TV SERIES · 2026– · PH
Sigabo
25 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
25 Interesting Facts About Sigabo
Interesting Facts (18)
- #001
Tondo's Happyland serves as the fictional slum neighborhood Barangay Ginintuang Lupa. Happyland is a poor, densely populated informal settlement in Tondo, a district of Manila City. Tondo has the highest urban density and the most severe visible poverty in the Philippines. Although Tondo is portrayed as a high-crime area, producer-director-actor Coco Martin wanted to prove otherwise. Tondo has been the setting for many action films, particularly those dealing with criminal gangs, including Asiong Salonga: Hari ng Tondo 1950 (1990), Alyas Ninong: Huling kilabot ng Tondo (1992), Anak ng Tondo (1985), Tondo: Libingan ng mga siga (1992), Boboy Salonga: Batang Tondo (1992), Victor Lopez Jr. (Robinhood ng Tondo) (1985), Hari ng tondo ikaw o ako (1980), Canary Brothers of Tondo (1992) and Terror ng tondo (1979).
- #002
Lao Rodriguez played a secret agent posing as an inmate in the opening scene. In Coco Martin's recent series Batang Quiapo (2023), he played a prison official. Both prison scenes were shot in the same location.
- #003
The house used by Gabo's family is the same house used by the Benitos in Batang Quiapo (2023). Among Gabo's neighbors are Diday, Kulas and Estong, played by Diana Opilac, Ahl Opilac and Ahldrin Opilac, who played members of the Benito family in Batang Quiapo (2023).
- #004
The character names of Jerald Napoles, Nikko Natividad, Smugglaz, Bassilyo and Mammoth Estroso, who all play sidekicks of the main character Gabo, are nicknames of popular action stars of the 80s and 90s — Jerald Napoles's Tolit from Lito Lapid, Nikko Natividad's Binoy from Robin Padilla, Smugglaz's Bong Jr. from Ramon 'Bong' Revilla, Bassilyo's Ipe from Phillip Salvador, and Mammoth Estroso's Daboy from Rudy Fernandez.
- #005
The names of all the low-ranking male agents at the National Crime Investigation Agency (equivalent to the National Bureau of Investigation or the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation) under Sam are taken from famous government investigation agents in various films. John Medina's James is from James Bond - Dr. No (1962). Mark Lapid's Tony is from Tony Falcon - Kill… Tony Falcon (1966), and Eric Tai's Bullet is from Frank "Bullet" Marasco - Bullet (2014). Ryan Martin's Robert is from Robert McCall - The Equalizer (2014).
- #006
The characters of Jojit Lorenzo and Lao Rodriguez take their names from the birds Lawin (meaning hawk in Filipino) and Uwak (meaning crow in Filipino), respectively. Those character names had previously been used in Coco Martin's Ang probinsyano (2015), played by Dante Rivero and Gardo Versoza respectively. In Ang probinsyano (2015), several characters have bird names as codenames, such as Martin's Agila (eagle) and John Arcilla's Buwitre (vulture).
- #007
Edu Manzano played a general named Ricardo Jacinto. There was a real general in the Philippines named Jacinto: Emilio Jacinto, one of the highest-ranking officers of the Philippine Revolution.
- #008
Arthur Acuña played a police officer with the rank of Senior Inspector in Ang probinsyano (2015). Here he played a police officer with the rank of Colonel. Both ranks are the same; the Philippine police ranking system was reclassified to military ranks in 2019.
- #009
The character Elton, played by singer-actor Lito Camo, is a tribute to Elton John.
- #010
Rez Cortez, Efren Reyes Jr., Edu Manzano and Chanda Romero appeared in The Last Pinoy Action King (2015), a documentary about Rudy Fernandez. Mamut Estroso's character Daboy pays tribute to Fernandez.
- #011
It was first announced on 16 March 2026 that it would replace Coco Martin's Batang Quiapo (2023). On 10 March, Martin announced to the production team that Sigabo would not air on 16 March, in order to take a break from the three-year series. Instead, it was replaced in ABS-CBN's prime time by The Alibi (2025).
- #012
Soliman Cruz played Fernando Delgado, the good-guy administrator of the investigative agency NCIA. In Ang probinsyano (2015), he played Alejandro Terante, the villainous director of the police organization NLEA. Terante was initially the corrupt and ruthless chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), the real police force in the Philippines. His ruthless actions led to a real-world controversy and protests, with the real-life PNP organization objecting to the negative portrayal of a police chief. This forced the Coco Martin production to use fictional versions of government institutions, including NLEA and NCIA.
- #013
The characters of Zafra's henchmen Stallone and Norris (played by Joseph Cabral and Robby Dizon respectively) pay tribute to action stars Sylvester Stallone and Chuck Norris.
- #014
The series uses fictional names for government institutions, as do other contemporary ABS-CBN series, while the name of the National Police Commission appears at the police station. The National Police Commission, or NAPOLCOM, is the constitutionally mandated civilian oversight and administrative body of the Philippine National Police (PNP); in all ABS-CBN shows the National Law Enforcement Agency has been renamed. In 2021, after the Rodrigo Duterte administration objected to Coco Martin's previous program Ang probinsyano (2015), ABS-CBN used fictional names for government institutions, claiming that the series' fictional narrative unfairly portrayed corrupt police officers and undermined the integrity of the police force. The PNP withdrew its support, including the use of police facilities, equipment and personnel; ABS-CBN stood firm on the production, having only changed the name of the government institution. Duterte criticized ABS-CBN shortly after coming to power in 2016, and in 2020 Congress, along with its allied members, refused to renew the company's TV operations.
- #015
Jerald Napoles's character Tolits was named after Lito Lapid. Napoles appeared alongside Lapid in Ang probinsyano (2015), Jack Em Popoy: The Puliscredibles (2018), Mang Jose (2021) and Batang Quiapo (2023).
- #016
Jhong Hilario said he cannot turn down any offer from Coco Martin because he sees him as a generous and supportive brother who would never turn him away in the industry. He cited Martin's efforts to give actors who had long been out of the spotlight a fresh start.
- #017
Efren Reyes Jr. explained that his father, Efren Reyes, helped Fernando Poe Jr., also known as FPJ, establish the film company FPJ Productions. The elder Reyes directed dozens of FPJ films. The younger Reyes added that it would be very fitting to help Coco Martin, who is known as today's FPJ.
- #018
Jhong Hilario cited Filipino villains Eddie Garcia and Paquito Diaz as his models while portraying his antagonist character.
Behind the Scenes (2)
- #019
Coco Martin and Val Iglesias appeared in Ang probinsyano (2015), The Blacksmith (2017) and Batang Quiapo (2023). Iglesias was the fight/stunt director on Martin's Feng Shui 2 (2014) and The Super Parental Guardians (2016).
- #020
Jojit Lorenzo supported Coco Martin in Minsan lang kita iibigin (2011), Born to Love You (2012), Ang probinsyano (2015), 3pol Trobol Huli Ka Balbon (2019), Labyu with an Accent (2022) and Batang Quiapo (2023). He also worked behind the camera on four other Martin films: Noy (2010), Walang Hanggan (2012), Sta. Niña (2012) and Padre de Familia (2016).
Easter Eggs & References (4)
- #021
Sigabo (2026) shares the same universe as Coco Martin's previous series Batang Quiapo (2023) and Ang probinsyano (2015). The detention center in both Sigabo (2026) and Batang Quiapo (2023) is called the National Penitentiary instead of the real Bureau of Corrections. In all three shows, the national police is called the National Law Enforcement Agency (NLEA) rather than the real Philippine National Police. In 2018, Coco Martin's production had to use fictional names for state institutions because officials of Rodrigo Duterte's government threatened to ban the series over its portrayal of the fictional police chief as corrupt and of police officers as criminals, which was claimed to harm police morale. The Philippine National Police (PNP) officially withdrew all support for the series and banned the use of police assets, patrol cars and personnel in the production. A dialogue was held between ABS-CBN executives, the PNP and the government's film censorship board, but the producers did not change the series' core anti-crime plot and instead used a fictional name.
- #022
Gabo is the nickname given to Gabby Concepcion in the 1990s, particularly when he was introduced as an action star in Gabo: Walang patawad kung pumatay (1990). Just like Gabby Concepcion, the real name of Coco Martin's character in the series is Gabriel. The series references many action films of the 80s and 90s.
- #023
The "Sigabo" theme song contains the word "Pagapagtanggol". This is a reference to Coco Martin's character Tanggol in Batang Quiapo (2023).
- #024
Rez Cortez's character is named Paquito, a reference to actor Paquito Diaz. The character is an underworld boss who serves as the enforcer for the corrupt police officer Lieutenant Umali, played by Paquito Diaz's son Joko Diaz.
Life & Family (1)
- #025
Coco Martin and Katherine Luna had previously appeared together in The Masseur (2005). They dated after the film and became a couple, and the relationship turned controversial. Years later Luna claimed that Martin was the father of her child; the paternity claim was ultimately proven false by a DNA test in 2014 and led to a long-running dispute. Luna openly apologized to Martin, taking full responsibility for past problems, and Martin forgave her publicly. Once the two were fully reconciled, Martin supported Luna as she rebuilt her life after past struggles. Martin and his partner Julia Montes even provided support to help her rebuild her life, including financing medical procedures for eye surgery (glaucoma and an untreated eye infection). Martin gave Nicole Luna, the subject of the paternity rumor, a role in Batang Quiapo (2023), casting Luna in the project. Luna openly expressed her heartfelt gratitude to Martin for giving her a second chance.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- IMDb
Information from external sources is independently selected, consolidated and edited by Arka Evren. Sources are listed for verification and further reading. Encyclopedia text is used under its licence (CC BY-SA). How we work