Vilma Santos

Rosa Vilma Tuazon Santos-Recto (born November 3, 1953) is a Filipino actress and politician. She is currently the governor of Batangas since 2025, having previously held the position from 2007 to 2016.

Santos has had a prolific film and television career spanning over six decades. She was nicknamed the "Star for All Seasons" for her roles in different genres, ranging from romance films to dramas. She is also known as the Queen of Queens, the Grand Slam Queen, and the Longest Reigning Box Office Queen of Philippine Cinema. A foreign critic hailed her as the enduring Grand Dame of the Philippine Film Industry at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival.^[2]

She began her career as a child actress in the 1963 film Trudis Liit, for which she won her first FAMAS Award (Best Child Performer). She won the FAMAS Award for Best Actress for her dual role in Dama de Noche (1972). She has portrayed the superhero Darna in four films beginning with Lipad, Darna, Lipad! (1973). Santos produced Pagputi ng Uwak, Pag-itim ng Tagak (1978), which won both the FAMAS Award for Best Picture and the Gawad Urian for Best Film.

As a politician, Santos served as governor of Batangas for three consecutive terms and as mayor of Lipa for also three consecutive terms.^[3] She was elected as the Representative of the 6th District of Batangas which comprise only the City of Lipa in 2016. She was encouraged by various political parties to run for the Senate in 2019, but refused to do so.^[4] She also served as a House Deputy Speaker from 2019 to 2022 and as the Representative of Batangas' 6th district from 2016 to 2022.

Vilma Santos is widely considered the most lastingly successful Filipino film and television actress of all time.^[5] She was adjudged the greatest movie actress of the Philippines for the years 2000 to 2020 by the Philippine Entertainment Portal for her continued portrayal of a wide range of award-winning roles as well as for being a consistent box-office draw despite being in the industry for nearly six decades.^[6] Vilma's venture into politics made her semi-retire from showbusiness in the late 1990's yet she still emerged as the actress with the most number of best actress awards so far in the 21st century.^[7]

She started her acting career when one of her uncles, who was a cameraman at Sampaguita Pictures, convinced her to try out for the movies. Initially, Sampaguita Pictures had planned a child star role for her in Anak, Ang Iyong Ina (1963). When Santos was in the studio, she noticed a long line of little girls. Thinking that that line was the line for her audition, she decided to queue in. The long line turned out to be for an audition for Sampaguita Pictures' offering Trudis Liit (Little Trudis).

When it was her turn to audition, she was asked by the panel to sing, dance and cry on cue. She got the part of "Trudis Liit" for which she received the FAMAS Awards Best Child Performer award for 1963.^[8]

She was cast in Sa Bawat Pintig ng Puso (1964), Maria Cecilia (1965), Kasalanan Kaya? (1968), Iginuhit ng Tadhana (1965) and later in its sequel Pinagbuklod ng Langit (1969).

In 1998, she entered politics and ran for mayor of Lipa City, Batangas where she won three consecutive elections, becoming the city's first female mayor.^[9]

In 2005, the University of the Philippines Diliman conferred on her the Gawad Plaridel Award for her achievements and contributions both as an actress and a public servant.^[10] In the same year she was conferred an honorary doctorate degree (honoris causa) in humanities by the Lipa City College.^[11] She was again honored in 2006 by UP Diliman as one of the four awardees in UP's First Diwata Awards.^[12]

Santos ran for governor of Batangas in the 2007 Philippine general election. She was proclaimed Governor-elect on May 21, 2007, after garnering 475,740 votes against incumbent Arman Sanchez's 344,969, becoming the first female governor of the province. She was reelected to her second term as Governor of Batangas in 2010, defeating incumbent Santo Tomas Mayor Edna Sanchez, who substituted her husband Arman Sanchez who died a few weeks before the election. She was re-elected to her third and final term as Governor in 2013.^[13]

After her election for her third and final term as Governor of Batangas, speculations circulated that Santos would run for the national level. However, she declined every offer to run for a higher level. She decided to run as the first representative of the newly formed 6th District of Batangas, would comprise only the City of Lipa. Santos-Recto won by a landslide, defeating Bernadette Sabili.^[14]

She is co-author of the SOGIE Equality bill (Anti-discrimination bill), Magna Carta for Day Care Workers, Maternity Leave Increase bill, Cancer Awareness bill, expanded Senior Citizens bill, and Post-graduate Education for Teachers bill.^[15]

In September 2018, she switched from the Liberal Party, where she was a member since 2009, to the Nacionalista Party.^[16]

On July 10, 2020, Santos became one of the 11 representatives who voted favor to grant ABS-CBN's legislative franchise.^[17]

Santos-Recto ran again for governor of Batangas in the 2025 Philippine general election. This after series of speculations about her plans to return to politics before the election season. She filed her candidacy for governor alongside her sons Ryan Christian Recto, who is running for a seat for the Batangas's 6th congressional district, which was vacated after Ralph Recto, who was the incumbent representative that time was appointed as secretary of the Department of Finance and Luis Manzano as her running mate for vice governor against the outgoing governor Hermilando Mandanas.^[18] Her opponents are her former allies including Mataasnakahoy Vice Mayor Jay Ilagan, who was her former campaign coordinator, and former 1-CARE partylist representative Michael Angelo Rivera.

Due to this, many expressed support for Santos-Recto saying that many of the mayors of Batangas wanted her to run and bring back her program. However, many criticized her and her family as they are planning to create a political dynasty. However, her campaign rallies, Santos-Recto said that her choice for Manzano as her running mate is because she wanted to have a young and new breed of public servant who can easily support her programs and projects and that her campaign strategy is more like of a family-oriented. This is due to the fact that in every campaign rallies she attended, she is always being accompanied by her husband Ralph and daughter-in-law Jessy Mendiola. Santos-Recto won the elections by more than 600,000 votes. This was also the first time the she won an election by a plurarity, as she would always won by a majority in the previous elections she participated. This is due to the fact that she lost in 9 municipalities in the province. Her son Ryan Christian Recto won a seat in the House of Representatives, however, Luis Manzano lost as vice governor to Mandanas.

Vilma Santos-Recto is married to Finance Secretary Ralph Recto. They have one son, named Ryan Christian.^[19] She also has one son, Luis Manzano from her previous marriage to Edu Manzano.^[20]

• 1983 – FAMAS Medallion of Excellence (Child Actress)
• 1983 – FAMAS Medallion of Excellence (Lead Actress)
• 1983 – FAMAS Medallion of Excellence (Producer)
• 1989 – FAMAS Hall of Fame
• 1990 – PMPC Star Awards Darling of the Press
• 1990 – Gawad Urian Aktres ng Dekada '80 (Actress of the Decade '80)
• 1997 – FAP Lifetime Achievement Award
• 1998 – FAMAS Lifetime Achievement Award
• 1999 – PMPC Star Awards Special Citation for winning at the Brussels Int'l Film Festival
• 1999 – Natatanging Artista ng Taon
• 2000 – Gawad Urian Aktress ng Dekada '90(Actress of Decade '90)
• 2000 – Cinemanila Lifetime Achievement Award
• 2000 – Pelikula At Lipunan Special Award
• 2002 – Cinemanila Lifetime Achievement Award
• 2004 – Natatanging Gawad Tanglaw
• 2005 – PMPC Star Dekada Award in Acting
• 2005 – Feminist Centennial Filmfest – Outstanding Achievement in Film Acting
• 2005 – GAWAD PLARIDEL for Outstanding Achievement in Film
• 2005 – GMMSF All-Time Favorite Actress
• 2005 – Gawad Suri Award for Exemplary Film Practitioner
• 2006 – First Pioneer Filipino Animation Awards – for Darna, given by the United Animation Inc. and United Staffing Registry Inc.
• 2006 – University of the Philippines Diwata Awards
• 2008 – 25th PMPC Star Awards Lifetime Achievement Awardee
• 2008 – Fil-Am Visionary Legend Award
• 2009 – 7th ENPRESS Golden Screen Awards Lifetime Achievement Awardee
• 2009 – FAMAS Exemplary Achievement Awardee
• 2009 – Cinema One Original Filmfest Legend Award
• 2011 – Golden Screen Awards Movie Icon of our Time Awardee
• 2011 – Gawad Tanglaw Artista Ng Dekada
• 2012 – Yahoo Awards Major Impact
• 2014 – Cinema One Numero Uno Icon Award
• 2015 – NCCA Ani ng Dangal for Ekstra
• 2016 – FAMAS Presidential Award
• 2016 – FAP Golden Reel Award
• 2017 Gawad Tanglaw Presidential Jury Award - Best Film Performance
• 2017 – PMPC Star Awards for Movies Ginintuang Bituin ng Penikulang Pilipino
• 2017 – Natatanging Gawad Urian
• 2019 – Gawad Pasado Best Actress Hall of Fame (Films Bata Bata Paano Ka Ginawa?,(1998), Anak (2000), Dekada 70 (2002), Everything About Her (2017)
• 2019 – MMFF Best Actress Hall of Fame
• 2019 – PMPC Star Awards for Movies Natatanging Bituin ng Siglo
• 2019 – SPEED Awards for Movies – Eddys Icon Awards
• 2021 – PEP Greatest Movie Actress for the Years 2000-2021
• 2022 – MMFF Marichu Vera Perez Memorial Award
• 2023 – FDCP Sining Lifetime Achievement Award
• 2024 – GAWAD DANGAL - Lifetime Achievement Award
• 2024 – PMPC - Dekada Award
• 2024 – EdukSine- Pinay American Style - Gawad Alamat ng Sineng Filipino sa Harap ng Camera
• 2024 – CCP Cine Icons Series - Anak - UST - Award of Excellence
• 2024 – CCP Cine Icons Series - Anak - SPUQC - Certificate of Appreciation
• 2024 – FDCP - Tagos ng Dugo - Cinematheque - Certificate of Appreciation
• 2024 – FDCP - Bata, Bata, Paano Ka Ginawa? - Metropolitan Theater - Certificate of Appreciation

• 1998 – Ading Fernando Lifetime Achievement Award – Star Awards for TV

• 2000 – Anak Soundtrack
• 2005 – Vilma (CD, collection of 23 songs)

• 1969 – "Sixteen"
• 1969 – "Da Doo Ron Ron"
• 1969 – "Wonderful to Be in Love"
• 1969 – "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"
• 1970 – "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"
• 1970 – "Something Stupid"
• 1970 – "Bring Back Your Love"
• 1970 – "You're All I Want for Christmas"
• 1970 – "I Wonder Why"
• 1971 – "Abadaba Honeymoon"
• 1971 – "Bobby, Bobby, Bobby"
• 1971 – "Dry Your Eyes"
• 1971 – "Love, Love"
• 1971 – "It's Been a Long Long Time"
• 1971 – "Baby Cakes"
• 1971 – "I Love You Honey"
• 1971 – "Then Along Came You, Edgar"
• 1971 – "Mandolin in the Moonlight"
• 1971 – "Sealed with a Kiss"
• 1971 – "Tweddle Dee"
• 1971 – "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head"
• 1971 – "Don't You Break My Heart"
• 1971 – "Wonderful World of Music"
• 1971 – "You Made Me Love You"
• 1971 – "The Birds and the Bees"
• 1972 – "Rick Tick Song"
• 1972 – "Sad Movies (Make Me Cry)"
• 1972 – "My Boy Lollipop"
• 1973 – "Palung-Palo Ako"
• 1973 – "Walang Umiibig"
• 1974 – "Tok Tok Palatok"
• 1974 – "Isipin Mong Basta't Mahal Kita"
• 1974 – "Batya't Palu Palo"
• 1974 – "Mamang Kutsero"
• 1976 – "Mga Rosas sa Putikan"

• Media related to Vilma Santos at Wikimedia Commons
• Vilma Santos at IMDb