Her career was ruined but her love child, Jennica, is now 12 and Jean has no regrets about her decision. She never married the father, actor Jigo Garcia. "He now has four kids with his wife, Amy," she says. "Every now and then, nagkikita sila ni Jennica."
Jean was relegated to supporting roles. She won the Metro-Manila Filmfest Best Supporting Actress award for the remake of Trudis Liit and supported child actress Mumay Santiago in Roberta. "That was my last film in 1995," she says. "Nothing was really happening to my career so I decided to try working in Japan. I was hired as a singer at the Estancia Club in the Roppongi District of Tokyo and I would also participate as a dancer in their production numbers. I stayed there for two and a half years, coming home here every three months. I was able to save a lot because of my work there."
It was only in Japan where she met her current boyfriend, a Japanese advertising executive who studied filmmaking for four years at the De La Salle University. "I met him through a friend during my first month in Japan," she says. "He speaks fluent English and even Tagalog. When I got an offer to do the soap opera, Pangako Sa’Yo from ABS-CBN and told him I want to come home for good, he didn’t like the idea. But I felt sayang naman ang opportunity and I really want to act again. I only came home because of Pangako and I don’t regret that I did because it revived my acting career."
Everywhere she goes now, people address her as Madame Claudia, the character she played in Pangako. "Even in the US and in Japan, people call me by that name. What’s surprising is that they don’t hate my character, even if I was playing a villain. Sa last episode naman kasi, I had a change of heart and showed remorse. They tell me they like even more than Amor Powers (played by Eula Valdes and her rival in the now defunct soap opera). Naaaliw sila even with the McDonald’s commercial that we did together."
It was while doing Pangako Sa’Yo that she got pregnant with her second love child. "My son is a miracle baby. I was in my sixth month of pregnancy when I went to Tagaytay with my family at natagtag ako. My water bag suddenly broke and I had to be rushed all the way to the Cardinal Santos Hospital. I was in bed for two weeks and they decided to get the baby by Caesarean section to save it. It was a boy and when he came out on April 4, he was only a pound and 15 ounces. He looked like a small kitten. He was in the incubator for two more months before I was able to take him home. But now, he’s a bouncing eight-year-old, named Kotaro, very healthy, with no defects at all. It’s really a miracle that he survived."
Her boyfriend who she refuses to name, offered to marry her but she asked him to delay it up to 2005. "More opportunities are coming my way and I don’t want to let go of them. Baka if I’d agree to marry him, he’d suddenly require me to stay with him for good in Japan. I’m not ready yet for that. It’s good he understands me and is very supportive of my career. He was very happy when I won the Best Drama Actress award as Madame Claudia in the last Star Awards."
Was she expecting to win? "No," she replies. Last year kasi, I was hoping, but the trophy went to Eula. I was happy for her but I’m glad this time, it’s my turn."
Now, Jean has joined the cast of Lorna Tolentino’s soap opera, Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay, and she is also doing a new movie, Moral 2 for Star Cinema, directed by Marilou Diaz-Abaya. "In Kay Tagal, I play Lady Morganna Frost, better known as Lady M, the rival of Lorna T. Sister ko si Bing Loyzaga and I am a balikbayan who is deadly as an enemy and strategizes my move like a champion chess player. With this, I hope the public will forget me as Madame Claudia and will know me now as Lady M. I’m sure the viewers will enjoy my confrontations and showdowns with Lorna T."
In Moral 2, she continues the role played by Gina Alajar in the original as a trying hard singer who wears the most outlandish outifts. "I sport different hairstyles in the movie and different costumes, too," she says. Kung minsan, I am in an Egyptian getup. Kung minsan naman, Latin. It’s a very colorful character and I get to star with Dina Bonnevie, Cherry Pie Picache and Eula Valdes."