NOW it can be said: former “TV Patrol” anchor Korina Sanchez once dated Venezuelan actor Fernando Carrillo, best known to Filipinos as Thalia’s leading man in the hit telenovela “Rosalinda.”
The topic came up early this week during Sanchez’s live Instagram interview with film and TV writer G3 San Diego, which had the theme “Empowered Women in Love.”
The interview delved into Sanchez’s marriage with former senator Mar Roxas, but also touched on her past romances.
At one point, San Diego asked Sanchez whether she ever had a boyfriend from showbiz.
“Wala, no artista boyfriend,” Sanchez said.
When asked whether Carrillo ever courted her, as rumored nearly a decade ago, Sanchez answered in the affirmative: “Niligawan ako.”
Carrillo first crossed paths with Sanchez in 2000, when he visited the Philippines at the height of the popularity of “Rosalinda,” which aired on ABS-CBN.
“We dated, pero walang nangyari doon. None,” Sanchez recalled. “Natakot ako. We had a date, and at the end of that date, nagkakaripas ako ng takbo papasok ng kotse ko to leave. Na-tense ako, e.”
In 2012, Carrillo returned to Manila, and made guest appearances in various ABS-CBN programs. While he was not scheduled to be interviewed on DZMM, he stopped by Sanchez’s “Rated Korina” while it aired live, resulting in the spontaneous exchange that hinted at their romantic past.
“He went back to the Philippines and he went to DZMM and said, ‘Do you remember that night when you ran away from me? And now you’re married, so how now?’” Sanchez recalled.
Sanchez married Roxas in 2009.
She did not elaborate on the reason she was “afraid” then of entering a relationship with Carrillo.
With her past and present experiences in love, Sanchez said she learned, over the years, how to best grapple with issues related to being a romantic partner, which she still applies today in her marriage with Roxas. (ABS-CBN)
