Actress-comedian Kim Molina has spoken out after her fiancé, Jerald Napoles, received a threatening message from a netizen criticizing his role in the film ‘Love, Ngo’.
Kim shared on Facebook a screenshot of the direct message sent to Napoles, which contained profanity and an apparent threat of physical harm related to his portrayal of a character with a speech impairment in the movie.
The message read: “Tena ka wag ka nga mag movie movie ng ngo² tena mo makita lang kita grigripu-han kita.”
The colloquial term “grigripuhan” is commonly understood to refer to stabbing someone with a sharp object.
What caught the attention of many social media users, however, was Jerald’s calm and courteous response.
“Hi! Thank you for reaching out. Let me try to get back to you as soon as I can,” the actor replied.
Reacting to the incident, Kim stressed that while criticism is part of public life, threats should never be tolerated.
“Messages like this are alarming and should never be normalized. Criticism is one thing, but threatening physical harm is another,” she wrote.
She also reminded social media users that people should remain respectful online and remember that real individuals are on the receiving end of such messages.
“Let’s keep discussions respectful and remember that behind every screen is a real person,” she added.
In a separate statement, Kim noted that even comments accompanied by laughing emojis or framed as jokes should not trivialize threats of violence.
The incident quickly sparked reactions from netizens, many of whom expressed concern over the threatening message and urged the couple to consider legal action.
Others praised Napoles for handling the situation with composure rather than responding with anger.
Several viewers who had already watched Love, Ngo also defended the film, arguing that it was not intended to mock individuals with cleft palate or speech conditions.
One netizen wrote, “Ganda kaya ng movie kakaiyak un comedian ka tapos bigla magpapaiyak ang galing.”
Another commented, “The movie is not to mock those people with cleft palate. Yes, nakakatawa ang parts of the story but the whole story was heart-warming, educating and most of all it makes us understand the struggles of a person with cleft palates. It also shows the strength behind the difficulties while being laughed at and judged by people surrounding them.”
The film ‘Love, Ngo’, directed by Darryl Yap under Viva Films, features Napoles in the lead role and has generated discussion online because of its portrayal of a character with a speech impairment.
As of writing, neither Napoles nor Molina has announced whether they plan to file a complaint against the individual who sent the threatening message.
