LIST: Local celebrities who quietly stepped away from showbiz

Recently, snapshots of her performing at the school’s Spring Showcase in May spread across social media, with fans expressing how they missed the actress-beauty queen. She has been lowkey on Instagram, too, with her last post dating back to October 2021.

Kisses isn't the first celebrity to make such transition away from showbiz. Here are other local stars who have quietly stepped away from screens.

Jao Mapa

The former member of the then wildly popular 1992  television variety show, Gwapings, alongside Mark Anthony Fernandez, Jomari Yllana, and Eric Fructuoso, is now a part-time art teacher at an international school in Makati City.

From being a teen heartthrob, Mapa said in an interview with Julius Babao that his pursuit of painting and completing his Fine Arts degree at the University of Sto. Tomas made him quit show business. 

"I really wanted to have a degree. I was dead set [on having] a diploma," he shared. "I have no regrets. This is a 'when a door closes, another one opens,' and I took that opportunity," he told Babao. 

Before becoming a painter, he also explored the photography business, where he managed an art room in Manila Pen, organized printing events and creating set menus.

Beth Tamayo

Beth Tamayo left the country in 2009 and lived a simpler life in the United States. 

In a 2021 interview with Just In, the former actress shared that she left the country due to her ex-husband's financial problems.

With the little amount of money she had, Tamayo worked hard to sustain her living in the country by being a babysitter for a Colombian family, a cashier in Victoria's Secret, and a waitress until she landed a corporate job as an executive assistant for a venture capital firm in Menlo Park, Silicon Valley. 

Tamayo is now living with her husband, Adam Hutchinson, and their daughter, Sloane.

Ruby Rodriguez

The former Eat Bulaga host is now working at the Philippine Consulate in Los Angeles, specifically with events and TV hosting. 

In an interview with Bianca Gonzalez on the TFC show BRGY, Rodriguez shared that his son's medical concerns pushed her to migrate to America. 

"My producers knew about it because I asked permission and I told them that I was permanently moving here because all my children and my husband, they are all citizens [here] and I am also a resident here so that's why we always fly back and forth," she said. 

"Our priority [is] family first. Even [if] you still have a career, parang 'Sorry, ise-set aside ko 'yan para sa anak ko.' I am willing to start anew and [I know] God will not forsake me. I know He will be there, so that's why I left quietly, and I didn't want it to be a big deal," she added. 

Erich Gonzales

The Katorse star is now living a more private life as a wife to her husband, businessman Mateo Lorenzo, the son of tycoon Martin Ignacio Lorenzo.

They got married in March 2022 and have a son together, Jose Mateo. 

Her last television project was the ABS-CBN series La Vida Lena, which aired from 2020 to 2022. 

Gretchen Barretto

Gretchen Barretto has largely stepped away from social media, opting for a quieter and more private lifestyle. Her last acting stint was in the 2015 show Nathaniel. 

While she hasn't appeared on TV and film, Barretto would sometimes make the news, like in October 2024, when she shut down rumors of her split with her longtime partner of 30 years, businessman Tonyboy Cojuangco.

Recently, Barretto was tagged in the case of the missing sabungeros after whistleblower Dondon Patidongan accused her of being one of the masterminds behind the disappearance of over 100 cockfight enthusiasts. 

Patidongan claimed that the former actress was fully aware of Ang's operations in the cockfight arena. Barretto, through her legal counsel, asserted that she "has no relevant knowledge" about the abductions.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, meanwhile, said that Barretto and Ang will be included in the list of suspects, and formal cases will be filed against them soon.

Hero Angeles

Whatever happened to K-Pop star Sandara Park's love team partner Hero Angeles? Like Mapa, the Star Circle Quest 2004 winner is now a full-time artist. 

Angeles is now endorsing Philippine tourism fashion social enterprise Favola Shirts, a project of the Pag-asa Social Center Foundation, Inc., based in Tagaytay. 

The shirts are produced by the city's out-of-school youth, with Angeles contributing some of his own designs to the project. In 2014, Angeles also launched his first Online Art Gallery, ARTCETERO, which is also his pen name as an artist. 

More than ever, he used the arts as a means to help children, including an art workshop for the benefit of the girls under the care of My Refuge House in Cebu. 

He has also appeared in a few TV projects in recent years, like Can't Buy Me Love and a few Maalaala Mo Kaya episodes.

Michelle Madrigal

Far from the glitz of her past, Michelle Madrigal has carved out a vibrant new chapter in Austin, Texas, where she shares a life with her husband, Kevin Neal, and her daughter Anika. The former actress and Star Circle Quest 2004 star has also become a content creator and real estate agent in the US.

Lexi Fernandez

Former Tween Hearts star Lexi Fernandez took a step back from showbiz after her last soap opera in 2013. She later explained that her decision came due to her battle with depression and anxiety.

After completing her Bachelor's degree in Science in Child Development and Education at the University of Asia and the Pacific, she moved to Australia in 2020 to pursue a master's degree. 

Two years later, she launched her passion project, House to Home Co., a line of curated houseware items, with her best friend Nica Fabregas.

Currently, she is expecting her first child with non-showbiz partner Harry Cordingley. They tied the knot in the United Kingdom in November 2023 and held another wedding ceremony in the Philippines last December 2024. 

Makisig Morales

Makisig Morales has traded the spotlight for a quieter, sweeter life down under. Now based in Australia with his wife Nicole Joson, the Super Inggo star left showbiz behind in 2014.

In 2017, he began his culinary journey, studying at the Challenger TAFE - Beaconsfield to become a chef.

With his wife, Makisig launched NikMak Sweet Pack, a small online food venture that serves up homemade Filipino favorites like pastillas, puto bumbong, and a growing menu of savory dishes and sweet delicacies.