Judy Ann hosts ‘realiserye’ I Do

If the show I Do had a celebrity edition before she got married, Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo would not have second thoughts joining the realiserye. 

“Oh yes, I would,” she said. “But I am not sure with Ryan because he is a very private person.” 

And if they went through the process, Judy Ann said she and husband Ryan Agoncillo would have many treasured moments to reminisce. 

“Perhaps, we would have many interesting conversations because we could look back at the experience and the friendships formed with the other couples who went through the challenging process,” said Judy Ann, the host of ABS-CBN’s realiserye. 

I Do is an original ABS-CBN show that will feature couples who want to get married. Nine couples with exceptional love stories from different parts of the country will compete in a series of challenges to test and strengthen their relationship. 

In the end, the winning couple will be determined by public votes and will get P1M, house and lot, and their dream wedding. 

Judy Ann said the nine couples are lucky because the show helped them prepare before they get married and begin raising families. 

“The couples confronted, resolved and let go of their past issues. They also discovered new things about their partners,” she said.

Judy Ann would always tell the contestants that even if they don’t end up as the winning couple, they are already “winners” because they learned so many things from their experiences and formed friendships with the other couples while staying in the I Do village. 

“I look forward to the day when these couples already have children and they will be telling all the stories that happened inside the village that would inspire them,” she said. 

In the show, Judy Ann will not only be a host who will be giving out challenges to the nine contestant couples, but she will also sit as one of the members of its council who will strictly observe the couples and decide which of them get to stay and which will have to leave. 

She will be joined by two credible experts on love, marriage and relationships — life coach Pia Acevedo and psychologist and marriage counselor Dr. Julian Montano. Jason Gainza, meanwhile, will serve as Juday’s co-host.

The couples will live together in the I Do village, but the women will sleep separately from the men. Throughout the competition, their relationships will be tested as they go through “cycles,” each with a theme and sessions based on real-life marriage and relationship situations.

The council will decide which couple to eliminate at the end of every cycle based on teamwork, trust and other aspects connected to the theme. 

In preparing for her role as host and coach for the couples, Judy Ann said she gives advice based on her personal experiences and does not pretend to know everything. 

Although married for five years, she said it is still a “short time” and that she and Ryan are still getting to know each other. 

“I am not a perfect wife. I am not a perfect mother,” she said. “My life is an open book. I have no right to invent stories or talk about things that people know I did not experience.” 

And she is happy that people who follow her on social media really look forward to her postings of family photos. 

“The photos that you see on my Instagram are real and authentic. We don’t post them because we want people to think we are a happy family, but we want to inspire parents,” she said.

When there are problems, Judy Ann said they settle them privately and try not to involve the public as much as possible. 

“What happens at home stays at home. They are not supposed to be national news. And I feel that I have earned the respect of the public that when we say this is private, it is private. And if after a few weeks we reveal things to the public, they would get the answers from us,” she said. 

In doing the show, Judy Ann admitted that she learned a lot from her coaches and the nine couples. 

“Inaabangan ko kung ‘yung pinagdaanan nila doon sa days na wala ako sa loob ng village. And then, they would give me updates and I would realize that it could really happen and what can be done,” she said. 

What advice can she give to those who are planning to take the big plunge and exchange “I do’s” in real life? 

“I think they will know it, they will feel it. Mas importante sa panahon ngayon, hindi pwedeng puso lang yung papairalin mo,” she said. “Love is always there, but communication is really important. Love will never fade when you love someone. But reality will set in after a year and that’s the time they really have to prepare.”