Court allows Darryl Yap to release ‘The Rapists of Pepsi Paloma’, bans trailer

Metro Manila, Philippines - A local court has allowed director Darryl Ray Spike Yap to continue the production and release of his controversial film, “The Rapists of Pepsi Paloma,” and partially granted a petition of TV host and actor Marvic Valentin “Vic” Sotto.

Sotto filed a petition for writ of habeas data with the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 205. The writ is a remedy for any person whose right to privacy in life, liberty, or security is violated or threatened.

The court also ordered Yap to take down the 26-second teaser video from online platforms “for having misused the collected data/information by presenting a conversation between two deceased individuals, which cannot be verified as having actually occurred.”

In the teaser video, actress Rhed Bustamante, portraying Paloma, affirmed when she was asked if Sotto raped her.

“The petitioner asserts that his right to privacy has been violated by the respondent’s public dissemination of materials portraying him as a rapist, which he claims are untrue,” the ruling read.

“He likewise claims the portrayal damages his reputation and violates his family’s right to privacy, particularly since the rape case was dismissed and this matter resurfaced decades later,” the court said.

Yap argued that his film is based on public records, news reports, and personal narratives.

Paloma was a popular dancer and actress in the 1980s.