Empoy Marquez

Life and career

Julius Erman Ramos Marquez was born in Baliuag, Bulacan on July 9, 1981. He is the eldest among seven siblings, and his parents separated when he was in sixth grade. He earned his college degree in mass communication with the intention of becoming a DJ.

In 2003, Marquez won the Mr. Suave look-alike contest on ABS-CBN's Magandang Tanghali Bayan. Aside from the cash prize, he was also awarded a role in the film, which starred Vhong Navarro as the title character. He also became a co-host of MTB Ang Saya-Saya for a year.

Marquez was signed to Star Magic from 2003 to 2007, and moved to TV5 in 2008. During this time, he had small roles in several films and television shows where he was typecast as the comical sidekick. He also appeared in the independent films Sa Aking Pagkakagising Mula Sa Kamulatan (2005) and Carnivore (2008), both directed by Ato Bautista and starring Carlo Aquino.

In TV5, Marquez appeared in the sketch comedy show Lokomoko, which aired from 2008 to 2013 – the network’s longest-running comedy show. He then played the titular superhero character in Kapitan Awesome (2012–2013), and became a cast member of Tropa Mo Ko Unli (2013–2015). He considers the 2015 sitcom Mac & Chiz as his "big break", where he starred as Chiz, alongside Derek Ramsay who played Mac.

In 2017, Marquez returned to ABS-CBN and became part of the comedy gag show Banana Sundae. He also appeared in the suspense thriller film Bloody Crayons (2017) as Gerard, the "clown" of the group of friends who travel to a remote island to make a short film, until they get killed one by one by a masked individual.

Afterwards, Marquez co-starred in the romantic comedy film Kita Kita (2017), opposite to Alessandra de Rossi. He portrayed Tonyo, a plain-looking but kind-hearted OFW in Japan, who falls in love with a blind woman played by De Rossi. According to the film's co-producer Piolo Pascual, the role of Tonyo was "tailor-made" for Marquez. Against expectations, Kita Kita went on to become the highest-grossing Filipino independent film of all time, earning ₱300 million (approx. US$ 5.88 million) within three weeks of release.

In July 2017, Marquez opened Wayback 90's, a 1990s-themed restobar in Baliuag, Bulacan.