How Hong Kong-set ‘Hello, Love, Goodbye’ Became The Philippines’ Top-grossing Film Of All Time1 min read
Reading Time: < 1 minuteHello, Love, Goodbye is the hit film about the romance between a millennial domestic worker and a playboy bartender – and it’s now the Philippines’ top-grossing film of all time. Filmed and set in Hong Kong, the movie stars Kathryn Bernardo as Joy and Alden Richards as Ethan, a Filipino couple who inadvertently fall for each another while chasing their dreams and trying to make ends meet in the city.
Since its July 31 release, the film has earned more than US$44.8 million worldwide. Besides the Philippines, Hello, Love, Goodbye has also become the highest-grossing Philippine film in Australia, New Zealand and Britain.
In the Southeast Asian nation, 10 million people – a tenth of the population – work abroad, searching for better pay and opportunities to support their families. These overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) send home up to US$31 billion every year, roughly 10 per cent of the nation’s GDP, according to a 2018 National Geographic report.
Toni Magsaysay, a Manila-based graphic designer in her 20s who did her bachelor’s thesis on the lives of OFWs, said many Filipinos would be able to relate to the film.
Photo credit: Youtube
