Stronger than ever: Showbiz exes who got back together and found 'forever' in each other
Would you ever marry an ex?
As the Pat Benatar song goes, love is a battlefield. And some couples' love for one other, even after their breakup, is so strong that their hearts find their way back to each other.
Take Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez, for instance—the two reunited in April 2021, 18 years after their romance failed. On July 16, Bennifer solidified their love by tying the knot in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Showbiz couples here in the Philippines have also had their Bennifer moment—breaking up and getting back together—and like the Hollywood couple, they even got married, too. Here are some celebrities that have said yes to their exes for good.
Maja Salvador and Rambo Nuñez
On April 17, Maja Salvador announced her engagement to ex Rambo Nuñez who she first dated in 2010. The couple found their way back to each other in 2019 and have been in love since.
Prior to Nuñez, Salvador said she wasn't one to give exes a second chance. But after bumping into each other in a gym in August 2018, they began talking again and eventually falling for each other again.
The businessman proposed to the actress during a family Easter egg hunt. "My new beginning," Salvador captioned as she shared the news.
Dennis Trillo and Jennylyn Mercado
The DenJen love story began in 2010 after working together on different soaps for GMA. Dennis Trillo and Jennylyn Mercado made it official in April 2010 but saw their relationship last for 11 months before breaking up. In 2014, the two actors gave it another shot. They wouldn't make this public until February 2016.
"Maalagain kasi si [Jennylyn], tsaka maasikaso. Isa rin yun sa mga na-miss ko rin, siyempre, masarap feeling na ganun, eh... Kaya nung nagkaroon ako ng chance na imaging close ulit sa kanya at ayusin samahan naming dalawa, pinursige ko nun," Trillo told PEP.ph.
Amid the pandemic, Trillo and Mercado got engaged in October 2021 and got married soon after in November. The couple welcomed their firstborn daughter Dylan in May 2022.
Vin Abrenica and Sophie Albert
Vin Abrenica and Sophie Albert first met each other on the talent search show Artista Academy in 2012—which they both won—and made things official a year after. Due to both of their careers taking off, they ended things in 2016 to focus on personal growth.
The actors then reconciled in 2018 and got engaged in December 2020. They welcomed their first baby girl Avianna in March 2021.
Asked about what makes their relationship work, Albert said it's because she and Abrenica started out as friends.
"We're very open about everything. We just really show our true, true selves. There's nothing na censored sa gaming dalawa so even the grossest stuff, there's no censor. We're just like friends who enjoy each other's company," she told Smart Parenting.
Luis Manzano and Jessy Mendiola
While you may know that Luis Manzano and Jessy Mendiola are happily in love and married (who could forget Luis' iconic reaction to Jessy walking down the aisle), they actually broke up during the pandemic in May 2020.
Luckily, their relationship didn't end for good as the two announced their engagement in December 2020 and tied the knot in February 2021.
"It's been a year since we got married and my love for you has never been stronger. Thank you for choosing to love me everyday. I will never get tired of watching sunsets with you. I love you," Mendiola wrote for their first anniversary in February.
