At the red carpet premiere of Fatherland on April 22, the cameras may have lingered on Piolo Pascual, but it was his son, Iñigo, who stood at the center of the story. The younger Pascual is moving beyond celebrity lineage, taking on roles that speak to more than just star power.
His decision to star in Fatherland comes at a crucial point. After gaining international attention through the U.S. series Monarch, where he acted alongside Susan Sarandon, Iñigo had the option to continue pursuing work abroad. Instead, he flew home from Los Angeles to take on a role in a socially conscious local production—a move that signals not a step back, but a deeper commitment to meaningful work.
Iñigo didn’t wait to see the full script. He trusted director Joel Lamangan and screenwriter Roy Iglesias enough to say yes from the outset. Production coincided with the wildfires that swept parts of California earlier this year, but he arrived in the Philippines focused and ready to film.
In Fatherland, Iñigo plays Alex Dela Cruz, a Filipino-American who returns to the Philippines to search for his estranged father, played by Allen Dizon. Separated since childhood, Alex follows a trail that leads him into uncomfortable truths—not only about his father’s life but about the broader political and social forces that shaped it.
The film is unflinching in its themes—land disputes, injustice, and questions of faith and identity. Alex discovers that his father has joined a radical group, converted to Islam, and identifies as gay. These revelations aren’t presented for shock value but as part of the film’s layered take on the cost of silence and disconnection.
With minimal dialogue, Iñigo’s performance leans on expression, stillness, and restraint. His presence speaks more than any monologue could. The emotional tension is felt in how he occupies a room, how his gaze lingers, and how he reacts to the unraveling of everything he thought he knew.
Alex’s search begins in Pampanga and spans unfamiliar terrain—both physical and emotional. With each step, the image of his father becomes more fragmented. The journey offers no clear resolution, only more questions. Still, Alex continues. It’s that persistence, rather than any neat conclusion, that gives the film its shape.
Lamangan commended Iñigo for embracing the character’s vulnerability and for his openness on set. Surrounded by a cast that includes Cherry Pie Picache, Angel Aquino, Richard Yap, and Max Eigenmann, along with younger talents like Jeric Gonzales and Ara Davao, Iñigo blends in without getting lost.
In one of the final moments, father and son reunite in a hospital room. There are no grand speeches—just a whispered “I love you, Anak.” It lands quietly but heavily, capturing years of absence and unspoken pain in a single line.
Produced by Bentria Productions and Heaven’s Best Entertainment, Fatherland opened nationwide on April 19.