Trigger warning: child abuse
Magkahalong takot, kahihiyan, at pananabik sa pagmamahal ng magulang.
Ito ang mga emosyong ibinahagi ni Liza Soberano, 27, nang alalahin ang masalimuot at malungkot na kuwento ng kanyang kabataan.
Nagsimula ang lahat sa hiwalayan ng kanyang mga magulang.
Ang ama niyang si John Soberano ay isang Filipino, habang ang ina niyang si Jacqulyn Hanley ay Amerikano.
Ipinanganak si Liza sa Santa Clara, California, USA., noong January 4, 1998.
Sa kanyang paglalarawan, hindi lang basta toxic ang relasyon ng mga magulang niya. Pinalala pa raw ito ng paggamit ng mga ito ng ipinagbabawal na gamot.
Idinetalye ito ni Liza sa eksklusibong panayam sa kanya ng podcast-cinema-documentary director na si Sarah Bahbah, at in-upload sa YouTube kahapon, August 14, 2025.
Lahad ni Liza: "My mom was 18 at the time and my dad was 22, and they both came from very different worlds. They grew up in two different countries.
"But the one thing that they had in common was they were so misguided.
"And so when I was born, these two kids, they were still children.
"And I feel like I'm giving, giving them excuses right now, and that's what I always do, but they just... they literally didn't know what to do."
Bilang anak, naipit daw sa gitna si Liza.
"They were working multiple jobs to make ends meet," pagpapatuloy ng dating Kapamilya actress.
"My mom sadly had, like, a really bad addiction to crystal meth. And my dad, he was a chemist, among many other things.
"And so they were kind of, like, this Bonnie and Clyde duo, not really thinking about the consequences for me."
Magulo raw ang relasyon ng mga magulang niyang sina John at Jacqulyn.
Tanda pa ni Liza, may anak si John sa isang ex-girlfriend nito at may insidenteng naghain ng restraining order ang babae laban kay John.
Nag-away raw ang mga magulang ng aktres noon.
Naharap ang ama ni Liza sa sanga-sangang kaso—kabilang ang paggawa ng illegal drugs, illegal possession of firearms, trespassing, at paglabag sa restraining order.
Humantong ito sa tatlong taong pagkakakulong ng ama ni Liza, bago ito na-deport pabalik ng Pilipinas.
Pagpapatuloy ni Liza: "And so my mom was left with just me and my brother, not really knowing what to do, not really having a plan.
"And her addiction got worse because she was even using while she was pregnant with my little brother.
"And so my little brother was born addicted to crystal meth and, yeah, that's kind of where it all started."
Wala pa raw one year old noon si Liza, at nagsisimula pa lamang ang kanyang kalbaryo.
Na-validate daw niya ang mga pinagdaanan noong baby pa lamang siya sa pamamagitan ng mga kuwento ng mga nakatatanda.
Read: Liza Soberano finally confirms breakup with Enrique Gil
LIZA SOBERANO ON BEING "KIDNAPPED" BY MOM'S ABUSIVE PARTNER
Matapos maghiwalay ang mga magulang niya, natatandaan ni Liza na nakipag-date ang inang si Jacqulyn sa isang abusive partner na nagngangalang Michael.
Dalawang taong gulang lang daw si Liza nang mangyari ang insidenteng nagnakaw ng mini-van si Michael sa isang kalsada.
Nang tumakas si Michael, isinakay raw nito sa mini-van si Liza, ang kanyang ina, at kapatid.
Kahit bata pa raw noon si Liza at hindi naiintindihan ang pangyayari, ramdam daw niyang may mali sa sitwasyon.
Tuwing gabi ay natutulog daw sa backseat ang kanyang ina, kapatid, at si Michael.
Naiiwan daw mag-isa si Liza sa car seat, at sinusubukan niyang ma-unbuckle ang kanyang seatbelt para makatakas.
Hanggang sa nakawala raw siya sa car seat at nakatakbo sa labas ng mini-van.
"I remember I was making a run for it because at this point we were missing for a few days," balik-tanaw pa rin ni Liza.
"I don't know how long, but my mom's family had already filed for a missing persons report, and so we were actually on the news and everything for kidnapping.
"And so I ran out of the van. And I can only run so far, right? I'm a baby, I'm a toddler."
Pero nahuli raw siya ni Michael at naibalik sa loob ng van.
"And then there was this big fight between my mom, me, and Michael.
"Michael was getting really mad because obviously he was about to get caught."
Panay raw ang sigaw ni Michael kay Liza, hanggang sa gumawa ng alibi ang ina ni Liza na may bibilhin ito sa Walmart.
Habang wala ang ina, panay pa rin daw ang sigaw ni Liza kay Michael.
"The next thing I remember, he was screaming at me, telling me to hit my brother in the head with my car seat. To use it to bash his head.
"And he was telling me that over and over, and I was like, 'Why? No, I'm not going to do that.'"
Wala raw kamuwang-muwang ang batang si Liza kung ano ang nangyayari at kung bakit gusto ni Michael na saktan niya ang kapatid.
"Then the next thing I know, he hits me in the head with the bottom of a gun that he was holding," pagpapatuloy ni Liza.
Sa puntong iyon, dumating na raw ang ina ni Liza, at kasunod na rin ang mga pulis na tinawagan daw pala nito.
Ayon pa kay Liza, sinubukan pa ni Michael na tumakas, at kahit nasa labas ng sasakyan si Jacqulyn ay sinabunutan ito ni Michael habang nagmamaneho para takasan ang mga pulis.
Pero nahuli rin si Michael.
Dito sinabi ni Liza na hanggang ngayon ay naaalala niya ang matinding takot at "fear of bringing shame to my mom" kahit na ang kanyang ina raw ang may kagagawan kaya siya napunta sa sitwasyong iyon.
"So what happened afterwards, my mom was hospitalized for a while.
"And then she went straight to prison after, which leaves me and my brother parentless," pahayag ni Liza.
Read: Kim Chiu and sister Lakam unfollow each other on Instagram
LIZA SOBERANO SUFFERS ABUSE FROM FOSTER MoM
Noong una ay nanatili raw silang magkapatid sa poder ng kanilang lola, pero sa huli ay dinala sila sa foster care.
Masyado raw kasing matanda ang maternal grandparents niya para mag-alaga sa kanya na two years old pa lang at sa kapatid niyang si Justin na one year old noon.
Nagpalipat-lipat daw silang magkapatid ng foster homes.
Pero ang pinakamatagal ay sa pangangalaga ng foster mom nilang nagngangalang Melissa. Eight months daw silang tumira roon.
Sinasabing high school best friend ng kanyang ina si Melissa, pero hindi raw totoo iyon.
Makalipas lang daw ang ilang linggo, nakaranas si Liza ng pangmamaltrato mula kay Melissa at sa mga anak nito.
Ayon kay Liza, natatandaan niyang pinapasok silang magkapatid sa kuwarto habang isinasagawa ang birthday party ng isa sa mga anak ni Melissa.
Hanggang sa bigla raw tinawag si Liza at ang kanyang kapatid na si Justin ng isa sa mga lalaking anak ni Melissa.
Paglabas daw nila ng kuwarto, pinagbabato sina Liza at Justin ng cupcakes.
Balik-tanaw ni Liza: "And then I don't know if I saw that as something bad when I was little.
"I think in my head, I thought it was, like, similar to a pajama party where we were, like, having fun, like a food fight, so I didn't really think of it as something that was mean."
Read: Nadia Montenegro, staff of Senator Robin Padilla, denies using marijuana in the Senate
TREATED LIKE A FAMILY DOG
Naalala rin daw ni Liza na trinato siyang parang "family dog."
May once a week movie night daw kasi ang pamilya ni Melissa, pero hindi siya pinapayagang sumama.
"So, they would literally call me the family dog and I would have to sit in, like, a big cardboard box behind the sofa, and I actually would just sit there like a dog."
Sabi pa ni Liza, "And then after that, like, she started really abusing me not just psychologically..."
May insidenteng sapilitan daw siyang pinakain ni Melissa ng spaghetti meatball hanggang sa ma-choke siya.
Kung hindi pa raw pumigil ang asawa ni Melissa ay baka napaano na si Liza.
Ang hindi raw maintindihan ni Liza ay kung bakit kailangan pang humantong sa malala na ang sitwasyon bago siya ipagtanggol ng asawa ni Melissa.
Hindi pa rin daw doon natapos ang pangmamaltrato ng foster parent niya.
Lahad ni Liza: "And then the next instance was their actual family dog took a shit on the carpet, and she had called me to come clean it up.
"So I went over. And then I was about to go get, like, a brush or a toothbrush or something, and when I came back she was, like, 'What are you doing?' And I was, like, 'Cleaning it like you asked me to,' obviously like in my little girl voice.
"And she was, like, 'No, I want you to use your tongue.'
"And I thought she was kidding until she, like, grabbed the back of my head and forced me on the carpet."
Isang beses kada isang buwan daw kung bumisita ang social worker para kumustahin ang lagay nina Liza at Justin.
Pero hindi raw nagsusumbong si Liza.
Sa tuwing papalapit na ang schedule ng pagbisita ng social worker, todo naman daw sa pagpapakita ng kabutihan sa kanya si Melissa at binibigyan pa siya ng Twizzlers candies.
Dahil musmos pa, madali raw makuha ang loob ni Liza at naniniwala siya kapag sinasabi ni Melissa na mahal siya nito.
THE LAST STRAW WITH FOSTER PARENT
Pero umabot na sa sukdulan nang dumating ang pagkakataong lahat daw sila ay lumabas para mag-drive thru sa isang fastfood joint.
Bukod-tanging si Liza lang daw ang hindi hiningan ng order, at nang nagsabi siyang gusto niya ng chicken nuggets ay sinabi raw ni Melissa na hindi siya puwedeng kumain.
Pag-uwi ng bahay, hindi raw siya pinapasok sa loob at hinayaang matulog sa garahe.
Lahad ni Liza, "She was like, 'You've been a bad girl, so you need to be punished.'"
Hindi raw talaga siya pinagbuksan ng pinto kahit ilang beses siyang nag-sorry habang umiiyak at panay ang katok sa pintuan.
"And then she opened the door, and she told me that if I didn't shut up, that she would stuff Justin, my little brother, in the freezer.
"And so I stayed quiet, and I slept there that night."
Doon na raw nagsimulang may mga araw na hindi siya pinapakain.
Sabi pa ni Liza: "And then, after that was a series of her not feeding me, and then feeding me.
"So she would not feed me for days, and then all of a sudden feed me a lot of food.
"And it came to a point where she didn't feed me for, like, three days, I think.
"And the social worker made a surprise visit.
"And that was the first time that the social worker had seen the signs of abuse manifest on my body because my stomach... I was so skinny, but my stomach was so big. It was bloated.
"And I had bruising. I had a scratch on my face."
Sa puntong ito nagsumbong si Liza sa social worker tungkol sa pang-aabusong ginawa sa kanya ni Melissa.
Read: Lian Paz details how Paolo Contis reached out to visit kids
LIZA SOBERANO STARTS LIVING WITH GRANDPARENTS
Nang mga panahong iyon ay nasa kulungan pa raw sa Amerika ang ama ni Liza na si John Soberano.
Nang malaman nito ang nangyari sa mga anak, humingi raw ng tulong si John mula sa ama at stepmom nitong naninirahan din sa Amerika.
Pumayag ang mga itong kupkupin si Liza at kapatid nitong si Justin.
Pero ani Liza, may kaunting transition period muna bago sila nakuha ng ama at stepmom ni John.
Nanatili raw muna sina Liza at Justin sa maternal great grandmother nila habang inaayos ang legal documents kung saan sila titira.
Doon daw sila binibisita ng paternal grandfather at ng partner nito, bago sila tuluyang kinupkop ng mga ito.
Kuwento pa rin ni Liza: "So they slowly transitioned us into moving in with them. And then when we did, we moved to Visalia, California, which is three hours south of the Bay Area.
"And it was really good. My grandparents took very good care of us.
"We were living actually a very lavish lifestyle. My grandparents had pretty good jobs.
"It was the first time that me and my brother were experiencing something like this."
Hanggang sa dumating ang pagkakataong doon binibisita si Liza ng kanyang ina.
Kahit hindi raw maganda ang pagpapalaki sa kanya ng ina, sabik si Liza sa mga pagkakataong bibisitahin siya nito.
Kahit pa sa tuwing pagbisita raw ng kanyang ina ay may bago siyang kapatid sa ina na ipinapakilala nito.
Ayon kay Liza: "So there were times during summer break that we would live with my mom for, like, two months at a time. And I was always very happy.
"Those were, like, my happiest childhood memories because I got to spend them with my siblings.
"I think, from a very early age, I really took on the responsibility of— or, like, the role of being the older sister, and I loved it so much.
"So, yeah, I always—I was always looking for opportunities to be with them, to spend time with them."
Kalaunan ay ikinasal ang ina ni Liza sa ngayo'y stepdad ni Liza, at nagkaroon din daw ng mga anak ang mga ito.
Akala raw ni Liza ay magiging okay na ang lahat dahil tingin niya ay mas bumuti rin ang kalagayan ng ina, at tila hindi na rin nagdrodroga.
Read: Red Sternberg's wife recalls heartbreaking day the actor died
LIZA SOBERANO MIGRATES TO THE PHILIPPINES
Pero ang masayang yugto ng kabataan ni Liza ay muling susubukin ng tadhana nang magkasakit ang kanyang paternal grandfather.
Kinailangan ding mag-resign sa trabaho ang asawa ng kanyang lolo para alagaan ito.
Dahil walang pangtustos kay Liza at sa kapatid niya, nagdesisyon ang mga itong pauwiin sila sa Pilipinas.
By this time ay naninirahan sa Pangasinan ang ama ni Liza.
Iyon ang unang pagkakataong muling magkikita si Liza at kanyang ama.
Pahayag ni Liza: "I strongly opposed to this. I didn't like my dad at all. I didn't grow up with him.
"I knew of him. I would talk to him on the phone from time to time.
"But I wasn't—I could never imagine myself going to the Philippines and living with him full-time, but that's what needed to happen.
"And so, at the age of 10, my brother and I migrated to the Philippines to live with our estranged father."
Inamin din ni Liza na nahirapan siyang mag-adjust dahil hindi siya lumaking nakagisnan ang ama.
Hindi raw siya kumportable sa pagiging malambing nito, gayong wala silang maituturing na father-daughter relationship.
Paliwanag ng aktres: "And so a lot was going on, a lot of fear, a lot of uncertainty.
"And then, out of nowhere, this guy comes up to me and kisses me on the cheek, and it's my father.
"And I'm just—I pushed him off of me, and I'm disgusted, and he was, like, 'Hi, Hopey.' Because my real name is Hope.
"And I'm like, 'Who are you?' He's like, 'It's Daddy.' And I was like, 'John, nice to meet you.'
"Because he—it's like he expected that we would act like we knew each other all this time when we've only had, like, conversations on the phone that would last, like, three minutes.
"So, yeah, he just—he didn't know how to take it step by step, and it just made me very uncomfortable."
Hindi malinaw kung nag-improve ang relasyon ng mag-ama kalaunan. Bitin dahil walang binanggit si Liza ukol dito.
Nagtapos ang kuwento ni Liza sa ibinigay niyang mensahe para sa kanyang younger self.
Sabi ng aktres: "I would want Baby Liza to know that it's not her fault.
"I think that one thing that I realized is I developed this habit of making myself so small out of fear of being a burden to people.
"Because I was afraid that if I did something that they didn't like or something that upset people, that they wouldn't want me anymore or that I'd become unworthy of their love.
"And so I tolerated and accepted a lot of disrespect and abuse out of fear of losing people that weren't afraid of losing me."
Pagsusuma pa ni Liza, hiling niyang maging totoo ang isang tao sa mga salita nito.
"I think Baby Liza just needed people to keep their word.
"There was no lack of words of affirmation. People told me they loved me, but then they would do the complete opposite of what you do when you love someone.
"So that's why words don't really mean anything to me," saad ni Liza.
Diin pa niya: "It's all about action because you could say you love someone, you could say that you're trying your best, you're doing your best, that you want the best for someone, but if your actions don't show it, then it's not true."
Read: Enzo Almario realizes his purpose after surviving sexual abuse
LOVE FROM FANS AND FROM LOVETEAM PARTNER
Sa huling bahagi ng kanyang kuwento, sinabi ni Liza na ang unang beses na naramdaman niyang siya ay "worthy of love" ay nang magsimula siyang magkaroon ng fans dahil sa kanyang pag-arte.
At sa mga taong malapit sa kanya, natanggap daw niya iyon sa reel-and-real-life sweetheart na si Enrique Gil.
Sinabi ni Liza na hindi pilit ang love story nila ni Enrique dahil bago pa sila naging loveteam ay nagkahulugan na raw sila ng loob.
Pero makalipas ang walong taon, inamin ni Liza na nagdesisyon siyang hiwalayan si Enrique dahil hindi na raw sila tugma para sa isa't isa.
Si Liza ay 12 years old nang magsimulang mag-artista.
Around 15 years old siya nang una silang magkatrabaho ni Enrique sa pelikulang She's The One noong 2013.
Nagtambal sila sa apat na pelikula at apat na primetime series sa ABS-CBN mula 2015 hanggang 2020.
Naghiwalay sila bilang magkasintahan noong October 2022.
Read: Celebrities spotted at Shaira Diaz and EA de Guzman's wedding