Willie Revillame admits losing P50M due to ‘Wowowin’

MANILA, Philippines – Willie Revillame, host of the show Wowowin on the GMA network, said during a press conference on August 5 that he spent almost P50 million to support the production of the show, according to a report from Pep. 

Wowowin is a variety show with different segments where contestants can win cash prizes. It first aired in May of this year. 

Willie added that he had no regrets parting with his money for the show. “Okay lang ‘yan, pera lang naman yun. Alam mo, pera lang ‘yan, kikitain natin ‘yan. ‘Tsaka, nagsimula naman tayo sa Wowowee, wala naman akong pera, e. So, ibinabalik ko lang lahat yun [sa tao],” he explained. 

(It’s okay, it’s money. You know, it’s just money, we can earn it. And when I started Wowowee, I didn’t have any money anyway. So I’m just giving all of this back [to the people].)

Willie formerly hosted the show Wowowee, which aired on ABS-CBN. It was cancelled in 2010 after 5 years of airing. Between Wowowee and Wowowin, Willie hosted TV5’s Willing Willie, Will Big Time, and Wowowillie, but all were canceled for various reasons. 

Willie admitted during the presscon that the 3:30 pm timeslot was one of the factor’s in Wowowin‘s lack of funding, as it does not attract as many advertisers. Wowowin aired every Sunday. 

There were reports that the show would air its last episode in July, but the host said he planned to talk to the network about giving him a better timeslot. 

During the presscon, Willie said that GMA’s Vice-President for Program Mangement Joey Abacan already talked to him. Willie said that during their talk, Joey told him that the network would not leave him. “‘Hindi mo kami iiwan, ayaw naming iwanan mo kami, ayaw naming mawala ka. Mag-usap tayo,’” said Joey, according to Willie. (You can’t leave us, we don’t want you to leave, we don’t want to lose you. Let’s talk.) Willie said that there are talks about airing the show daily instead of weekly. 

Willie added that he is willing to sell some of his properties to continue supporting the production ofWowowin. “Oo, titiyagain ko na ‘to. I’ll be honest, may mga properties ako na puwede namang ibenta na hanggang ma-maintain ko lang ‘to.”

(Yes, I will persevere. I’ll be honest, I have some properties that can be sold until I can maintain the show.)

Wowowin will begin airing at a new timeslot, 2 pm on Sundays, starting on August 9. – Rappler.com