Richard Gutierrez And Barbie Imperial Finally(!) Hard Launched Their Relationship

It's finally official! Richard Gutierrez and Barbie Imperial have confirmed that they are indeed in a relationship—and even clarified that they were never hiding it in the first place! ICYMI, the couple have been on the hot seat after they were frequently spotted together in public starting in 2024.  

"Can I just say we weren't hiding [the relationship]?" the actress revealed in an interview with entertainment journalist MJ Felipe.

She added, "We just chose a private relationship and life talaga... What people don't know they can't ruin."

Richard expressed full agreement with the actress's statements. "From the beginning naman ganon talaga. We want to keep things private. Mas relax yung ganon. Mas gusto namin yung gano'n," the actor said.

Referencing Richard's previous interview with Ogie Diaz on YouTube, Barbie also described their relationship as straightforward and genuine, quoting his words: "What you see is what you get."

It was in that same interview where Richard first broke his silence and addressed the long-standing speculations surrounding his relationship with Barbie. He shared that while he prefers not to put a label on their relationship, he was clear in affirming that Barbie was not a third party in his marriage with Sarah Lahbati.

"Hindi siya third party, hindi nag-overlap... Maraming mga tao, yun nga, mga bashers na nagsasabi na siya ang dahilan. Wala siyang kinalaman," he said.

The actor also took the opportunity to openly discuss his separation from Sarah—the first time he talked about their issue publicly. He revealed that they are currently undergoing the annulment process following their seven-year relationship. Richard and Sarah, who married in 2020, have their sons Kai and Zion and are now maintaining a co-parenting arrangement.

At present, Richard shared that he is happily moving forward in life with Barbie, both personally and professionally. The two are set to star together in an upcoming drama series titled Blood vs. Duty, which is their first on-screen collaboration.

"It's refreshing makikita rin kami ng audience together, on-screen. We really try to live privately, away from social media. But now we're gonna be working together," he added.