“Si Ion po ay isang simpleng mamamayan,” he introduced himself on Tonight with Boy Abunda. Ever since making his debut as It’s Showtime’s Kuya Escort, the madlang people and host Vice Ganda were all quick to notice how attractive he is. And it turns out, Ion Perez has been charming everyone with his good looks as an asset even when he was still a kid.

He recounted how he used to help his mother sell meryendas and that sometimes there are people who would buy everything because of how handsome he is. “Minsan may bibiling isa pero ‘pag napansin nila ko uubusin na nila,” he shared.

Despite being proud of his looks, he too was once a victim of bullying. When he was a freshman in high school, he did not care about appearances. Until two girls called him out, “Sinabihan nila ako ng, ‘Ano ba ‘tong batang ‘to, bukod sa pangit na ang baho baho pa.’” Instead of feeling shy, however, he used this as a motivation to become a better version of himself.

The next time he encountered the same two girls was at a basketball court. They were with one of his cousins and wanted to know his name. “’Yan ‘yung batang binully n’yo,” the cousin had revealed which prompted the girls to suddenly leave.

Since then, his confidence went nowhere but up. Eventually, one of his friends encouraged him to join pageants. After three years, this friend of his finally convinced him to participate in the Mister Universe which was an international pageant. “Kaya ko pala makipagsabayan sa ibang nasyon,” he realized.

Now, the madlang people are more than happy to welcome him to the It’s Showtime family with nothing but love. We all admire who he is and how far he has come. 

To celebrate his success, check out his throwback photos and see how he defined what a revenge body looks like!