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EXCLUSIVE: AC Bonifacio on Darren Espanto defending her: ‘Before, now, and after, I am forever grateful’

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Push Team

Kapamilya actress-dancer AC Bonifacio expressed her appreciation for her best friend, Darren Espanto, who rallied behind her amid the heightened online bashing against her.“Hearing that he defended me, and he spoke up, it takes a lot of courage to be able to do that,” she said in an interview with <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz">PUSH ABS-CBN</a>. The former Pinoy Big Brother housemate said this gesture of Darren was something she would be “forever grateful for.” “I really didn’t think anyone would be there or would speak up in such a tough time, and he did it on his own, without anyone telling him,&quot; she expressed. &quot;Sobrang grateful lang po talaga ako kay Darren. Before pa, I mean I’ve been speaking to Darren, and I’ve been very vocal about how I love Darren.  So before, now and after, I am forever grateful.&quot; In the same interview, AC described her long thriving friendship with the actor whom she described as her “rock.” “That guy, Darren, is really, he is my rock. And no matter what issues people had made between us, he [stood] by my side through it all,” she said.  The former PBB housemate also told PUSH ABS-CBN that Darren was one of the first few people she met after she exited the Big Brother house.  In a separate interview with ABS-CBN news, she also shared that the actor has been constantly checking up on her, bringing food to her place.  AC emphasized in the said interview that Darren has never tolerated her bad behavior.  During the launching of City Cafe on March 26, Darren told entertainment reporters that the public might have just misinterpreted his best friend. <div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/celebrities/2025/3/27/darren-espanto-defends-ac-bonifacio-from-bashers-sana-mabigyan-rin-siya-ng-chance-1027">READ: Darren Espanto defends AC Bonifacio from bashers: ‘Sana mabigyan rin siya ng chance’</a></div>&quot;Siyempre ako eight years ko na best friend si AC so I know her inside and out,” he said.“I know what the backstory is to what she’s doing inside the house. And I’m not saying like we all tolerate everything that we do even though we’re best friends. Siyempre may mga limitations din. And at the end of the day, we’re just there to support her. Ngayon kasama siya sa mga nominees for eviction so we’ll see what happens.”The actor admitted that the online bashing for AC had also taken a toll on him.  “I feel like all of us get affected even when it’s not just our family members being bashed, even if it’s our friends naman. Kami nila Niana nag-te-text. Also, we’re checking up on AC’s mom, si tita Cherry. May mga group calls kaming ginagawa just to talk about everything that’s happening inside the house,” he said.  In 2023, AC addressed the rumors linking her to Darren in a romantic way. <div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/2023/10/14/exclusive-ac-bonifacio-on-constantly-being-linked-to-darren-espanto-it-s-just-so-funny-840">READ: EXCLUSIVE: AC Bonifacio on constantly being linked to Darren Espanto: ‘It’s just so funny!’</a></div>“Oh my gosh (laughs),” she told PUSH ABS-CBN. “It’s just so funny. Tumatawa na lang ako, kami actually. Kasi kami ni Darren we’ve made it clear in our careers and in our friendship kung ano talaga kami. But he really is my bestest friend in the whole wide world and we just laugh.&quot;<div> </div>—By Clarence Gillego

Former Pinoy Big Brother housemate AC Bonifacio reacts to Darren Espanto defending her against online bashing.

Former Pinoy Big Brother housemate AC Bonifacio reacts to Darren Espanto defending her against online bashing.