Sharon Cuneta leaves TV5: What will happen to their P1 billion deal?
Sharon Cuneta certainly knew how to end the last week of August with a bang. Through her Facebook fan page, the “Megastar” announced through a bizarre infographic that she is no longer with TV5 late Friday night.
“I am going to drop clues every now and then as to the things I will be working on which will start sooner than you think! So keep watching out for those clues,” Cuneta added cryptically.
Earlier that day, she related that she had a meeting with unidentified parties and that she felt as if her prayers were answered. “God indeed works in the most mysterious ways,” Cuneta said.
The surprising announcement came barely a week after she shared to her Facebook followers that she is going through a “midlife crisis,” mainly triggered by her career decline as well as online bashers and weight problems.
The following day, she hinted that some of her erstwhile trusted friends eventually left her in midair. “Funny how sometimes, the people you expect to be there first are the ones who never make their presence felt,” she said.
“That’s one good thing about bad times — you find out who is going to be there for you when all the good times fade away,” the veteran actress and singer wrote.
With Cuneta deciding to announce her break from TV5 publicly, the network was forced to respond with a meek statement through Peachy Vibal-Guioguio of its Corporate Communications Department:
“TV5 wishes to extend its gratitude to Ms. Sharon Cuneta for being a part of the Kapatid Network for almost three years.
The network wishes her well in all her future endeavors.”
Though Cuneta chose not to give any specifics about her separation from TV5, we can nonetheless make some interesting observations:
1) Although Cuneta has been notorious for her misadventures in social media especially Twitter the past three years, this particular action of hers can be a useful guide for disaffected employees on how NOT to leave an employer (and yes, even if you are a celebrity!).
The more preferable scenario would have been for Cuneta’s camp and TV5 to issue a joint statement announcing their separation. Instead, Cuneta came across as someone overeager to jump out of TV5.
2) Cuneta’s public humiliation of TV5 clearly shows her bad (an understatement, perhaps) relationship with the network. Her infographic, in particular, is similar to notice of employment terminations which are routinely published in newspapers.
3) When Cuneta left ABS-CBN in early 2012 after 23 years of partnership, the actress claimed that the network is already failing “to maximize (her) strengths as an entertainer and that she “felt a bit taken for granted.”
She told Philippine Star‘s Wilson Lee Flores: “I was craving for the attention and the care that they used to give me.” Now, will she use the same rationale vs. TV5?
4) Of course, being paid by TV5 top boss Manny V. Pangilinan (no relation to her husband) P1 billion for a five-year contract further pushed Cuneta away from ABS-CBN.
However, the downside of the deal cannot be denied. TV5 employees reportedly did not receive their Christmas bonus for 2011 and 2012 because of this.
More importantly, TV5 had been losing billions and billions of pesos for the past five years. The network’s daring move to hire big-name stars like Cuneta, superstar Nora Aunor, the late “King of Comedy” Dolphy, and even American singer David Archuleta failed to stop TV5’s financial hemorrhage.
With “the Megastar” leaving TV5 just midway through her five-year contract, what will happen now to their P1 billion deal? Abangan.
Meanwhile, take a minute to watch one of Ate Shawie’s most memorable commercials 🙂 :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbjS6rVEjv0
PLEASE LIKE THE FILIPINO SCRIBE ON FACEBOOK!
About Author
