Liza Soberano has been in the eye of the storm over the past week. In a YouTube vlog that has now gone viral, the actress reveals that she's currently "rebranding" herself, and is actively shedding off the remnants of her past career choices. This caused quite a stir among netizens, with one camp criticizing her for seemingly "bashing" her former management, and the other supporting her independence and creative freedom.
Presently, Liza is signed with Careless, an independent record label formed by fellow actor James Reid and Korean-American businessman Jeffrey Oh. The latter was recently on the panel of the 2nd Philippine Creative Industries Summit, where he spoke of the local entertainment scene and how it can be propelled unto the global field.
"I feel like in the Philippines, the talent is better. I think the world recognizes it. The Philippines is the most exciting place in the world for entertainment executives," he says.
When asked to give a closing message, Jeffrey shared a story about Liza, and revealed how she was actually lined up to audition for a really big role. "Who loves the character of Zendaya in [Spider-Man: Homecoming]?" he asks the audience. He goes on and says that Liza was actually offered to audition for that role!
"They reached out to her to audition [for the role of] Mary Jane, one of the most iconic characters. And she was not allowed because she had to do the same thing she was always doing," he narrated.
Jeffrey notes that it was Liza's contract with ABS-CBN that halted her from pursuing the role. According to him, a contract like Liza's, which entailed ten years of staying under the same management, "was unheard of anywhere else in the world."
"Imagine a Filipina actress was [the star in] one of the biggest Marvel movies in history. Imagine [if] she was Mary Jane, what that would do for Philippine entertainment," he adds.
Jeffrey notes that a major reason as to why a lot of local artists don't gain international momentum is because of the binds they have with their home managements. "She could’ve been representing our country all over the world. There are other stars in the same situation."
In a 2016 report by ABS-CBN, Liza was quoted denying that she was offered to audition for the part of Mary Jane. Though, she also did mention that she would've loved to have the opportunity if it was granted to her.
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