The Sunday Times Magazine > Arts Awake
2025 marks a year of mourning for Philippine entertainment

The year 2025 was a heartbreaking one for the country, as the entertainment industry lost pillars in music, acting, film, theater, and comedy — figures whose work shaped generations of audiences and creatives alike.

Award-winning actress Gloria Romero was among the earliest losses of the year. She died on January 25 at 91. A defining star of the Golden Age of Philippine cinema, Romero enjoyed a career that spanned more than seven decades, seamlessly transitioning from leading lady roles to beloved matriarch characters in film and television.