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AC's not just part of the next generation—she's leading it.
If there's one thing AC Bonifacio has mastered, it's commanding the attention of a room. From the moment she burst onto the scene with her electrifying dance moves as part of the Lucky Aces duo, it was clear she possessed a rare spark. What sets her apart, however, is how she has gone beyond the boundaries of Internet virality and developed it into a multifaceted long-term career.
She's a dancer who owns every stage she's in, an actress who breathes life into her characters, and a trendsetter who continuously shapes the cultural landscape of her generation. Simply put, she is the moment.
And in a world where everyone seeks out authenticity in the media they consume and the people they choose to follow, AC cuts through the noise and stands out with her brand of fearless self-expression and dedication to her craft.
As a Women of Influence 2025 awardee and The Next-Gen Tastemaker, AC is constantly evolving, but one thing is very clear: She's not just part of the next generation—she's leading it.
AC Bonifacio for Cosmopolitan Philippines Women of Influence 2025
Photographed by Miggy Broño
AC: It made me mature so much quicker in and out of the industry. But being the breadwinner and having to work right away also helped me know my goal in my life and in my career. And it's kinda scary because I was just playing the whole time before I got into the industry, so once I was serious na, I knew I couldn't play [anymore], but I also knew na I needed to keep my heart in it, or else mawawala 'yun sa mata mo. So that is what I try to keep with me now...that spark.
AC: Yeah, for sure. When I became the breadwinner and I started to work right away and I got older and older and realized, "Shoot, 18 na ako, and I know nothing except how to dance, sing, act, host, or be in front of the camera." That's all I knew, so there were times when I had to really fight my mom to allow me to grow. And it was hard for her because it's hard to accept your daughter growing—like that's your baby, 'di ba? I didn't want her to think that I was leaving her, but at the same time, I knew I had to do it for myself just so I could be independent and understand myself more and what I need mentally, physically, career or not career.
So it was really hard na I never got to experience like prom, or like being in high school, but I am trying to switch my mindset and just trying to look at the positive things, na "I didn't get to experience that now but my [little] brother is getting to experience it." He's like my twin—my other half—so I feel like I'm also experiencing that with him. At the same time, I have a beautiful career that I'm so grateful for that not everybody has a chance to have. I'm just trying to look at the positive side of everything.
AC: That is exactly what started my career—[guesting on] Ellen deGeneres and Ariana [Grande's concert]. My mom was the one posting videos. She would upload, upload, upload until yun nga, at one point, Ellen and her team were purposely searching for kids out there who could do different talents. One of [Lucky Ancheta and I's] videos got seen, and then we were able to guest on Ellen, and that was the start of everything.
Andami na nangyari sa buhay ko na I never thought would happen. I'm super grateful. I always let people know na that's where I started—Ellen is the reason why I am here today. It's made me someone who I also never thought I could be, 'cause I always thought I would just be a dancer.
AC: When [Lucky and I] were doing Dance Kids, back and forth pa rin kami from Canada to the Philippines every week. So it was like, we were rehearsing on Thursday and Friday, then shooting on Saturday and Sunday. Then, [we had] either a Sunday or Monday night flight back to Canada because we were doing school.
Even during the competition, we never thought we would have to move. We got so used to being in competitions, and then if we win or lose, we go back home. Go back home and train, then next competition naman. That's how our life was, eh. So when Dance Kids happened and [Lucky and I] won, that's when our parents were like, "Okay, we're gonna be staying here now," and we were like, "What?" That was so much for a kid to handle...to move across the country with only my mom. It was so difficult for me, and I never thought it would happen, but because my mom's support was so out of this world, I was able to handle it. Until now, she's still here with me. She keeps me okay all the time.
AC: Yeah, there was definitely a point where I was doing dance covers and people were not hating on me because of my dance, but hating on me because I was a fan. Like they were just questioning me being a fan. Every dance cover that I did was always just full of passion and heart. When me and my mom were just starting out, [my] first dance covers were literally just my mom recording. We had nothing.
So for me to be doing all that from my heart and because of my passion, then people were gonna hate on me, saying, "Oh you're just bandwagoning, you just want the clout, you just want the money." Those were the moments where I would start to lose myself, and I was like, "Shit, I'm not enjoying anymore, because people think I'm doing this for a different reason." And it started to really hurt me, and I kind of lost myself, where at that point I was kind of just acting and singing and you could see in my face and my eyes na 'di ko na na-e-enjoy yung pagsasayaw, and I kinda eventually just dimmed down on my dance covers.
What brought me back were my dancer friends. I would fly back to L.A. a lot, and I would take classes again. I started from the beginning...with what I fell in love with the most, which was taking classes and being around my friends who were passionate. I brought myself back to those moments, and that's just where I fell in love all over again. I had to start from the beginning to find that passion again, and now, no one can tear me down. No matter what people say, I will be dancing with my heart fully forever.
AC: I think it was the bashing. I was not prepared for all the bashing at such a young age. I was prepared to be put into singing, dancing, acting, hosting, improv, freestyle—whatever it is you needed me to do. But I was not prepared for the opinions that would be put on me and the pressure just because I was doing something I loved to do. And at such a young age? I was not prepared for that at all.
I was so depressed, I was so out of myself, I lost myself in every single way. I lost my passion for dance, I stopped doing dance covers. I didn't want to go to work anymore. I lost myself completely because these people were telling me to do this to myself. [There] was a lot of questioning of my worth and if I'm even enough. Honestly, if you do not have the right support system, it's so easy to fall into that trap.
AC: Yeah, I'm barely online now. I go online just to post, and I only post things that I know will inspire other people. At the same time, if there are any hate comments, I answer back. I'm done allowing them to do what they want to do without knowing the truth.
You know, it's the funniest thing to answer back on TikTok. There was someone recently who was hating on my body. They called me kiti-kiti, or parang naasinan lang. And I'm like, "Dance battle me right now." I will say stuff like that. [laughs]
That's why I don't really have that many bashers now because they know I'll answer back with the truth. You don't need to be hating on people unless you have good intentions, like you want them to grow.
But yeah, that's how I navigate social media...I don't go on it. [laughs] I just disappear. I will post for work, I will post to inspire, but that's it.
AC: I've done beautiful roles that I love so much that are just so AC. I've done a lot of roles that were just so me, where I would kinda just come in, and I wouldn't really have to act—it was just AC being AC, you know? But I definitely love the challenge, and I'm starting to get there. I'm really grateful for the opportunities that have been given to me and the people who have believed in me.
At first nga, because I was just being AC in the roles, I felt like I wasn't acting. But now that I'm getting older, they're challenging me with new roles. I did High Street where I was the complete opposite of AC, as in kontrabida na sobrang taray, sobrang fierce lagi na may hidden galit—it was so not AC at all. So that's when I truly felt like I was acting, and I really enjoyed it. I learned so much, and that's when I realized that I get it. I get why people are so passionate about it, and now I feel like that's when the transition is finally happening—the real transition of being a dancer and then an actor and having to play different roles.
AC: ASAP, for sure. [That show] will always be there because they have helped me grow so much. If you watched my first performance up to my latest, there's definitely a difference. ASAP has been a training ground kasi for me in terms of singing, dancing, and hosting, and they've believed in me for all of it.
Another is FIBA, which I did last 2023—the halftime for their first game in the Philippine Arena. That was big for me 'cause it was my first time performing there with that big of a crowd. I went back to my roots and did hip-hop, and I also sang in the beginning.
Riverdale was also huge for me because that year was the pandemic, and I moved back to Canada during that time because it didn't make sense for me to stay here. So I was doing self-tape after self-tape after self-tape and kept getting rejected again and again and again. Siguro I did at least 50 self-tapes and kept getting rejected, and then I finally booked Riverdale. It was so cool because the show was so trendy at the time, and I got to be me—I got to dance, so that was really cool.
AC: It's not hard to balance when it's your passion because you're going into work and you're thinking you're just training or you're just hanging out with your friends. That's what my mindset is like. Like when I go into ASAP, there are looong hours—I don't care, because I get to see my friends, and during breaks we get to eat together. When we're on stage blocking, we still get to fool around, we still get to make jokes. So, it was never hard having to balance that part of it.
But in terms of my personal life, it did get hard at some point. So it was that balance of having to spend time with mom or spend time with friends na outside of work talaga. Sometimes, I would be working all day, and if I finish at 10 p.m., I would still go and see my friends even if it meant I would get no sleep for the next day, just because I needed that as fuel to push myself for the next day.
A lot of people are always like, "How do you have so much energy?" And it's really like, I get energy from other people's energy. I think that's how I manage it. I kinda just YOLO. I YOLO everything—I'm too young to be meticulously planning hour by hour. I'll get to the age where I have to, but right now, I'm able to divide my energy up everywhere, so it works.
AC: I honestly want to do like a rom-com. Something fun like that na parang joking around lang, almost like Got to Believe ni Ate Kathryn [Bernardo]—I loved her role there so much. Or like Be Careful with My Heart. Ms. Jodi [St. Maria]'s role there was super cute, super fun lang.
AC: Girlhood was what made me feel confident. Girlhood was what made me feel like I'm someone. When I was in middle school, it was me and my girlfriends; it was just the four of us, and we were together all the time. They helped me have the confidence to order my own food, you know what I mean? 'Cause other kids before, they could not go to a fast food restaurant and order their own food. And they were the ones who helped me gain the confidence to help me talk to strangers and ask questions and all of that. And even in terms of girl things like crushes, boyfriends, periods—which is something that needs to be talked about more—they helped me be confident.
And now, girlhood is not just your best friend—girlhood is literally any female out there that you meet. Us now, I just met you, but I'm sure if I asked you for a favor, you would do it and vice versa.
AC: You see? That's just how girlhood is now, it's so strong, especially online. It's been super strong recently where girls just comment on each other's posts, hyping each other up.
AC: Girlhood has completely shaped my whole career. I'm in hip-hop because I wanted to prove boys wrong, because I wanted to prove people wrong na, "Ay, hindi yan yung dance genre na ginagawa ng mga babae. More feminine dapat." So that is what I did—I proved them wrong. I ended up on Ellen, on Ariana, and all of this and that, and that's exactly my career now.
AC: The body shaming needs to stop, seriously. I don't understand it. Body shaming is really something that I want to be changed for women, na they don't need to be shy about their bodies. I want to be able to just show off our bodies and have people love us for how we look.
Crop tops, short shorts, whatever you wanna wear, do what you wanna do. Just flaunt your body the way you are, and I hope people would start accepting that this is just how we are. We're not trying to be sexy, we're not trying to be flirty or get your attention—this is what we feel confident in, and that's just how it is.
AC: Just hyping each other up. Small comments, I noticed. Like for me, when I get into work and I don't feel good—and it might not show that I feel good—but then I do my makeup and someone's like, "Uy, ang ganda ng makeup mo ngayon." 100%, that will make my day complete, and I feel so much better.
And I feel like it goes vice versa for everyone...'cause you never know what changes someone's life or what can make someone's day.
AC: Sunshine. A lot of people say I'm the color yellow.
AC: Yeah, that's why I'm wearing yellow today. [laughs]
For some reason, people would be like, "AC, you're yellow" all the time, just out of nowhere. I always ask them why, and they're always like, "Because you're like a ball of sunshine." Like I come in [a room], and I'm so energetic kasi talaga. I'm so loud, but in a good way. I'm super clingy also—like if you see me with my best friend Darren [Espanto] or people I'm close with, I'd go up to them and randomly hug them. I just love it when I get to see other people smile because of me.
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PHOTOGRAPHER: Miggy Broño
ART DIRECTOR: Ica Del Mundo, assisted by Bea Bognot and Bea Malonzo
ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Ida Aldana
PRODUCER: Alyana Olivar
MAKEUP: Angelica Dela Cruz
HAIR: Cristine Benoman
STYLING: Ica Villanueva
STORY: Cheska Santiago
VIDEO: Cherrie Julian, Jino Del Mundo, and Greeko Junio
SOCIAL MEDIA: Aina Lizarondo, assisted by Elsa Macanilao
