Darryl Yap | |
|---|---|
| Born | Darryl Ray Spyke Balingit Yap (1987-01-07)January 7, 1987 (age 39)[1] |
| Education | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2017–present |
Darryl Ray Spyke Balingit Yap (born January 7, 1987) is aFilipino film director, screenwriter and producer.[2]
Yap was born on January 7, 1987 inOlongapo, Zambales to his parents who are high school teachers. He has a sibling.[3]
He graduated in Manila'sCentro Escolar University with amass communication degree and later enrolled at theNanyang Technological University inSingapore to pursue a degree in public administration.[3]
Yap started his directing career with the short filmSquatterina that highlighted the similarities between a typicalillegal settler inOlongapo and the disciplines ofballet.[4] It was followed by his first full film#Jowable in 2018 which is about a troubled young woman named Elsa (starringKim Molina) who yearns for a mature and intimate relationship.[5] The film gained mixed reviews from critics.[5][6][7]
In May 2020, Yap released a television series entitledSakristan about two men coming to terms in finding love despite being church servants.[8] He received widespread criticism before the series' release due to the nature of the title and posters.[9] There were online demands to cancelSakristan due to its disrespectful and offensive content to theCatholic Church.[10][11] The series was released throughYouTube.[12][13]
In January 2021,Viva Films releasedPaglaki Ko, Gusto Kong Maging Pornstar, directed and written by Yap. It tells the story of a group of formerpornstars gathered to teach an aspiring teen actress on how to be a pornstar, with a cash reward should the actress be launched.[14] The film was prohibited to be shown to the general public by theMovie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) due to its sexual and explicit content.[15] A sequel titledPornstar 2: Pangalawang Putok was released on December 3, 2021, onVivamax.[16]
In July 2021, Yap released another film entitledGluta, about anAeta girl who dreams of winning theMiss Universe pageant but faces discrimination from her own indigenous community.[17][18] In August 2021, Yap also released an erotic comedy film,Revirginized, about a mother (played bySharon Cuneta) who never had a propercoming of age experience.[19][20]
Yap was declaredpersona non grata in June 2022 by theQuezon City Council for an episode ofVinCentiments where theSeal of Quezon City was defaced and actress-comedianAi-Ai delas Alas portrayed asQuezon City mayorJoy Belmonte in a negative way.[21][22]
Theperiodhistorical revisionist drama filmMaid in Malacañang was written and directed by Yap, and tells the story of theMarcos family's last three days in theMalacañang Palace before they were forced to flee toHawaii during thePeople Power Revolution in 1986.[23] The film released in July 2025 received numerous negative reviews from critics and audiences due to its controversial portrayal of the Marcos family and of People Power Revolution figureheadCorazon Aquino.[24][25][26][27] A second installment filmMartyr or Murderer was released in 2023.[28][29]
In 2024, Yap released aromantic comedy film, titledSeoulmeyt, about a Filipina fan ofKorean dramas meets with the man of her dreams until she discovers his fake personality.[30][31] StarringKim Molina andJerald Napoles,[32] and also shot inSouth Korea,[33] the film received positive reviews.[34][35]
In October 2024, it was reported that Yap is planning to do an upcoming movie about the late Filipino actressPepsi Paloma.[36] The film hinted to revolve around Paloma's alleged rape and subsequent suicide was entitledThe Rapists of Pepsi Paloma and was set to be screened in February 5, 2025 before its release was halted by a court order.[37][38]Vic Sotto, one of the alleged suspect of the abandoned rape case, filed libel charges against Yap for the unreleased film shortly after the trailer's release in January 2025.[39][40]
After the averted screening ofPepsi Paloma, Yap started working on the filmNgongo. The film already received criticism from theDepartment of Social Welfare and Development and theNational Council on Disability Affairs for its title and promotional materials which had execution which they deem deragatory towardspeople with disabilities.[41][42]
Yap is abakla or a gay man.[43][44] He came out in his college years when he had a boyfriend for five years. Yap admitted to being in a straight relationship during high school recalling how his mother is opposed to him having a girlfriend already suspecting he is gay.[43]
In 2020, Yap drew controversy for his filmAyudamn, which was condemned on social media for having an offensive remark tosingle parents. A social media user posted a thread showing supposed screenshots ofgrooming him when he was 16 years old. The user also claimed that Yap's videographer Vincent Asis also had relationships with minors.[45]
Yap responded to the claim with a similar thread of screenshots, claiming that during the conversations, the user was allegedly telling him that he was a rape victim. He stated that the user had edited and manipulated the screenshots to maliciously portray him as a child groomer.[45]
A Facebook user also accused Yap of perpetuatingpedophilia andchild abuse amidst thelockdown put in place due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. Yap threatened to file legal complaints against the Facebook user for spreading false information, asserting that he is not a pedophile nor has abused children.[45]
Yap also drew backlash for an old tweet in 2017 which he stated "masarap ang bata" (lit. 'Children are delicious'). Among them was formerCommission on Elections commissionerRowena Guanzon, who called on the public toboycott Yap's movies and report him to his films' financiers.[45]
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | #Jowable | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy |
| 2021 | Paglaki Ko, Gusto Kong Maging Pornstar | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy |
| Tililing | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy | |
| Ang Babaeng Walang Pakiramdam | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy | |
| Gluta | Yes | Yes | No | Drama | |
| Revirginized | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy | |
| 69+1 | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy | |
| Ang Manananggal na Nahahati ang Puso | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy | |
| Sarap Mong Patayin | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy | |
| Barumbadings | Yes | Yes | No | Action comedy | |
| Pornstar 2: Pangalawang Putok | Yes | Yes | No | Comedy | |
| 2022 | Maid in Malacañang | Yes | Yes | No | Political drama |
| 2023 | Martyr or Murderer | Yes | Yes | No | Political drama |
| 2024 | Seoulmeyt | Yes | Yes | No | Romantic comedy |
| Unreleased | The Rapists of Pepsi Paloma | Yes | Yes | Yes | Crime drama |
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Sakristan | Yes | Yes | No | BL drama |
| 2021 | Kung Pwede Lang (KPL) | Yes | Yes | No | comedy |