How Donny Pangilinan dominates our hearts as a talented heartthrob

From being that adorable kid who appeared in a television commercial for a popular cereal with his mom Maricel Laxa-Pangilinan, Donny Pangilinan is undeniably among the hottest heartthrobs of his generation.

And in this episode of PUSH Evolution, let’s look back on his remarkable showbiz journey as a versatile actor, singer, model, and host, who relentlessly captures our hearts with his swooning good looks, irresistible charm, and impressive talents.

Despite coming from an influential family whose several members are in the politics and entertainment industry, including his parents Anthony Pangilinan and Maricel Laxa, he’s able to carve his own path and make a name for himself.

His career started as a MYX VJ in 2016, through which he immediately astonished us with his hosting skills. He then became a mainstay of ASAP Natin ‘To since 2017, wherein he’s also able to showcase his singing talent, and further showed his hosting skills as one of the hosts of its spin-offs ASAP Chillout and iWant ASAP.

Donny went on to become part of Star Magic Circle 2018, alongside Charlie Dizon and Tony Labrusca, and appeared in two different ABS-CBN programs. He got us smitten as Ezekiel “Zeke” Domingo in the daytime series Playhouse, wherein he was initially paired with Kisses Delavin, and impressed us with his acting skills in the ‘Dayuhan” episode of Ipaglaban Mo.

It was also in 2018 when he had his big screen debut through the teen movie “Walwal,” which was succeeded by his stints in “To Love Some Buddy” topbilled by Zanjoe Marudo and Maja Salvador, and in the Vice Ganda-starrer “Fantastica”.

The following year, it was announced that he would headline the series adaptation of He’s Into Her opposite new on-screen partner Belle Mariano. In 2020, he finally snagged his first-ever lead role in a film through “James and Pat and Dave,” which was also starred by reel-and-real-life sweethearts Ronnie Alonte and Loisa Andalio.

We’d seen a lot of Donny in 2021 as two of his shows finally premiered. He’s Into Her became a huge hit on iWantTFC and other viewing platforms of ABS-CBN, which was followed by a special online concert titled “He’s Into Her: The Benison Ball.”

After years of waiting, the variety-reality show “Aja! Aja! Tayo sa Jeju!,” which he co-hosted with Robi Domingo, Kristel Fulgar, and Shine Kuk, and was filmed mostly in Jeju, South Korea in 2018, was also broadcast on TV.

He and Belle continued to win hearts in the romantic-comedy flick “Love Is Color Blind,” where they amused and moved us with their compelling portrayals of Ino and Cara.

Aside from his hosting and acting chops, the 24-year-old actor was also able to show off his singing talent not just through his variety show stints, but with the various singles he released from 2017 to 2021, such as “Did You,” “Walk With You,” “Ngiti Mo,” “Dream,” and “Wings.”

This year, fans of DonBelle are looking forward to seeing them reprise their roles in He’s Into Her Season 2, and watch the developments in their characters Deib and Max, as well as witness how they’re going to face the challenges that will come their way as individuals and young lovers.

Which project of Donny do you love the most?