Kapamilya actor Coco Martin (Facebook)

In a groundbreaking collaboration, acclaimed director Erik Matti, renowned film producer Dondon Monteverde, and beloved Kapamilya star Coco Martin have joined forces to create two highly anticipated action films. 

This exciting partnership promises to deliver thrilling cinematic experiences that will captivate and exhilarate movie fans everywhere.

During a press conference at Marco Polo Ortigas in Pasig City recently, the partnership revealed that Coco will star in two big projects: "On The Job: Maghari" and "Maypagasa: The Battles of Andres Bonifacio." 

Coco said it was a dream come true to collaborate with Erik and Dondon. The visionary actor recalled how their partnership came about.

"Noong napanood ko yung 'OTJ: Buybust,' sabi ko sino ang artista na hindi mangangarap na makagawa ng ganitong proyekto at makatrabaho sila Direk Erik Matti and Sir Dondon Monteverde. Ni-require ko talaga noon yung production staff ko na panoorin ang 'Buybust.' (When I watched 'OTJ Buybust,' I said, 'What artist wouldn't dream of doing a project like this and working with Director Erik Matti and Sir Dondon Monteverde?' I actually required my production staff to watch 'Buybust.')

"Nag-abang talaga ako na sana mapansin nila ako. Pero hindi nila ako tinatawagan hanggang gumawa na sila ng 'OTJ 2.' Pero dumating na talaga sa sarili ko na sabi ko siguro hindi pa oras. (I was really hoping they would notice me. But they didn't call me until they made 'OTJ 2.' But it really dawned on me that maybe it's not time yet.)"

"Sabi ko siguro sa panlasa nila Direk Erik and Sir Dondon hindi pa ako enough. Tahimik lang ako. Kung hindi talaga nila ako nakikitaan ng potential ako na lang ang gagawa ng proyekto na ginagawa rin nila. (I said maybe I'm not good enough for Direk Erik and Sir Dondon's taste. I just keep quiet. If they really don't see potential in me, I'll just do similar projects they're doing.)"

"One day sinabi sa akin ng producer, gusto raw makipag meeting sa akin nila Direk Erik and Sir Dondon. Kinilabutan na ako. Ang tagal kong hinintay ito para makatrabaho sila. (One day, my producer told me that Direk Erik and Sir Dondon wanted to meet with me. I was terrified. I had been waiting for this for a long time.)"

"Sabi ko kay Sir Dondon, sobrang fan ako ng 'OTJ.' Habang nagkukuwento ako, may nakitaan siya. Sabi niya may 'OTJ' kaming gagawin. Parang sinasabi niya na pwede ako sa concept nila. (I told Sir Dondon, I'm a huge fan of 'OTJ.' While I was telling him the story, he saw something. He said we're going to do an 'OTJ.' It's like he's saying I can fit into their concept.)

"Sinabi ko rin fan ako ng ginawa nila na 'Heneral Luna' at nakaka proud na nakakagawa na tayo ng mga ganung pelikula. Yun pala may project din silang Bonifacio. After that, every week nag-meeting na kami with the creatives. And then yun na. (I also said I'm a fan of what they did with Heneral Luna, and I'm proud that we can make movies like that. They also have a project called Bonifacio. After that, we met with the creatives every week. And then that was it)," Coco said.

Coco said he's proud of these two movie projects, which he said would showcase the talents of Filipino stars to the world.

"Pinag-usapan namin paano natin ipapakita sa buong mundo ang gawang Pilipino. Sabi ko tutal gagawa rin lang tayo, gumawa tayo ng mga proyekto na magmamarka hindi lang sa mga Pilipino kundi sa buong mundo. (We talked about how we can showcase Filipino craftsmanship to the whole world. I said, after all, we're just going to do it, let's do projects that will make a mark not only on Filipinos but on the whole world)," he also said.

Acclaimed director Erik Matti, Kapamilya actor Coco Martin, and film producer Dondon Monteverde attend the media conference for the announcement of two film projects, 'On The Job: Maghari' and Maypagasa: The Battles of Andres Bonifacio', at Marco Polo Ortigas in Pasig City.

Erik is convinced that the two movies will showcase Coco's remarkable talents and character in the most brilliant way possible, allowing him to shine like a star under the spotlight.

"We want to bring out the best in Coco, not just what we see in 'Batang Quiapo' and 'Ang Probinsyano.' Along with that, ang lakas din ng legacy niya sa indie movies niya before. Not just the action hero, but the dramatic actor in him. From the beginning, Coco is really a dramatic actor," the director said.

Erik added, "Ang laki ng emotions ng dalawang kuwento na ito. These are popcorn movies pero malakas ang kwento nila. That's where we agreed together. (The emotions in these two stories are huge. These are popcorn movies, but their stories are strong. That's where we agreed together.)"

"On The Job: Maghari" is set to release in 2026, while "Maypagasa: The Battles of Andres Bonifacio" will be in 2027.

Both films will come from the award-winning storyteller duo of writer Michiko Yamamoto and director Erik Matti. 

On Bonifacio, Erik said shooting for the movie hasn't started yet. "But we have the script. Coco has read the script. So we know how 'bloody' the project is.'

"In Bonifacio, sometimes it's scary to do a historical biography because it is open to everyone's opinion, like what they learned in school; historians would also have their ways of telling the story. 

"But this one, we're interested in telling Bonifacio because his story is interesting. It speaks about the times now sa nangyayari sa bansa natin. Ang nangyari sa kanya dati up to now is still happening. (It speaks about the times now in what is happening in our country. What happened to him up until now is still happening.)

"It's nice to bring it to modern times. We're also shooting it modern. It's a period (film), but we're using rock music. It's updated because we want to show what is happening now," said Erik.

In "OTJ," Coco will play the young version of Mario Maghari, also known as Tatang, played by Joel Torre in the hit film "On The Job."

On the casting of the two projects, Coco also said, 'Gusto namin na magkaroon ng cast na hindi pa nagsasama sama. Gusto namin ma experience or masabi ng tao na hindi pa namin ito nakikita sa TV or hindi namin akalain na magsasama sama sila sa isang pelikula. (We wanted to have a cast that had never worked together before. We wanted to have an experience or for people to say, 'We've never seen this on TV, or we never thought they'd work together in a movie.)"