The General's Daughter (TV series)

The General's Daughter is a 2019 Philippine action drama television series starring Angel Locsin. The series aired on ABS-CBN's Primetime Bida evening block and worldwide via The Filipino Channel from January 21 to October 4, 2019, replacing Ngayon at Kailanman, and was replaced by Starla.

Plot
2nd LT Rhian Bonifacio is an AFP Military Nurse dedicated to save lives. Beneath her benevolent exterior, however, lies a secret - she's a spy, trained by her very own father, "Heneral" Santiago Guerrero, to exact revenge against his sworn enemy, BGen. Marcial de Leon, the commander of the Northern Command of the AFP.

Unbeknownst to Rhian, she has been living a lie - that the father she has known and loved all her life was the enemy all along and has trained her to be used as a weapon against her real father. Having been indoctrinated to believe in the nobility of Tiago's cause, Rhian will be caught in the crossfire between Tiago's cell and the AFP. Rhian will find herself struggling between her love for her false family and the dictates of her conscience.

Protagonist

 * Angel Locsin as 1st Lt. Rhian Bonifacio, PA / Arabella de Leon / Diana Guerrero

Main cast

 * Tirso Cruz III as Lieutenant General Santiago "Heneral Tiago" Guerrero Sr., AFP
 * Albert Martinez as Brigadier General Marcial de Leon, AFP
 * Janice de Belen as Amelia Montemayor-Guerrero
 * Eula Valdes as Corazon de Leon
 * Paulo Avelino as Franco "Dos" Segismundo
 * Arjo Atayde as Elijah "Elai" Sarmiento
 * JC de Vera as Maj. Ethan del Fierro, PA
 * Ryza Cenon as 2nd Lt. Jessica "Jessie" de Leon-del Fierro, PA
 * Maricel Soriano as Isabel "Nanang Sabel" Sarmiento
 * Jeffrey Santos as Colonel Michael Dalagan
 * Jett Pangan as Colonel Jonathan Reyes

Supporting cast

 * Loisa Andalio as Claire del Fierro
 * Ronnie Alonte as Ivan Cañega
 * Art Acuña as Armando Segismundo
 * Archie Adamos as BGen. Lorenzo Buencamino, AFP
 * Cholo Barretto as 1st Lt. Joselito "Jopet" Ramirez, PA
 * Kim Molina as 2nd Lt. Maria Lilybeth "Billet" Abarquez, PA
 * Tess Antonio as Cora Apostol
 * May Bayot as Fedelina Catacutan
 * Amy Nobleza as Lea "Ekang" Apostol
 * Anne Feo as Helen del Fierro
 * Marc Santiago as Santino "Santi" M. Guerrero
 * Avery Balasbas as Aradella "Ara" De Leon
 * Nico Antonio as Andrew "Andoy" Apostol
 * Kate Alejandrino as Lt. Adelina Manlangit, PA
 * Rafael "Paeng" Sudayan as Papi
 * Jim Bergado as Barog
 * Lilygem Yulores as Joselyn
 * John Steven de Guzman as Tom-Tom
 * Luz Valdez as Gloria
 * Patrick Quiroz as Amir

Guest cast

 * Ashley Sarmiento as young Rhian
 * Francine Diaz as teen Rhian
 * Bernard Palanca as young Tiago
 * Joseph Bitangcol as young Marcial
 * Meg Imperial as young Corazon
 * Roxanne Guinoo as young Amelia
 * Rino Marco as young Armando
 * Brandon Axl as young Franco
 * Louise Abuel as teen Franco
 * Ruben Maria Soriquez as David Pascal
 * Menggie Cobarrubias as Mayor Manuel Sta. Maria
 * Leo Rialp as Oscar Villavicencio
 * Rolly Inocencio as Mang Eugene
 * Jomari Angeles as Caloy
 * Dido de la Paz as George Catacutan
 * Kiko Matos as Salvador "Buddy" Banzon
 * Giovanni Baldisseri as Roman
 * Dionne Monsanto as Vera "Ms. Poison" Sangre
 * Jong Cuenco as Bernardo "Mr. Mogul" Tuazon
 * Nonie Buencamino as BGen. Gregorio "Greg" Maximillano
 * Jerome Ponce as young Greg
 * Janice Hung as Capt. Alexandra "Cuatro" Noblejas, PA
 * Tart Carlos as Bekbek
 * Apollo Abraham as Tiago's lawyer
 * Ces dela Cruz-Guevara as Elvira Ricaforte
 * Wilmar Peñaflorida as Tiago's henchman
 * Claire Ruiz as Tintin
 * Chai Fonacier as Irene
 * Patrick Sugui as Banjo
 * Lou Veloso as Amor
 * Darwin "Hap Rice" Tolentino as Tomas
 * Mark "Big Mac" Andaya as Jack
 * Mercedes Cabral as Senator Gabriela "Cinco" Sta. Ana
 * Victor Silayan as Zandro "Tres" Abellanosa / Wilson Montino
 * Javi Benitez as Vladimir Lejano
 * Emilio Garcia as Mayor Dante Velario
 * Rochelle Barrameda as Irma Velario
 * Lara Morena as Adelfa Dimaranan

Broadcast
The General's Daughter premiered on January 21, 2019, which was simulcast worldwide on iWant TFC and YouTube. The show aired on ABS-CBN's Primetime Bida evening block and worldwide via TFC.

Before the conclusion of the show, it was picked up by the Myanmar-based Sky Net which airs the same over Myanmar.

Reruns
Reruns of The General's Daughter were aired on Kapamilya Channel from June 15, 2020, to January 15, 2021, filling Ang sa Iyo ay Akin's originally planned timeslot, which it was eventually replaced by the rerun of Asintado on the said timeslot.

Casting
The initial cast of the series, which included Angel Locsin, Maricel Soriano, Janice de Belen, Eula Valdez and Ryza Cenon who had just transferred from the GMA Network, was announced by Dreamscape Entertainment Head Deo Endrinal via Instagram on April 12, 2018. The series would be officially unveiled in November 2018 during ABS-CBN's Family is Love trade event.

The series was first developed around 2014 or 2015, and underwent numerous changes before making it to air in 2019. The biggest change made being that the Rhian Bonifacio character was supposed to be a member of the Navy Seals, which was different from the member of the Army Nurse Corps that the character ended up becoming.

Angel Locsin was the first and sole choice for the role of Rhian Bonifacio. According to Dreamscape's creative head, Rondel Lindayag, only Locsin had the angst to portray the character perfectly. However, Locsin could not accept the role early in its development because she was tied to star in a Darna which was supposed to have been directed by Erik Matti. Locsin would eventually be forced out of the role after suffering a disc bulge on her back. Thereafter, Locsin did not star in another TV series to rehabilitate her back as well as having gone through a break-up with former boyfriend Luis Manzano; the lone exception thereto being a supporting role in La Luna Sangre, which was a sequel to the Locsin-starrers Lobo and Imortal.

The role of Marcial de Leon was originally offered to Cesar Montano, who declined the role as he was, at the time, the COO of the Tourism Promotion Board, an attached agency of the Department of Tourism. Richard Gomez was next approached to play the role, but he likewise turned down the offer in order to prepare for his bid for reelection as Mayor of Ormoc. The role would eventually be bagged by Albert Martinez who was then a part of Kadenang Ginto, he'd later appear concurrently on both shows.

The series was billed as the "biggest teleserye of 2019" in terms of the cast, the mounting of the drama, the mounting of the action, and the mounting of the interaction between components of the story.

Reception
During its near 9-month run, The General's Daughter was a consistent top rater, second only to perrenial ratings hit FPJ's Ang Probinsyano. Its pilot rating of 34.0% was considered impressive considering that the episode aired on simulcast with its online platforms. The series would then register a higher number, 35.1%, on its second episode. The series would hit its peak on May 16, 2019, as it scored a rating of 36.7%. The show would make history on its September 6, 2019, episode as it placed number 1 on Kantar Media, displacing FPJ's Ang Probinsyano to number 2 for the first time since its debut in 2015; on that broadcast, The General's Daughter scored 32.8% to FPJ's Ang Probinsyano's 32.4%. The series would conclude on a high note, registering a rating 35.9%.