MANILA — Actor Ian de Leon clarified that his status as the sole legal heir of National Artist Nora Aunor does not exclude his siblings from family ties, as he takes on the responsibility of managing the late superstar’s legacy.
Speaking to Rico Hizon in ANC's 'Beyond The Exchage," de Leon said that as the sole heir of his mother, it is his responsibility to protect what Aunor left behind.
"I am, legally speaking, the sole heir of mom, but, of course, the responsibility holds me accountable for many things, first and foremost, all the things that she has left behind, like her movies and her body of work, like in the music industry. And also, of course, we have to be managing all those people who truly love her," de Leon said.
Screen grab: YouTube/ANC 24/7
To protect his mother's legacy, de Leon put up two entities -- Nora Aunor Enterprise and Nora Aunor Foundation, which are both one person corporations (OPC).
"The OPC actually holds under its belt, a series of projects. We have a pipeline of projects that we are intending to materialize anytime soon. It's all in the works right now. With all the legalities and policies are already there, the Enterprise would delve into creating, what is called 'yung pamamahala sa mga tao na nangggaling kay Nora Aunor, which is we are going to be holding museum exhibits. And underway is also a musical that we're already in works with," he said.
"Tapos, we're also going to be doing fan conventions, merchandising, and along with that, we're also going to be doing some concerts. Maybe some docu series along the way anytime soon, not far from now," he added.
Screen grab: YouTube/ANC 24/7
De Leon is Aunor's biological son with former husband Christopher de Leon, while his four siblings Lotlot, Matet, Kiko and Kenneth were adopted. Aunor passed away in April 2025.
Asked what his other siblings said about the one person corporations and why they weren't included, de Leon said: "Well, to be honest, I respect my siblings a lot. Under the law, I hold the responsibility to do this, first and foremost. It's not just mainly for show, it's not mainly for fame, or just because I'm the sole heir, not to brag about. But, of course, I hold the responsibility to do this in their favor. And of course, to uphold the Enterprise on its own as an OPC. It's not an inclusion or family politics. My responsibility here does not exclude them or erase them from any family relationships."
De Leon also mentioned that there will be safeguards to prevent the entities from being misused.
"The two have symbiotic relationship with each other. The Enterprise is for profit and the Foundation is for non-profit. Whatever revenue that we make from the Enterprise will go to the outreach programs, for the social projects," he said.
De Leon stressed that his focus now is start the work in protecting their mother's legacy.
"As soon as the OPC gets traction and momentum, we can always change that into a company," he said.
"To fast-track the legacy management of mom, it has first to be legalized, and as the sole heir, it is my responsibility to do all of that work. I took on this responsibility for the sake of mom. I's not for myself, not for anyone, it's for her. It's for the management of her legacy," he added.
Nora Aunor, superstar of Philippine cinema, passes away
Watch the full interview below: