Protégé Grand Finals Winners: Jeric Gonzales and Thea Tolentino

The grand finals of Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break happened October 21 and Thea Tolentino and Jeric Gonzales were named as the winners of the said artista search.

Jeric Gonzales and Thea Tolentino were both South Luzon Protégés originally mentored by Ms. Gina Alajar. Incidentally, they were both from Calamba City, Laguna.

The Protégé Male and Female Final Battle Champions each received P1 million cash, a condo unit worth P7 million and a management contract from GMA Network, all in a P12 million prize package. They will also be part of the new youth oriented show of GMA-7.

The Final 6 Ruru Madrid, Elle Ramirez, Jeric Gonzales, Thea Tolentino, Mikoy Morales and Zandra Summer all received a 4-year scholarship grant from STI.

Jeric Gonzales from Southern Luzon was given the Texters' Choice Award, beating fan favorites Mikoy (the chinito charmer) and Ruru Madrid (the youngest contestant). Thea also bested Kembot Kitten Zandra Summer and early favorite Elle Ramirez.

Jeric and Thea's mentors, Jolina Magdangal and Gina Alajar, also received P500,000 each.

Before the announcement of winners, the Top 6 Protégés each showcased their acting skills in different GMA programs opposite the real characters of the show. Last week the Top 6 also performed on Protégé stage the challenges threw into them by the judges.

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Protégé 7th Elimination Night: Japs de Luna Eliminated (October 7)

North and Central Luzon Protégé Japs de Luna was eliminated during the 7th elimination night of GMA-7's Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break on Sunday, October 7. Japs, dubbed as the 'Hataw Kid' was sent home after getting the lowest text votes and judges' score.

Japs was originally the protégé of eliminated mentor Ricky Davao but due to the twist of the show, his mentor had to let go one of his protégés and mentor Ricky chose Shelly Hipolito to stay under his care. He then became the protégé of Roderick Paulate.

With Japs de Luna's elimination, mentor Roderick Paulate has now only one protégé left, tied with Phillip Salvador.  Meanwhile, mentors Jolina Magdangal and Gina Alajar each have two left still.

Now, the battle gets tougher as there were only 6 Protégés left in the competition. They are:

Roderick Paulate's Protégés - Elle Ramirez

Gina Alajar's Protégés - Zandra Summer and Thea Tolentino

Jolina Magdangal's Protégés - Mikoy Morales and Jeric Gonzales

Phillip Salvador's Protégé - Ruru Madrid

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Protégé 6th Elimination Night: Bryan Benedict Eliminated (September 30)

Visayas Protégé Bryan Benedict was eliminated during the 6th elimination night of GMA-7's Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break on Sunday, September 30. Bryan was sent home after getting the lowest text votes and judges' score.

Bryan was originally the protégé of Jolina Magdangal but due to the twist of the show, her mentor had to let go one of her protégés and mentor Jolina chose Mikoy Morales to stay under her guidance. He then became the  protégé of Ricky Davao.

With Bryan Benedict's elimination, mentor Ricky Davao will also have to say goodbye since Bryan is the only one he has left. Last week, his other  protégé, Shelley Hipolito was already eliminated. 

Mentor Ricky told Bryan that it was not the end and said that he hopes to work with him sooner. Bryan was tagged as the future action drama actor.

Now, the battle gets tougher as there were only 7 Protégés were left in the competition. They are:

Roderick Paulate's Protégés - Elle Ramirez and Japs de Luna

Gina Alajar's Protégés - Zandra Summer and Thea Tolentino

Jolina Magdangal's Protégés - Mikoy Morales and Jeric Gonzales

Phillip Salvador's Protégé - Ruru Madrid

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Protégé 5th Elimination Night: Shelly Hipolito Eliminated (September 23)

North and Central Luzon Protégé Shelly Hipolito was eliminated during the 5th elimination night of GMA-7's Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break on Sunday, September 23. Shelly was sent home after getting the lowest text votes and judges' score.

Before Shelly was sent home, the Top 9 protégés were grouped into three and the members of each group had the privilege to perform with a popular Kapuso star.

The first group comprised of Thea Tolentino and Alden Richards, Japs de Luna and Winwyn Marquez and  Bryan Benedict and Kris Bernal did their own interpretation of the biggest hits of Black Eyed Peas.

The second group showcased its fun and quirky side in a production number featuring the songs of Katy Perry. Group two is composed of Mikoy Morales and Julie Anne San Jose, Elle Ramirez and Mark Herras and Ruru Madrid and Barbie Forteza.

Meanwhile, Shelly belonged to the third group which performed David Guetta songs to interpret the different levels of romance. She was partnered with Rocco Nacino. Other members of the alliance were Zandra Summer and Aljur Abrenica and Jeric Gonzales and Louise delos Reyes.

With Shelly Hipolito's elimination, only 8 Protégés were left in the competition. They are:

Roderick Paulate's Protégés - Elle Ramirez and Japs de Luna
Ricky Davao's Protégés - Bryan Benedict
Gina Alajar's Protégés - Zandra Summer and Thea Tolentino
Jolina Magdangal's Protégés - Mikoy Morales and Jeric Gonzales
Phillip Salvador's Protégé - Ruru Madrid

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Protégé 4th Elimination Night: Arny Ross Eliminated (September 16)

Southern Luzon Protégé Arny Ross was eliminated during the 4th elimination night of GMA-7's Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break on Sunday, September 16. Arny was sent home after getting the lowest text votes and judges' score.

Before Arny was sent home, the Protégés performed with their respective mentors in an acting and stage piece in front of the judges and the live audience.

The 4th elimination night followed the Protégé Shock two weeks ago wherein four Protégés were eliminated and reshuffling and even distribution of the Protégés per mentor happened. Arny, previously mentored by Gina Alajar was chosen by Phillip Salvador along with his retained Protégé Ruru Madrid.

With Arny Ross' elimination, only 9 Protégés were left in the competition. They are:

Roderick Paulate's Protégés - Elle Ramirez and Japs de Luna

Ricky Davao's Protégés - Shelly Hipolito and Bryan Benedict

Gina Alajar's Protégés - Zandra Summer and Thea Tolentino

Jolina Magdangal's Protégés - Mikoy Morales and Jeric Gonzales

Phillip Salvador's Protégé - Ruru Madrid

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Protégé Shock: Andres Vasquez and Three Others Eliminated!

It was a shocking Sunday night (September 2) on Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break as four hopefuls were eliminated after last week's single elimination of Reese Tayag.

Andres Vasquez from Mega Manila who was hailed as the 'Best Performer' and 'Director's Choice' on last week's short film challenge with Maricel Soriano and Cannes Best Director Brilliante Mendoza was sent packing along with three other Protégés Vien Allen King (Mega Manila), David John Llanas and Steffi Pacheco (both from Mindanao).

The said episode indeed shock viewers and trended on Twitter with the hashtag #ProtegeShock. Now, only 10 finalists were left and they are Elle Ramirez from Mega Manila, Japs De Luna and Shelly Hipolito from Northern & Central Luzon, Jeric Gonzales, Arny Ross and Thea Tolentino from South Luzon, Bryan Benedict, Mikoy morales and Zandra Summer from Visayas and Ruru Madrid from Mindanao.

Another thing that shocked the entire Protégénation was the mentors walking out after they were forced by the production to choose only one from their Protégés.

What could be the reason for these Protégé shockers? Probably, the top 10 will be distributed equally to every mentor the reason that they were asked to choose only one. Some said that a wildcard will definitely happen as a twist since one of the best Protégés was eliminated.

What do you think about this Protégé shock?

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Reese Tayag Eliminated on Protégé

North and Central Luzon protege Reese Tayag was eliminated in the said artista search, August 26 after scoring the lowest in an acting performance wherein all proteges were given the chance to act alongside the “Diamond Star” Maricel Soriano in five short films directed by Cannes Film Festival awardee Brillante Mendoza and written by Palanca awardee Floy Quintos.

Only thirty percent of the total score was based on the text votes while seventy percent was taken from the average of the scores given by the four judges — director Bert de Leon, actress Cherie Gil, GMA executive Anna Teresa Gozon-Abrogar and actor-comedian Joey de Leon. Reese, however, does not take her elimination personally against the judges.

Aside from Reese, two other proteges came close to leaving the competition. They are Vien Alen King of Mega Manila and Japs de Luna of North and Central Luzon.

One of the surprises this week was the awarding of special awards to proteges who showed commendable performance in the short films. Maricel Soriano herself picked Elle Ramirez and Andres Vasquez (Mega Manila) as the Best Female and Best Male Proteges, respectively. Andres also received the Director’s Choice Award for Breakthrough Performance.

The Visayas team, on the other hand, received the Best in Ensemble Acting.

The special awardees were automatically saved the eliminations.

The number of proteges who survived the cut so far is down to 14, and it will even get smaller each week until the grand finals wherein only one male and one female protege will be hailed as victors.

Who will get eliminated next week? We’ll find that out next Sunday during the next gala night of Protege: The Battle for the Big Artista Break hosted by Dingdong Dantes and Carla Abellana. It airs live after iBilib on GMA-7.

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Protégé First Elimination Night: Five Hopefuls Eliminated!

The big showdown between the bottom two from each of the five groups in GMA-7's Protégé: The Battle For the Big Artista Break happened tonight, August 19 and five hopefuls were eliminated from the Top 20.

From last week's group performances, two from each group became part of the bottom two who will compete against each other for a slot in the competition.

The bottom 2 Protégés had a showdown showcasing their talents whether it was singing, dancing or acting to help their mentors decide on who to eliminate. The judges (composed of guru Joey De Leon, director Bert De Leon, actress Cherie Gil and GMA Films head Annette Gozon-Abrogar) made some remarks that could influence the decision of the mentors.

North and Central Luzon Protégé mentor Ricky Davao chose Japs De Luna over Glenn Roy while Mega Manila Protégé mentor Roderick Paulate voted Kelly D out and saved Vien Allen King. Visayas Protégé mentor Jolina Magdangal saved Zandra Summer and let go of Mitch Capili while South Luzon Protégé mentor Gina Alajar chose Arny Ross over Mykel Ong. Mindanao Protégé mentor Phillip Salvador had his thumbs up for Ruru Madrid and eliminated Apple Vega.

Now, only 15 finalists remain and will continue their journey for a big artista break. They are:

North and Central Luzon 

Japs de Luna

Reese Tayag

Shelly Hipolito

Mega Manila
Andres Vasquez
Elle Ramirez
Vien Alen King

South Luzon
Arny Ross
Jeric Gonzales
Thea Tolentino

Visayas
Bryan Benedict
Mikoy Morales
Zandra Summer

Mindanao
David John Llanas
Ruru Madrid
Steffi Pacheco

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The X Factor Philippines Beats Artista Academy and Protégé in TV Ratings

The country’s biggest musical event of the year, “The X Factor Philippines,” won in national TV ratings over rival network’s newly launched talent-reality shows during the weekend making it the most-watched talent show in the land. 

Based on recent urban and rural TV ratings data from Kantar Media, “The X Factor Philippines” scored an average national TV rating of 20.7% last Saturday (Aug 4) vs TV5’s Artista Academy” only rated at 1.8%. GMA 7’s bet “Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break” also fell short on its viewership and wasn’t able to beat “The X Factor Philippines” (16.6%) during its launch last Sunday (Aug 5). 

More Filipinos are definitely glued to the intense competition being served by the hit Kapamilya show especially after judge-mentor Charice bid goodbye to her first act. Jerrianne Templo, a dive guide from Mandaluyong City, got booted from the competition after judge-mentors Martin Nievera, Gary Valenciano, and Pilita Corrales favored to save Over 25s Joan Da, who is also at the bottom two together with Jerrianne. 

Who among the finalist will standout in this week’s performances? Who will be the next finalist falling off to the bottom 2? Whose judge’s acts will continue and who will end their journey? Don’t miss as the competition heats up in the country’s biggest and grandest musical event of the year, “The X Factor Philippines,” with KC Concepcion as host, every Saturday, after “MMK,” and every Sunday, after “Sarah G Live” on ABS-CBN. 

Follow the show’s official Twitter account at @thexfactorphil and tweet your thoughts and reactions using the hashtag #XFactorPHLive. You can also like its official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/XFactorPhOfficial.

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Protégé Top 20 Finalists Revealed!

From thousands of aspirants nationwide, Protégé: The Battle for the Big Artista Break now reveals the Top 20 young dreamers who will be competing for a shot at stardom.

The list of the newest artista aspirants of GMA-7 was a narrowed selection from 15 cities all over the country. The Protégé Top 20 will be showcasing their talent and star power during weekly performance nights under the supervision of their respective mentors.

Here are the Top 20 finalists of the reality-based artista search of GMA-7, Protégé:

Protégés from Northern and Central Luzon
Mentor: Ricky Davao
(acclaimed actor-director)

Japs de Luna (Nueva Ecija)

Reese Tayag (Tarlac)

Shelley Hipolito (Nueva Ecija)

Glenn Roy (Tarlac)

Protégés from Southern  Luzon
Mentor: Gina Alajar 
(seasoned actress and director)


Arny Ross (Dasmariñas, Cavite)
Thea Tolentino (Calamba, Laguna)
Mykel Ong (Batangas)
Jeric Gonzales (Calamba, Laguna)

Protégés from Mega Manila
Mentor: Roderick Paulate 
(multi-awarded actor)


Andres Vasquez (Taguig)
Elle Ramirez (Angono, Rizal)
Vein Alen King (Tiaong, Quezon)
Kelly D (Pasig City)

Protégés from Visayas
Mentor: Jolina Magdangal 
(multimedia icon)


Bryan Benedict (Cebu City)
Mikoy Morales (Roxas City)
Mitch Capili (Bohol)
Zandra Summer (Cebu City)

Protégés from Mindanao
Mentor: Phillip Salvador 
(drama and action film legend)


Apple Vega (Dipolog City)
Steffi Pacheco (Davao City)
David John Llanas (Cagayan De Oro City)
Ruru Madrid (Zamboanga City)









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