Bianca Gonzalez Intal

In the increasingly polarised culture of celebrity-obsessed Philippines, movie stars and television personalities are expected to stay out of sociopolitical conversations, as a matter of preserving their careers. But Bianca Gonzalez Intal is one of the best examples of how these expectations are, increasingly, being defied. Throughout the 2000s, Gonzalez Intal built a successful career as a television host at ABS-CBN, Studio 23, and MTV Philippines. She rose to fame as a housemate and then host of Pinoy Big Brother, which she continues to host today.

Gonzalez Intal has also built a following on social media as an advocate for progressive values and a motivational figure for young people and parents. In 2014, she published Paano Ba Ito?, a book that provides teenagers with advice and life lessons. On Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, Gonzalez Intal speaks up about relevant issues such as LGBTQ+ rights, women’s rights, mental health, and press freedom. She has also reiterated Paano Ba Ito? as a talk show and web series, through which she speaks to fellow celebrities and advocates. Gonzalez Intal also co-founded She Talks, a platform for women’s issues.