FPJ's Batang Quiapo (transl. FPJ's Quiapo kid / international title: Gangs of Manila) is a Philippine television drama action series airing on Kapamilya Channel. Based on the 1986 film of the same title, the series is directed by Malu L. Sevilla, Darnel Joy R. Villaflor, Richard V. Somes, Coco Martin and Kevin de Vela, it stars Martin in the title role. It premiered on February 13, 2023, on the network's Primetime Bida line up. The series concluded on March 13, 2026, with a total of 7 seasons and 799 episodes.
Contents
Premise
A young man named Tanggol rises to be one of the biggest outlaws in the neighborhood while he navigates his way in life to survive in Quiapo, Manila. Hoping to earn the affection of his parents, his feat draws him closer to the truth about his identity.
Cast and characters
Final
Main cast
Coco Martin as Mayor Hesus Nazareno "Tanggol" Guerrero-Montenegro
Lawrence Dela Cruz as young Tanggol
Christopher de Leon as Ramon Montenegro / Alberto E. Frias
Coco Martin as young Ramon
John Estrada as PCPT Rigor Dimaguiba
Ejay Falcon as young Rigor
Cherry Pie Picache as Ma. Teresa "Marites" Asuncion/Guerrero-Dimaguiba
Miles Ocampo as young Marites
Maris Racal as Pat. Paula "Ponggay" Garcia
Jake Cuenca as Former Mayor Miguelito Guerrero
Angel Aquino as Former Congresswoman Jackie Guerrero
Albert Martinez as Former Vice Mayor Roberto Guerrero
Charo Santos as Matilde "Tindeng" Asuncion
Precious Lara Quigaman as young Tindeng
Elisse Joson as younger Tindeng
Recurring cast
Perla Bautista as Lola Florie
Allan Paule as PLT Armando "Mando" Mendoza
Marlo Mortel as young Mando
Joel Lamangan as Rodolfo "Roda" D. Alcantara
Former
Main cast
Lovi Poe as Monica "Mokang / Monique" Dimaculangan-Frias
Juharra Asayo as young Mokang
Jaclyn Jose as Jail Chief Supt./BGEN Dolores Espinas
Lorna Tolentino as Amanda Salonga
Lara Fortuna as young Amanda
Lito Lapid as Supremo "Primo" Medina
Jomari Angeles as young Primo
Celia Rodriguez as Doña Pilar Guerrero
Louise delos Reyes as young Pilar
Michael de Mesa as Rafael "Paeng" Benito
Andrea Brillantes as Fatima Benito
Dante Rivero as Don Gustavo Guerrero
Jhong Hilario as young Gustavo
Roi Vinzon as Brando Mondragon
Rosanna Roces as Divina Juanillo-Mondragon
Baron Geisler as Rockyboy Mondragon / Bernard Aguirre
Aljur Abrenica as PLT Hector Victorino
Recurring cast
RK Bagatsing as Greg Montenegro
Marina Benipayo as Catherine Cheng
Odette Khan as Aurora Cheng
Production
Development
After the success of the television adaptation of Ang Probinsyano, an adaptation of the 1986 film Batang Quiapo was named by various news outlets as the project most likely to be made next by actor-director Coco Martin. Rumors of the possible TV adaptation of Batang Quiapo began when the film's theme, Doon Lang, was performed by Martin in a "duet" with Fernando Poe Jr. as the clip of the scene from the film was being played; said scene originally featured Poe and Maricel Soriano singing in a duet. Martin had expressed interest in adapting more of FPJ's works for film and/or television, as he adapted another Poe classic Carlo J. Caparas' Ang Panday which was an entry into the 2017 Metro Manila Film Festival.
However, the adaptation became uncertain due to Ang Probinsyano's continued extension until its finale on August 12, 2022.
Casting
On December 5, 2022, Martin was confirmed to star, direct, write, and to co-produce (the first in his showbiz career) in the Batang Quiapo remake alongside Poe's daughter, Lovi Poe and Charo Santos.
McCoy de Leon's role as David was originally meant to only appear in the pilot episode of the show but was extended numerous times due to the team being impressed with his performance.
On January 4, 2024, Lovi Poe left the show due to her marriage with her fiancée in England.
On January 23, 2024, Deborah Sun left the show after being injured in an accident on set.
On March 2, 2024, Jaclyn Jose died, leaving her role as Jail Chief Supt./BGEN Dolores Espinas. Bart Guingona replaced Jose as the new Jail Chief Supt./BGEN Oscar Duran.
On February 10, 2025, Lito Lapid left the show as he ran for a senatorial position in the 2025 midterm elections.
Filming
Principal photography commenced on January 9, 2023, the same day of the celebration of the Feast of the Black Nazarene.
The Binondo–Intramuros Bridge and Candaba Viaduct of North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) served as one of the prominent locations featured multiple times in the show.
Release
Broadcast
The series, along with other primetime programs were pre-empted on A2Z from November 8, 2023, to February 9, 2024, and took effect every Wednesday and Friday to give way to the 2023–24 PBA season. It continued to air on Cine Mo! (as Saturday Marathon), Kapamilya Channel and TV5.
On January 2, 2026, the last 51 episodes of the series (749–799) and other remaining newly released ABS-CBN programs on TV5 were transferred to AMBS' All TV. This occurred two years after a licensing agreement between AMBS and ABS-CBN was signed in April 2024 marking the latter's return to channels 2 and 16 in Mega Manila and regional channels previously held by ABS-CBN until 2020, and TV5 Network's decision to cease broadcasting new programs produced by ABS-CBN on TV5 due to financial disputes involving blocktime fees which was subsequently settled.
On February 20, 2026, it was announced that this series is set to conclude on March 13, 2026.
International
On March 1, 2025, Batang Quiapo started airing internationally in 40 countries in Africa through StarTimes under the title, "Gangs of Manila".
Streaming
A re-cut limited series covering the first story arc was exclusively released on iWant from March 16, 2026, to March 20, 2026. Episodes were subsequently released on YouTube.
Individual TV episodes are also available for streaming on YouTube.
Soundtrack
The series' opening theme song, "Batang Quiapo" (alternatively titled as "Matira Matibay" (Only the Strong Survive), is sung by various Filipino rap artists—Smugglaz, Bassilyo, CrazyMix, Flict-G, Kial, MastaFeat, Jonas, and Pistolero—and a cover of Rico J. Puno's "Kapalaran" (Fate) is sung by Gary Valenciano. "Pangako" (Promise) was originally sung by Moira Dela Torre.
Controversies
Muslim stereotype controversy
A day after its debut, the series' creators apologized to the Muslim community due to a scene where Martin's character Tanggol sought the help of his Muslim friend Abdul–portrayed by Rez Cortez–as he was being pursued by the police. Tanggol took refuge in the company of armed Muslim men whom the police were hesitant to take action due to fear of retribution. A number of Muslim Filipinos took offense and criticised the portrayal as reinforcing negative stereotypes against them, with some calling for a boycott of the series. Movie and Television Review and Classification Board later released a statement on the controversy and asked for cultural sensitivity from production houses. Senator Robin Padilla–a prominent Filipino Muslim–also issued a statement regarding the episode, assuring people that Martin did not have any "ill intentions" and appealed to fellow Filipino Muslims for understanding and forgiveness.
Reception
Ratings
According to Kantar Media, the pilot episode of the series debuted to a rating of 21.4%, and rose to 22.6% on February 15 (compared to its timeslot rival Maria Clara at Ibarra with 19.1% and 19.6%, respectively). Additionally, the series received an average national TV ratings of 25.2% from October 9 to 13, covering urban and rural homes (ahead its timeslot rival Maging Sino Ka Man).
Batang Quiapo ruled its timeslot for five consecutive months. Despite limited reach on free-to-air, AGB Nielsen Philippines reported that the pilot week of the series gave a positive feedback on the viewers with 12.5% pilot episode rating on February 13, 2023, placing it in the 3rd spot of the rating board and 13.8% rating on February 15, placing on the 2nd spot of the rating board (compared to Maria Clara at Ibarra's 12.5%). As per AGB Nielsen, the series registered its highest rating of 16.9% on October 13, 2023, placing at the top spot of the rating board.
The finale episode scored a 10.2% rating.
Online viewership
Batang Quiapo was a success upon its debut. The pilot week has generated over 44 million digital views across all online platforms and peaked with 341,509 live concurrent viewers on YouTube. The official tag also became the No. 1 trending topic on Twitter (now X) nationwide. On February 21, 2025, the series reached an all-time high of 1,004,554 live concurrent viewers on YouTube.
Parodies
A sketch in the children's comedy show Goin' Bulilit parodied the teleserye as "Baby Quiapo", where actor Renz Joshua "Baby Giant" Baña– "Sanggol Dimagiba-giba", a parody of show's protagonist Tanggol Dimaguiba.
A music parody of the first theme song of the show was released by Bhebheboyz titled "Batang Baho" (Smelly Kid).