Dennis Padilla says he's ending his relationship with Barretto children following alleged incident at daughter Claudia's wedding

Dennis Padilla said he's done trying to rebuild his relationship with the Barrettos as he detailed how he was allegedly treated more like a "guest" than a father during his daughter Claudia Barretto's wedding with her longtime beau Basti Lorenzo.

In an interview with talent manager Ogie Diaz, the comedian narrated how the alleged incident happened, sharing that Claudia first told him via phone call that the wedding was about to be called off. 

Quoting Claudia, he said, "'Pa, kasi for the past one week, hindi ko nakikita 'yung interest ni Basti na magpakasal kami, parang hindi siya sure.'"

An hour later, he allegedly got another call from Claudia saying that the wedding would push through.

Dennis, together with his mom and brother, immediately went to the venue. "Wala pang tao sa simbahan, nagpicture-taking na ako, si Gene, [at] si mama. Sa sobrang excited ko, sabi ni Gene, 'Ang aga naman natin, kuya,'" he recalled. "Ganoon talaga, syempre father of the bride," he replied. 

When the guests and the wedding coordinator started arriving at the venue, Dennis and his companions allegedly didn’t know where they were supposed to sit. Eventually, he was allegedly seated next to the godfathers, which he said made him feel uncomfortable because, as the father of the bride, he expected to have a significant role at the ceremony.

"Ako, si Gene, and 'yung mama ko, nag-aantay na may coordinator na lalapit sa'min kasi ang feeling, Ogie, hindi ka pwedeng humilabilo kasi I don't know them personally sa kabilang side. Sila Julia na nasa kabilang side ng church, 'di naman lumalapit sa'min. I was waiting," he said. 

Dennis said that his brother asked the wedding coordinator about their seating assignments before the ceremony started. "Sabi sa'kin, 'Kayo, sir, gusto niyo dun nalang kayo umupo sa tabi ng mga ninong? Eh ayoko naman mag-cross doon sa mga ninong dahil agaw-pansin kasi kapag nag-cross ako dun, agaw-pansin kasi naka-upo na 'yung mga tao, tsaka bakit mo ako dun papaupuin, Ogie, Ninong ba ako?" 

"Nakita ko na lang si Marjorie, ang katabing umupo si Leon, so I don't have a place, naiyak nalang ako," he continued. 

Dennis went on to say that while Claudia was walking down the aisle, he couldn't help but cry as he felt like an outsider.

"Nakatayo na lang ako, nag-oobserve na lang ako, pumapatak ang luha ko," he said. "Grabe, that was the most painful part ng buhay ko. Wala 'to sa kalahati na naranasan ko sa mga nakaraan, pati nung debut."

Dennis recalled approaching the wedding organizers at the side of the venue and tearfully asking them, "Ano po ba 'yung nangyari? Ako po 'yung father of the bride." 

He claimed that one of the organizers said they understood how he felt and that the issue was brought up during a prior meeting, but they were asked to just follow the program given to them.

"Mas masaya pa ako, Ogie. na hindi ako invited pero dumating ako. Mas gusto ko pa, kasi kahit 'di ka nila pinansin, problema mo 'yun," he pointed out.

According to Dennis, he and his brother just decided to skip the reception as they might end up feeling excluded just the same.

"During the picture taking, hinatid ko mama, sabay ako nagpa-picture kasi ang plano namin ni Gene, 'Kuya wag na tayong umattend dun sa reception, sobra na 'yun mamaya wala ka ring portion dun, kapag wala ka pa dun, umalis na tayo.'" 

He also alleged that Claudia wanted to have a picture with him and didn’t agree with how things were arranged for her special day.

"Pagbigyan na natin, kawawa naman 'yung bata. Walang magawa. Ayaw ni Claudia 'yung arrangement na yun," he said. "Pakiramdam ko kaya sinabi niya hindi tuloy ang kasal, kasi ayaw na niya akong papuntahin." 

'I'm finished' 

Reflecting on how he was allegedly treated at the event, Dennis said he has reached his limit in trying to fix things with his children. While he’ll always be their father by name and blood, he's no longer looking to fix their broken relationship. 

"Ayoko na, surrender na, I'm finished," he said. "Tatay na lang nila ako, pero bringing back the relationship, wala na siguro. Maybe we can just play around with the memories pero that's it." 

Reacting to claims that he is "toxic," Dennis said, "Talaga ba? A father who is longing for love from the children especially when the father is going to almost three-fourth of is life, can you call it as toxic?" 

"A father who asked forgiveness privately and publicly, is that toxic? A father apologized to the mother, to the children, to the boyfriend of the children, in private and public they called that toxic. A father who posted greetings on birthdays, on Valentine's, on Christmas and New Year to greet them so that to reach them without replying, is that toxic?"

"If the answer to those is yes, then I will consider myself toxic," Dennis stressed. 

When asked for his message to his children, the local star said, "Wala na, I'm sorry. Wala na, napagod na. I thought hindi nakakapagod, pero hindi eh." 

'Pinagkaiba namin sa inyo ay 'yung puso namin at dignidad' 

In a Facebook post, Gene expressed shock and disbelief that Dennis wasn’t included in the wedding program. 

Despite arriving early and seeing the event organizers there, he claimed that no one informed them that Dennis wasn’t going to be a part of the ceremony. 

"Nagtanong kami kung sa'n uupo ang nanay namin, ang sabi kahit saan dun at 'yung ama dun na lang [daw] sa tumabi sa mga ninong, [k]aya kami ni [K]uya Dennis pumunta na lamang sa likuran, napaluha at napaiyak si kuya sa mga nangyari. Kaya sabi ko umuwi na tayo after ng simbahan at papicture na lang sa kinasal. Naawa din ako sa nanay ko kasi naiyak na rin," he wrote. 

"Naramdaman ko 'yung sakit na naramdaman ng kapatid at nanay ko dahil ama din ako. Ang tagal na panahon na nanunuyo at nahingi ng atensyon ama niyo sa inyo mga anak, 'yan ba itinanim ng mga nakapaligid sa inyo[?]"

Gene stressed that what makes their family different from the Barrettos is their heart and dignity, which money and status can't buy.

"Puro kayo karangyaan at kasikatan, sa inyo na lahat 'yan. Sanay kami sa hirap at 'di talaga kami nababagay sa inyo, pero pinagkaiba namin sa inyo ay 'yung puso namin at dignidad na 'di niyo kayang pantayan. Kahit magtanong kayo sa ibang magulang, tama ba o mali ang ginawa niyo sa tatay niyo?" 

"'Di pala father of the BRIDE! Guest of the BRIDE!!!" he added.

Gene added in the comment section, "'Di nagpapansin kapatid ko sa inyo, longing sa inyo sa atensiyon at pagmamahal. Sobra na kayo!"

Social media users react to the alleged incident

The alleged incident became a hot topic on social media, with some Internet users siding with Dennis.

"I can't imagine my dad not walking me down the aisle. This is heartbreaking. No matter the issues, he’s still the father. Dennis deserved better," one user said. 

"He’s not perfect, but you could tell he tried. Public humiliation is too harsh for any parent," another one wrote. 

"Kahit ano pa ang naging hidwaan, hindi 'yun sapat na dahilan upang ipahiya ang magulang at iparamdam na hindi bahagi ng pamilya sa harap ng iba. Walang kasing sakit dahil 'di mo alam kung galit lang ba or kinakahiya talaga," a Facebook user said. 

Some users, however, pointed out that there may be deeper family issues that the public isn't fully aware of.

"We don’t know the full story. Kids don’t just cut off their parents without a reason. Maybe there’s a lot more behind the scenes," one said.

Others also didn't like that Dennis chose to detail their private family issue in an interview. 

"I can’t believe he brought up that private issue about the wedding! For what purpose? What was the intention behind it? Is he trying to suggest to the public that your daughter’s new husband might not love her enough or was hesitant about the wedding?" a Reddit user said. 

"Grabe, can't imagine kung ano nafefeel ni Claudia. Sobrang nakakahiya na 'yung vulnerable na conversation na iyon ay kinalat pa ni Dennis," an Internet user commented. 

"He's allowed to feel hurt but at the same time, he needs to remember na it's not his wedding, therefore, it's not about him," said another.

Dennis shares three children with his former wife, Marjorie Barretto—Claudia, Julia, and Leon. They have yet to comment on Dennis' claims as of writing.

Dennis' relationship with his children became strained following his separation from Marjorie in 2007. While Julia reached out for reconciliation in 2021, she expressed in a 2023 interview with Karen Davila that healing and forgiveness are ongoing processes, and she wasn't ready for such then. This got even more complicated when Dennis aired his disappointment over Julia’s statements. Days before Claudia's wedding, however, Dennis was seen reuniting with his kids in an Instagram post, which he later deleted.