Who Is Dayanara Torres and Why Do Filipinos Love Her?

Aside from the 120 delegates who graced the Miss Universe 2025 stage to prove their mettle, former queens R'Bonney Gabriel and Dayanara Torres also drew attention for their lively commentary.

The co-hosts offered valuable insights from the perspective of someone who has competed at the highest level, with both R'Bonney and Dayanara having won the coveted crown in 2022 and 1993, respectively.

Beyond their easy rapport and sharp observations, one thing that stood out was Dayanara’s nods to the Philippines. After Puerto Rico was announced as the host of the 75th Miss Universe, R'Bonney joked about coming back next year to host again, and Dayanara teased that “everybody who goes to Puerto Rico falls in love and doesn’t want to leave.” She reassured R'Bonney that it was okay, adding that their country would happily “adopt” her—the same way the Philippines had made her a Pinay at heart.

Ahead, we list five things you need to know about the Puerto Rican beauty queen and how she charmed the Philippines in the ’90s.

Born on October 28, 1974, Dayanara's journey to the crown began when she was 17 years old. Scouted in her hometown's plaza, she would then represent Toa Alta and compete in national pageants before taking the global stage in 1992 for Miss International and Queen of the World, and then Miss Universe in 1993.

Dayanara was the outgoing titleholder when the Philippines hosted Miss Universe in 1994. Beyond her elegant final walk and her special duet with Peabo Bryson performing “A Whole New World,” Filipinos were drawn to her big smile and warm personality.

Needless to say, the adoration was mutual. She fell in love with the country and stayed for five more years. During that time, she appeared in commercials, movies, and variety shows (fun fact: she’s an OG ASAP host!), delighting the public while showcasing her dancing skills and her newly acquired talent: speaking Tagalog.

Love blossomed off-screen when Dayanara was paired with '90s heartthrob Aga Muhlach for their film Basta't Kasama Kita. They became the quintessential showbiz power couple from 1993 to 1998 with their good looks and charismatic personalities.

Dayanara eventually married international pop singer Marc Anthony in 2000, and they had two sons before their divorce in 2004.

In February 2019, Dayanara was diagnosed with Stage 3 melanoma. The skin cancer, which she believes was caused by unprotected sun exposure when she was younger, was discovered when she had an irregular mole checked and biopsied. She promptly underwent surgery to stop the cells from metastasizing, and has been advocating for early detection ever since.

She regularly updates her 1.8 million followers on Instagram about her guestings and advocacies at @dayanarapr.