CEBU, Philippines - Two young hosts have stepped in to take the place of Philippines’ “Queen of Talk” Kris Aquino in her two former programs on ABS-CBN, “Showbiz News Ngayon” and “The Buzz.”
Bianca Gonzalez has taken over “Showbiz News Ngayon,” which airs weeknights, while Toni Gonzaga is the new host of the Sunday show “The Buzz.”
Kris reportedly gave up the two showbiz news-oriented shows upon the advice of family members to avoid making comments that might be taken against her brother, the newly-inaugurated Philippine president Benigno Simeon Aquino III.
Without naming her replacements, Kris has said that she’s leaving her shows to good hands.
Bianca and Toni are two of the most familiar faces on Philippine television.
Bianca, 27, graduated with a degree in AB Communication Arts, minor in Philosophy, at the Ateneo de Manila University. Her previous hosting stints include Game Plan, YSpeak, Breakfast, Wazzap, Wazzap, Barkada-Log for Studio 23; Review Night, Cinema News Alert for Cinema One; Magandang Umaga Pilipinas, Entertainment Konek and Pinoy Big Brother for ABS-CBN. Incidentally, her co-host on “SNN,” Boy Abunda, is also her talent manager.
Toni, 26, is an all-rounder. She’s a host, singer and actress, who has a number of hit films to her credit. She started her career with GMA Network but later moved to ABS-CBN where she became the main host of “Pinoy Big Brother.” She is also one of the hosts for the Saturday talk show Entertainment Live (with Bianca Gonzalez, among others) and the Sunday variety show ASAP.
By giving such prime projects to the two, among many other notable ABS-CBN talents, showbiz pundits are saying that it’s one way of saying that Bianca and Toni are the heirs-apparent to the showbiz title that Kris Aquino is holding right now.