John Lloyd Cruz

John Lloyd Espidol Cruz (born June 24, 1983) is a Filipino actor, model and occasional TV host. Regarded as the "King of Contemporary Cinema" by the media, Cruz has top-billed several box-office successes. He has more than ten films with box office grosses of ₱100 million in the Philippines. CNN describes Cruz as "the quintessential image of the contemporary leading man." He began acting at the age of 15 and has over 30 productions to his credit. A breakthrough role on the soap opera Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay, where he first started working with actress and frequent co-star Bea Alonzo, followed his starring role in the well-known Filipino TV drama Tabing Ilog, which he appeared in as a teenager. With around 80 awards won throughout his career including 2 FAMAS Awards and 2 Gawad Urian Awards, Cruz is one of the most awarded Filipino actors in the business. He was the first Filipino and Southeast Asian actor to receive the Star Asia Award at the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF). He was the fifth highest-grossing Filipino actor in the 2010s decade, raking over a total of 2.3 billion in box office receipts. A Second Chance is the sixth highest grossing Philippine film in history with ₱556 million. He is currently managed by Maja Salvador's Crown Artist Management. On November 9, 2021, he signed a contract with GMA Network as part of his TV comeback. His first comeback appearance was on GMA's Wowowin, and currently he leads the role of GMA's sitcom entitled Happy Together (pronounced as Happy To Get Her) which airs every Sunday night. Background Cruz was born John Lloyd Espidol Cruz, the youngest child of Luisito Llora and Aida Espidol Cruz. He was called by nicknames "Juward" and "Idan" among his family and some close friends. Cruz finished his grade school at Marikina Catholic School in 1996. He was later discovered by a talent scout in a mall while hanging out with friends to watch Magic Temple. Due to his father's failing marble business, Cruz decided to enter showbiz to help his family recover from financial problems. He first appeared in GMA Public Affairs' reenactment legal talk show Compañero y Compañera, followed by the crime and investigative series Calvento Files. This was followed by several guest appearances and shows. At age 14, Cruz became a member of ABS-CBN's Star Magic, where he became an alumnus of Batch 5. He was also a member of the then-teen trio called Koolits with Baron Geisler and Marc Solis.