''Mano Po'' () is a Filipino

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and g ...

film series produced by

Regal Entertainment Regal Entertainment Inc. (formerly and more commonly known as Regal Films) is a Philippine film, television production and distribution headquartered in New Manila, Quezon City. It was founded by Lily Monteverde on August 19, 1962. Regal Ente ...

, and is one of the most successful film series produced in the history of Philippine cinema, and the second longest-running Filipino film series, the first being '' Shake, Rattle & Roll'' which had a total of 16 films with three episodes each. The series has seven productions and also includes '' Ako Legal Wife: Mano Po 4?'' and '' Bahay Kubo: A Pinoy Mano Po!''. All episodes are directed by

Joel Lamangan Joel Lamangan (born September 21, 1952) is a Filipino film director, television director, actor, and comedian. His award-winning films include '' The Flor Contemplacion Story'', '' Sidhi'', '' Deathrow'', ''Hubog'', '' Aishte Imasu 1941'', ''Bl ...

, with the exception of '' Mano Po 2: My Home'' (2003) which was helmed by

Erik Matti Erik Matti (born December 21, 1970) is a Filipino filmmaker. He is known for directing ''On the Job (2013 film), On the Job'' (2013), ''Honor Thy Father (film), Honor Thy Father'' (2015), ''Seklusyon'' (2016), ''BuyBust'' (2018), and ''On the Jo ...

, and '' Mano Po 7: Chinoy'' (2016) which was helmed by Ian Loreños. The series focuses on the ways and traditions of the

Chinese Filipino Chinese Filipinos (sometimes referred as Filipino Chinese or Chinoy/Tsinoy in the Philippines) are Filipinos of Chinese descent with ancestry mainly from Fujian, but are typically born and raised in the Philippines. Chinese Filipinos are one ...

community. Another tradition for the cast and crew of the ''Mano Po'' series is the visit of several cities in China, including

Great Wall of China The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand ''li'' long wall") is a series of fortifications in China. They were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against vario ...

Forbidden City The Forbidden City () is the Chinese Empire, imperial Chinese palace, palace complex in the center of the Imperial City, Beijing, Imperial City in Beijing, China. It was the residence of 24 Ming dynasty, Ming and Qing dynasty, Qing dynasty L ...

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

(also shown for '' Mano Po 6: A Mother's Love'') and

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

; and also in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

(for '' Mano Po III: My Love'').

List of films

''Mano Po'' (2002)

Starring: Maricel Soriano, Kris Aquino,

Richard Gomez Richard Frank Icasiano Gomez (; born April 7, 1966) is a Filipino actor, TV host, politician, and épée Fencing, fencer. He has been serving as the House of Representatives of the Philippines, Representative of Leyte's 4th congressional di ...

, Ara Mina,

Eddie Garcia Eduardo "Eddie" Verchez Garcia (; May 2, 1929 – June 21, 2019), colloquially known as Manoy, was a Filipino actor, television personality, and filmmaker. Widely regarded as the greatest Filipino actor of all time, Garcia appeared in nearly ...

Regal Entertainment produced the first ''Mano Po'' film, known also as ''Mano Po 1: My Family''. The film won twelve MMFF awards including Best Picture. The story revolves around a Chinese immigrant Don Luis Go (

) whom at the young age left China to be with his Filipino wife Elisa ( Boots Anson-Roa). They had two children Daniel (

Tirso Cruz III Tirso Silvano Cruz III (; born April 1, 1952) is a Filipino actor, comedian, and singer. He was the Chairperson of the Film Development Council of the Philippines after one year and seven months for personal reasons. Regarded as a "matinee ido ...

) and Linda (

Amy Austria Esmeralda Dizon Tuazon-Ventura (born December 13, 1961), known professionally as Amy Austria (), is a Filipino film and television actress. She is a recipient of a FAMAS Award, 2 Gawad Urian Awards, 3 FAP Awards and 4 MMFF Awards (including ...

). The Go family had three granddaughters Vera ( Maricel Soriano), the eldest and heiress to the Go family business, Juliet ( Kris Aquino) and Richelle ( Ara Mina), the youngest and the blacksheep of the family.

''Mano Po 2: My Home'' (2003)

Starring: Susan Roces,

Christopher de Leon Christopher Strauss de León (born October 31, 1956), also known as Boyet, is a Filipino actor, filmmaker and politician. Often referred to as the "King of Philippine Drama", he gained stardom for his leading man roles in numerous film and te ...

Lorna Tolentino Victoria Lorna Perez Aluquin-Fernandez (born December 23, 1961), better known by her stage name Lorna Tolentino, sometimes known as ''L.T.'', an abbreviation of her screen name, is a Filipino actress, model, film producer and television persona ...

, Kris Aquino,

Zsa Zsa Padilla Esperanza "Zsa Zsa" Perez Padilla (born May 28, 1964) is a Filipino singer, actress, television host, music producer and businesswoman. Referred to as the "''Divine Diva''", Padilla is recognized as one of the top female recording artists in th ...

Judy Ann Santos Judy Anne Lumagui Santos-Agoncillo (born May 11, 1978) is a Filipino actress and film producer. Prolific in film and television in the Philippines, and is known for her dramatic and comedic roles in blockbusters and independent films, as w ...

Richard Gutierrez Richard Kristian Gutierrez (born January 21, 1984) is a Filipino actor. He is regarded as the original "''Fantaserye King''" for top billing multiple hit television series. Gutierrez is a recipient of a FAMAS Award and three PMPC Star Awards fo ...

Jay Manalo Jay Manalo (January 30, 1973) is a Vietnamese-born Filipino actor and model. Early life Jay Manalo was born on January 30, 1973, in Vietnam but was raised in Tondo, Manila, Philippines. He was born to Eustaquio Manalo and a Vietnamese mother ...

Antonio Chan, a prominent Chinese businessman, had three women in his life: Sol, a Filipina; Lu Shui, a Chinese; and Belinda, a Filipino-Chinese. Antonio has children with all three women. A crisis shakes up the over-extended Tsinoy family prompting all the members to re-examine their values, their relationships, and confront issues that they have refused to face all these years. With ''Mano Po 2: My Home'', Regal Entertainment continues the tradition established by the critical and box-office hit of the first ''Mano Po'' film. Features strong dramatic performances from a stellar ensemble cast, lush visuals, a reverberating musical score, an unforgettable theme song, and a heart-warming screenplay that eloquently captures the rich Tsinoy culture. Laugh, cry, and be touched by this family story about forgiveness, healing and undying love.

''Mano Po III: My Love'' (2004)

Starring:

Vilma Santos Rosa Vilma Tuazon Santos-Recto (born November 3, 1953) is a Filipino actress and politician. In a career spanning over seven decades, she is recognized for her versatility in acting across various genres of film and television in the Philippine ...

Angel Locsin Angelica Locsin Colmenares (born April 23, 1985) is a Filipino actress and humanitarian. She is known for her dramatic roles and portrayals of heroines and mythological characters in film and television. She is a recipient of various accolad ...

, Angelica Panganiban,

Dennis Trillo Abelardo Dennis Florencio Ho (born May 12, 1981), known professionally as Dennis Trillo (), is a Filipino actor. He is known for his role as Eric del Mundo in the first ever gay-themed series on Philippine TV, '' My Husband's Lover'', Juan C ...

Jean Garcia Jessica Anne Rodriguez Maitim (born August 22, 1969), better known as Jean Garcia (), is a Filipino actress. She is known as Madam Claudia Buenavista in the original version of '' Pangako Sa 'Yo'' and as Miss Minchin in the 1995 live-action r ...

The third film marks the appearance of

as Lilia Chiong-Yang, an anti-crime crusader who was romantically torn between Michael (

, in their latest team-up after '' Dekada 70'') and Paul (

). The film won the 2011 Metro Manila Film Festival Best Picture Award. Santos won the best actress award in the said filmfest. Produced by Regal's sister production MAQ Productions, ''Mano Po III'' marks the return of

as the series' director. Lamangan, however, lost to

Cesar Montano Cesar Demontaño Manhilot (born August 1, 1962), known professionally as Cesar Montano (), is a Filipino actor, film producer, film director and aspiring politician. Montano started in show business as a commercial model.Panaghoy sa Suba'') for winning the Best Director Award in the 2011 Metro Manila Film Festival.

''Ako Legal Wife: Mano Po 4?'' (2005)

Starring:

Rufa Mae Quinto Rufa Mae Ocampo Quinto (born May 28, 1978) is a Filipino actress, comedian, television presenter, producer and model. Known for her camp and signature comedic performances in film and television, she has been cited as a notable figure in Philip ...

Cherry Pie Picache Cherry Pie Sison Picache (born May 27, 1970) is a Filipino actress. Known primarily for her versatile work across independent films, blockbusters and television productions, she has received numerous accolades, including two Durban Internati ...

The comedy-focused entry of the series focuses on

concubinage Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...

won the best actress award in the 2005 Metro Manila Film Festival. It is revealed that this film is officially called "''Mano Po 4''" after the release of ''Mano Po 5'' due to the return of Padilla since ''My Home''.

''Mano Po 5: Gua Ai Di'' (2006)

Starring:

This series is more of a romantic comedy-drama rather than the earlier ones which center around serious drama. However, Angel Locsin's appearance as the leading role for this film is her last project with

(not counting '' The Promise'') followed by her transfer to

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN is a leading Philippine media and content company. It serves as the flagship media brand of ABS-CBN Corporation, a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation. Once the country's largest free-to-air television network, ABS-CBN has since ...

a year later. ''"Gua ai di"'' can be translated as ''"I love you"'' in the Philippine dialect of the

Hokkien Hokkien ( , ) is a Varieties of Chinese, variety of the Southern Min group of Chinese language, Chinese languages. Native to and originating from the Minnan region in the southeastern part of Fujian in southeastern China, it is also referred ...

Chinese language Chinese ( or ) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and List of ethnic groups in China, many minority ethnic groups in China, as well as by various communities of the Chinese diaspora. Approximately 1.39& ...

, also known as ''"Fukien"'' in the Philippines.

''Mano Po 6: A Mother's Love'' (2009)

Starring:

Sharon Cuneta Sharon Gamboa Cuneta-Pangilinan (born January 6, 1966) is a Filipino actress, singer, and television personality. Prolific in multiple fields of entertainment, she is known for playing dramatic and comedic leading roles in film and television. ...

, Heart Evangelista The new tale marks the first project of

under Regal Films. This is also a reunion movie for Cuneta with

(last worked in ''Walang Kapalit'' in 2003) and

(last worked in ''Magkapatid'' in 2002). The dramatic story focuses on billionaire Melinda Uy, who had a rags-to-riches story of hardships and triumphs as a

Chinese-Filipino Chinese Filipinos (sometimes referred as Filipino Chinese or Chinoy/Tsinoy in the Philippines) are Filipinos of Chinese descent with ancestry mainly from Fujian, but are typically born and raised in the Philippines. Chinese Filipinos are one ...

woman.

''Mano Po 7: Chinoy'' (2016)

Starring: Richard Yap,

Enchong Dee Ernest Lorenzo "Enchong" Velasquez Dee (, born November 5, 1988) is a Filipino people, Filipino actor, comedian, model, host, swimmer, triathlete, duathlete and writer. Dee is a contract artist of ABS-CBN Corporation, ABS-CBN's Star Magic. ...

Janella Salvador Janella Maxine Desiderio Salvador (; born March 30, 1998) is a Filipino actress and singer. Debuting in the hit morning drama '' Be Careful with My Heart'' (2012–2014), she followed with lead roles in '' Oh My G!'' (2015), '' Born for You'' ...

The story focuses on the relationship and modern generation of Tsinoys. The film started with Richard Yap, making him the first and the only male lead protagonist in the entire series.

Spin-offs

*'' Bahay Kubo: A Pinoy Mano Po!'' – a 2007 film that focuses on family in the pure Philippine setting *''

Mano Po Legacy ''Mano Po Legacy'' is a Philippine television drama series broadcast by GMA Network. The series is a television adaptation of the ''Mano Po'' movie franchise produced by Regal Entertainment Regal Entertainment Inc. (formerly and more commo ...

'' – a 2022 television series

References

{{Reflist, 30em Regal Entertainment films Philippine romantic comedy films Philippine films by series Films directed by Joel Lamangan