Patrick Garcia, Jennylyn Mercado, And Dennis Trillo: What Happened Then And What's Happening Now

An 18-year-old breakup is back in the spotlight after Patrick Garcia spoke about his past relationship with Jennylyn Mercado, their son Jazz, and Patrick's recollection of what happened.

On September 29, Patrick sat down with Ogie Diaz, sharing his side of the breakup with Jennylyn nearly 20 years later, including their experience becoming parents to son Alex Jazz Mercado. Patrick said he had kept his version of events private for 18 years, but decided to speak after his 13-year-old daughter Michelle began receiving hateful comments online related to the controversy.

The interview prompted responses from Jennylyn's management and Dennis Trillo, while Patrick's relationship with Jazz also became part of the public conversation.

Here's the backstory, what was said then, and what's being said now:

Patrick Garcia and Jennylyn Mercado reportedly began dating in 2007, and by 2008, they were expecting their first child together. Patrick said the pregnancy was unplanned, but that they were together when they found out and were ready to become parents. He also shared that they had planned to get married and even appeared before a judge at the Makati Regional Trial Court, although the wedding never pushed through.

A month after their pregnancy announcement, however, the pair broke up while Jennylyn was still pregnant. She gave birth to Alex Jazz on August 16, 2008.

Jennylyn had previously said in an interview with PEP that she was not receiving emotional or financial support from Patrick during her pregnancy. She also expressed hurt over questions surrounding her baby's paternity.

In his September 2026 interview, Patrick acknowledged that while he wasn't present during her pregnancy, it wasn't because he didn't want to be. Patrick said Jennylyn no longer wanted him involved.

Another name that came up in the conversation is Patrick’s older sister, Cheska Garcia-Kramer. During his interview, Patrick said he and Jennylyn had planned to get married after learning about her pregnancy, but that the plans did not push through partly because Cheska was also getting married that year.

He cited the Filipino superstition of sukob, which discourages siblings from marrying within the same year. Cheska married Doug Kramer on October 9, 2008. In a June 2008 interview with PEP, Cheska confirmed that Jennylyn would not be invited to her wedding.

Later on, in a 2014 interview, Cheska declined to discuss Jennylyn, calling it a sensitive topic and saying she wished everyone well.

Patrick also revisited the paternity rumors that surrounded Jennylyn's pregnancy with Jazz.

He recalled being asked during an old TV interview what he would do hypothetically if the baby turned out not to be his. Patrick said he initially didn't want to answer, but eventually said he would still accept and love the child. In his recent interview, he stressed that his answer was only hypothetical and wasn't meant to suggest that he actually doubted Jazz was his son.

According to Patrick, the televised interview became a source of tension between him and Jennylyn. He said their communication eventually broke down, and that he later learned Jennylyn was seeing Andrei Felix.

Patrick also recalled meeting Jennylyn when she was around four months pregnant. He said he asked if he could still attend her checkups and receive updates about the baby, but that she declined. He later said he left the Philippines in June and was abroad when Jennylyn gave birth in August.

Patrick said he first met Jazz when he was almost two years old and was able to spend time with him growing up. He said their contact eventually became less consistent, and that he last saw Jazz in December 2017. He also said he messaged Jennylyn starting in 2018 to ask about seeing their son but didn't receive a response.

According to Patrick, Jennylyn contacted his family again in 2021 and eventually spoke with him to inform him that Dennis would be legally adopting Jazz. Patrick said he agreed and asked if he could still see his son.

Patrick also acknowledged that he had been inconsistent with both his time and financial support for Jazz and could have done more as a father.

Patrick said his daughter Michelle was a big part of why he decided to talk about the breakup publicly after nearly two decades.

Michelle has been building a public profile of her own, and Patrick said she began receiving hateful comments related to his past with Jennylyn. He recalled Michelle asking why he didn't simply tell people what happened from his perspective.

Patrick said he warned his daughter that speaking publicly could either quiet the comments or bring even more attention to the issue. He ultimately decided to share his side of the story, while acknowledging that he wasn't present during Jennylyn's pregnancy and could have done more when it came to being there for Jazz.

Patrick also received public support from his wife, Nikka Martinez-Garcia.

"I won in this life. I fell in love with a good man and I'll never stop being grateful for that,” Nikka wrote in an Instagram Story, tagging Patrick and adding, "Lavyew." The couple married in 2015 and have four children together.

By September 30, Jennylyn's husband Dennis had also addressed the conversation. He posted a short message saying he doesn't support bashing before thanking Patrick for "remembering" Jazz because his daughter was being bashed. He ended the note by encouraging people to "spread love, not hate."

Dennis later posted another message on TikTok about how washing one's hands in a canal only makes them dirtier. He didn't mention Patrick by name in the post.

On October 1, Dennis also posted a short video showing off a red tote bag printed with "Not Today Satan." He ended the video asking viewers, "Ano ang bag mo?" Some commenters interpreted the line as a play on the Filipino phrase, "Ano ambag mo?" though Dennis didn't confirm whether the wordplay was intentional.

Jennylyn, meanwhile, has chosen not to publicly respond to Patrick's statements.

On September 30, Aguila Entertainment released a statement saying Jennylyn would not comment on the matter or grant interviews about it. Her camp said that while everyone has the right to tell their own story, Jennylyn would rather keep hers private out of respect for the "privacy and peace of mind" of both families.

The statement also asked the public to stop the hate and refrain from bashing Patrick's family, particularly Michelle. It added that Jennylyn and Jazz are living a "happy and peaceful" family life with Dennis, their daughter Dylan, and Dennis' son Calix.

Katrina Aguila, CEO of Aguila Entertainment, also shared her memories of Jennylyn's early years as a mother. Katrina, who is the daughter of longtime manager Becky Aguila, recalled how Jennylyn returned to work a month after giving birth to Jazz. "She was desperate to earn money for Jazz and her family that she even flew to the States to find work as a singer to different restaurants," Katrina said in her caption.

Becky, meanwhile, spoke in her personal capacity, saying Patrick's version left out parts of what happened between him and Jennylyn. She questioned why he chose to revisit the issue publicly instead of reaching out privately, and said there were other things that had hurt Jennylyn that, according to Becky, she had chosen not to share out of respect for Patrick, their son, and his family.

On October 1, Dennis took to Threads to ask everyone to stop the bashing beginning the following day. "Simula bukas, tigil na po ang bashing, OK? Magmahalan na tayo ulit. Past is past, magpapasko na at kawawa na ang mga bata," he wrote.

His message echoed Jennylyn's earlier statement through Aguila Entertainment, which also asked the public to stop the hate and refrain from bashing Patrick's family, especially Michelle.

Patrick said the online comments directed at Michelle were part of what prompted him to speak publicly after 18 years. Jennylyn has chosen not to respond to his statements and has asked the public not to bash Michelle or Patrick's family, while Dennis has also said he does not support bashing. For now, Patrick has shared his side of the story, while Jennylyn has chosen to keep hers private.