Just like many of the celebrities that we admire and look up to in showbiz through the years, Julia Montes also started out at a very young age, making her one of the most notable child stars we’ve ever known.
As she used to portray either the young counterpart or the younger kin of seasoned and veteran thespians in the early parts of her career, we’ve witnessed how, in the past 15 years, Julia has already brazenly taken on maternal or adult roles that have definitely helped her further develop and bring out her full potential as an actress.
And one of them is her character in her newest teleserye, “Saving Grace: The Untold Story,” Anna Sarmiento, a compassionate public elementary school teacher who’s compelled to do the unthinkable in order to save one of her pupils, Grace (Zia Grace), from her abusive and negligent mother and stepfather.
But before more Kapamilyas get to watch it across the television platforms of ABS-CBN Studios beginning March 3, let us first look back on Julia’s remarkable stints as a teleserye actress through the years in this edition of Kapamilya Spotlight.
Not a lot of people probably know, but it was actually in 2004, a year before she joined the kiddie gag show “Goin’ Bulilit,” when she made her first-ever appearance on a Kapamilya TV show via the classic series “Hiram.” She truly endeared viewers with her adorable depiction of the young Stephanie Borromeo, played by Anne Curtis.
Following her graduation from “Goin’ Bulilit” in 2008, Julia went on to appear in various Kapamilya programs, through which she was able to showcase her promising acting talent. It was only until two years later when she scored her first-ever “bida” role as Mara in “Gimik 2010.” It was also in that same year when her breakthrough role came as she portrayed Clara del Valle (originally by Gladys Reyes) in the remake of the legendary soap opera, “Mara Clara,” which she top-billed alongside her “Goin’ Bulilit” batchmate, Kathryn Bernardo, who played Mara.
The following year, she was among the young Kapamilya artists who starred in the weekly youth-oriented series “Growing Up,” playing the role of Samantha “Tammy” Magtoto.
From teeny-bopper roles, Julia’s fans probably got both shocked and delighted when she was given a relatively mature role in the phenomenally successful primetime series “Walang Hanggan” in 2012 and was paired with Coco Martin, who was more than a decade her senior.
Viewers were able to witness just how much chemistry the two of them had. Her impressive portrayal of Katerina, the love interest of the latter’s character, Daniel, brought her the “Princess of Philippine Television” recognition from the 44th GMMSF Box-Office Entertainment Awards and the “Phenomenal Primetime Princess” title from the press.
Later in 2013, she starred in the “Krus” episode of “Maalaala Mo Kaya” as Diana, a young girl sold by her own foster mother to a prostitution den at the age of 15. It was succeeded by her starring stint in the teleserye “Muling Buksan Ang Puso” as Sarah Beltran, who was torn between the characters of Enchong Dee and Enrique Gil.
She then got reunited with Coco in the 2014 primetime drama “Ikaw Lamang,” in which she took on the role of Mona, the lifelong loyal best friend of his character Samuel, who’s secretly in love with him as well. Her astounding performance in this series brought her the “Best Actress” trophy from the 13th Gawad Tanglaw Awards for Television, tying with seasoned actress Angel Locsin.
The year 2015 was indeed a hectic one for Julia, as she didn’t only work on one but three TV projects. First on the line was the “Yamishita’s Treasures” chapter of “Wansapanataym,” which she co-starred in with Coco again. She charmed viewers as Tanya, a princess in a world of fairies, who met his character Yami and helped him retrieve a treasure in her world.
It was followed by her return in “MMK” via the “Picture” episode, wherein she amazed us with her performance as Rosa, a young woman who fell in love with a man who, unbeknown to her, is already married. She further impressed us with her portrayal in the afternoon soap opera “Doble Kara” of identical twin sisters Kara and Sara, who shared the same physical appearance yet displayed two different personalities.
As “Doble Kara” ended in 2017, she went on to appear in the “Annika Pintasera” chapter of “Wansapanataym” opposite JC Santos and played the titular character Annika de Cuadra, a rich and spiteful girl who does not value people around her.
Julia surely wowed viewers when she starred in the political drama series “Asintado” in 2018, as she didn’t get to only showcase her dramatic prowess but her hidden skills in action, too! She enthralled us as Ana Dimasalang, a paramedic who became the personal nurse of Paulo Avelino’s Gael Ojeda after saving him from an accident and subsequently fell in love. She then got involved in an assassination plot orchestrated by the Del Mundos and Ojedas that put her and her loved ones’ lives in danger.
Following the conclusion of “Asintado,” the award-winning and hardworking actress took a hiatus and went on a vacation in Germany to visit and bond with her father, Martin Schnittka, and his current family reside. She made a comeback in 2020 via the weekly action-thriller series “24/7,” in which she played the lead role of Mia Agbayani, a single mom working as a night-shift security guard in the hospital and pharmaceutical facilities who unfortunately got killed while stealing a case of vaccines that could cure the disease that also struck her own son, Xavier. Through the holographic stick invented by her son in 2045, Mia had the chance to change what happened way back in 2020 but made sure to be more careful and try saving as many victims as she could.
Julia joined “FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano” in 2021—which was something that CocoJul fans had been waiting for a very long time. She once again astounded us with her portrayal of Mara, the long-lost daughter of President Oscar Hidalgo (Rowell Santiago) and his first love Aurora (Sharon Cuneta), who became a member of a rebel group.
About a couple of years later, Julia has surely touched a lot of hearts with her remarkable portrayal of Anna Sarmiento in “Saving Grace”, which more Kapamilya viewers could watch as it begins airing across ABS-CBN Studios’ TV platforms—Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live,A2Z, and TV5—beginning on March 3 at 9:30 PM.