Barbie Forteza (left) with Sharon Cuneta in the upcoming drama project ‘Honor Thy Mother’ Photo from Facebook/@ SharonCunetaOfficial
MANILA — Sharon Cuneta and Barbie Forteza will play an estranged mother and daughter whose reunion develops into a family and business conflict in “Honor Thy Mother,” a 14-episode Filipino drama-suspense series premiering Sept. 11 on Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service.
The project brings together performers and production teams associated with GMA Network and ABS-CBN, longtime competitors that have increasingly collaborated on major productions. Dreamscape Entertainment is involved in the series, which Prime Video unveiled as part of its Philippine programming lineup earlier this year.
Cuneta portrays the head of a prominent family-run company whose life is disrupted by a crisis. Forteza plays her long-lost daughter, whose return eventually places them on opposing sides of the business. Their fictional conflict centers on unresolved family history, competing interests and old wounds.
Off screen, the relationship between the actresses is markedly different. Forteza has said Cuneta was among the performers who inspired her to pursue acting and described the opportunity to work with her as a long-held dream.
Cuneta has likewise spoken positively about the pairing, saying the story attracted her to the project and that learning Forteza would be her co-star added to her enthusiasm.
Their connection also reaches back to “Maging Sino Ka Man.” In GMA’s 2023 television adaptation, Forteza played Monique, the character Cuneta portrayed opposite Robin Padilla in the original 1991 film.
The series also stars John Estrada, Khalil Ramos, Tonton Gutierrez, Mercedes Cabral and RK Bagatsing, with Onat Diaz and Jojo Saguin directing.
“Honor Thy Mother” adds another high-profile project to the growing cooperation between GMA and ABS-CBN while pairing two actresses from different generations in a story built around family, ambition and reconciliation.
