Anthony Jennings’ ex-girlfriend Jamela Villanueva took to Instagram Stories late Tuesday night to expose the actor’s alleged cheating with Maris Racal, sharing screenshots of their conversations to the social media platform.
Jamela is the actor’s girlfriend of seven years and her expose comes at the heels of Anthony’s announcement of their breakup earlier this week. As he admitted their split, the actor asked fans not to drag Maris into the issue, PEP said.
In her expose, Jamela was thankful that Anthony told the truth about their split and explained she remained quiet to protect Anthony “out of respect.” She also wanted to guard her personal life amid all the hate messages and expressed support for the MaThon loveteam.
“When Maris came into the picture, I was genuinely happy for you both. I even chose to be supportive, despite the red flags I couldn’t ignore. I respected your craft. I believed in you both. But betrayal like this cuts deep,” Jamela wrote.
She explained her actions, saying posting the IG Stories is a way for her to move on, “not with anger, but with strength, hope, and the belief that better days are ahead.”
The first screenshots Jamela posted were from June, the night before MaThon’s brand launch where they stayed in the same hotel. Anthony asked Maris, “Gusto mo pa ba?” to which she replied, “Sa next life na.” The actress also told him that they should delete messages.
That same night, Jamela talked to Anthony, who told her he was struggling. “Mahal kita tapos kailangan ko gawin ‘to. Parang naka pako ako sa pader,” he said on his messages.
“He was telling me that he had to do it for work,” Jamela told her followers. “I’m not sure if you’re familiar with method acting, but this was something he kept emphasizing to me. He explained that he needed to make her feel loved and appreciated because she was going through something as well.”
According to Jamela, she fully supported Anthony “because I believed in him and trusted him at that time.”
The pair continued talking, Jamela said, and because she trusted them, she let it be.
Maris announced her breakup from Rico Blanco in July, and said there was no third party and Anthony was not involved.
The next screenshots showed more of Maris and Anthony’s conversations, which happened when they were on set. In one of the conversations, the screenshot showed Maris telling Anthony “that was so hot” and Anthony replying, “It was.”
When, Jamela confronted Anthony about it, the actor said Maris pulled him into the girls’ restroom and they started making out.
“I asked him why did he let her, he just said, ‘ayoko lang maramdaman niya na parang ayaw ko siya kasi may trabaho kami bukas,’” Jamela narrated. “He said sorry and said na ititigil niya na, and naging okay kami.”
In August, Jamela learned that Anthony lied to her, when he said he was tired and wanted to sleep. According to Jamela, the actor was at Maris’ house and even left his sweater there. When Jamela confronted him, he said they just had a karaoke session at Maris’ place.
The transition from August to September saw Anthony in Palawan for a lock-in taping while continuing to update and call Jamela everyday.
He flew to Italy afterwards, for a work trip which included Maris, and while there, the former couple even had a tearful video call as they “were trying to figure out what was really going on.”
Jamela, who was sick at that time said, “We’re both really overwhelmed with stress but binigyan niya ‘ko ng assurance na aayusin naming paguwi niya.”
Anthony even accompanied Jamela to the hospital to get her MRI by the last week of September. She also lived with him at his condo to take care of him after their trip.
“We hadn’t broken up yet. He kept reassuring me that everything was okay between us, and that he was just focused on his work,” Jamela said.
But she was already suspicious. Jamela decided to check Anthony’s phone while he was sleeping, and was shocked to find text conversations between him and Maris. Jamela was also shocked when Maris asked Anthony about her sickness.
On that trip, Maris celebrated her 27th birthday, posting a surprise from the airline crew, with Anthony holding up a cake. When the birthday post became viral, Anthony told Jamela to make her social media accounts private. She agreed but told Anthony to explain the truth to her.
According to Jamela, Anthony said he would stop things with Maris as long as she stayed quiet and made her accounts private.
“This is the other side of the story—the photos that she posted in her Story, where people started attacking me, saying that the photo was just ‘fan service’ and I was overreacting,” Jamela said, adding she asked Anthony about it but he brushed it off.
According to Jamela, “that’s when everything started to spiral.”
While she tried giving them the benefit of the doubt, by October, Jamela then “ended things as peacefully as I can.”
Before ending her series of posts, Jamela left a message for Anthony, whom she called Michael.
“For nearly 7 years I’m so grateful for you being my rock, my best friend, and most especially my partner. The memories we’ve shared over those years are the ones I will always treasure and remember,” she said.
“I know I’ve loved you enough to make you feel that way, and I could never think of anyone who would make me feel the way you do. You’re my first in so many things, and I’m glad I got to experience them with you,” she added.
“Happiness was all I ever wanted for you, in our years of living together. I never imagined I’d have to let you go, but I did—so you could grow and find happiness on your own,” she said.
Jamela also left a message for all the women who read about her experience, advising them “Don’t be like me.”
“It took me three long months to finally accept that I was just ignoring the reality of the situation. The sleepless nights, crying and anxiety attacks and sabotaging yourself—for those three months, I blamed myself for everything I thought, felt, and saw during that time. I convinced myself I was just overthinking and overreacting because I desperately wanted to see the good in the situation,” Jamela said.
She expressed her gratitude to those “who’ve found strength in my story, and whose hearts I’ve touched.”
“They remind me that sharing my truth isn’t just about my own healing—it’s about empowering others to find the courage to embrace theirs. So if you ever find yourself in the same shoes as me, I hope you can gather the strength to put yourself first and protect your peace,” Jamela said.
Maris and Anthony made waves for their tandem as Irene and Snoop in the series, “Can’t Buy Me Love.”
The two are part of the upcoming Metro Manila Film Festival entry “And the Breadwinner Is…” starring Vice Ganda.
GMA News Online has reached out to Anthony Jennings and Maris Racal but has yet to receive replies as of posting. We will update the story as soon as we receive statements from Anthony and Maris.
— Nika Roque/LA, GMA Integrated News
