it in one line: Be professional. Being professional means coming to set on time, reading your script, knowing your role, memorizing your lines, and then just enjoy your work. Be conscious of your other workers and last but not the least, stay in shape para sexy at any age,” she said.

“I think the most important lesson that I learned is to always be conscious of other people. Be in touch. Don't be indifferent to other people. Feel them, think of yourself in their shoes. If you're like that, if you're compassionate to other people, you'll do things right, wonderfully, and maybe even more than that,” Bonnevie added.

Talks about Gonzaga's supposed attitude problems circulated online after she was filmed smearing a server's forehead with cake icing during her birthday celebration.