Jose Marie Borja Viceral (born March 31, 1976), popularly known as Vice Ganda (; ), is a Filipino comedian, television host, actor, entrepreneur and recording artist. He is considered one of the most successful entertainers in Philippine show business, noted for his stand-up routines, usage of observational comedy, situational irony and sarcasm in pertaining to Filipino culture and human sexuality. He is a regular host on ABS-CBN's noontime variety show It's Showtime and has starred in six of the top 10 highest-grossing films in Philippine cinema.
Ganda began a career as a singer and stand-up comedian for Punchline and The Library in Manila. He also played minor roles or guest roles in various television programs and films. He became more recognized in the talent search program It's Showtime (2009) and gained widespread popularity in his first lead role in the 2010 remake film Petrang Kabayo and staged his first major concert May Nag-Text.. 'Yung Totoo! Vice Ganda sa Araneta, the same year. He broke several box-office records in his succeeding releases including the sequel The Unkabogable Praybeyt Benjamin (2011), Sisterakas (2012), Girl, Boy, Bakla, Tomboy (2013), The Amazing Praybeyt Benjamin (2014), Beauty and the Bestie (2015), The Super Parental Guardians (2016), Gandarrapido: The Revenger Squad (2017), Fantastica (2018), The Mall, the Merrier! (2019) and Partners in Crime (2022).
Dubbed as the "Phenomenal Superstar" by the media, Ganda is the highest-grossing Filipino movie actor of all time, with a total movie gross of billion since 2022. He has received numerous awards including 2 Asian Academy Creative Awards, a FAMAS Award, a Guinness World Record and a star on the Eastwood City Walk of Fame. With nearly 50 million combined followers, he is one of the most followed Filipino personalities across all leading social media platforms. Forbes Asia lists him among the most influential celebrities in Asia Pacific while Reader's Digest named him as one of the most trusted personalities in 2023. He was the first LGBTQ endorser for Globe Telecom.
Early life
Before coming out to his family and loved ones, Vice Ganda was known as "Tutoy", which was his nickname as a young boy. The youngest of six children, Vice Ganda grew up in the neighbourhood Sta Cruz, Manila. His father, a native of Taysan, Batangas and a barangay captain in Tondo, Manila, was murdered when he was young, prompting his mother, an Ilocana from San Juan, La Union, to leave her children to work abroad as a caregiver. Vice was able to sustain his studies due to a scholarship granted by an unknown Japanese woman who funded his education from third grade until second year college. He studied political science at Far Eastern University but was not able to complete his studies to pursue his career.
Career
1997–2008: Stand-up comedy and cross-over to television and films
Vice Ganda started out as a singer, then as a comedian for Punchline and The Library in Manila, whose owner Andrew de Real gave him the stage name "Vice Ganda". He was discovered by Hans Mortel who later introduced him to De Real, the "Godfather of Malate" and "King of Comedy Bars" who had served as his mentor for his comedy skits. There he spent several years developing his material in the comedy clubs. His career began to build after appearances on television and reviews from tabloid columns.
He works alongside fellow comedians Chokoleit, Pooh, John Lapus and Rey Kilay. Vice is widely known for his observational comedy and situational irony type of comedy skits. In 1999, a talent scout and now a fellow television comedian and manager, Ogie Diaz, discovered Vice in one of his visits to the comedy bars.
He appeared first as Antonia in the Judy Ann Drama Special aired by commercial television network ABS-CBN. He also made a cameo appearance in Sa Paraiso ni Efren, a film produced by Regal Films. In the same year, Vice appeared as one of the guests for Comedy Central Market under GMA Network and became a guest performer for a now defunct show, SOP, in the same network. In 2002, he was one of the contenders in "O Diva" and "Birit Queen", both singing contests in Eat Bulaga!, the longest-running noontime show in the Philippines. Since then, he played minor roles or guest roles in various television programs of ABS-CBN such as M.R.S. (Most Requested Show) and various roles in a drama anthology, Maalaala Mo Kaya.