‘Mahal kita’: Umbrella Academy star surprises Filipinos with response to Neflix’s b-day greeting

March 22, 2021 - 8:12 PM
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Justin Min
Justin Min in this photo from his Instagram on Nov. 23, 2019. (Photo from Instragram/justinmin)

“The Umbrella Academy” star Justin Min can apparently speak Filipino.

The 31-year-old actor celebrated his birthday on March 20 and Netflix Philippines greeted him by sharing four photos of him taken from the superhero series.

“Happy birthday to my one and only bebe, @justinhmin (partying face emoji). Always celebrating you (birthday cake emoji) Ilysm,” the streaming giant tweeted.

“Ilysm” is an acronym that stands for “I love you so much.”

Min saw the tweet and responded: “Mahal kita. Tara labas tayo minsan.”

His tweet in Filipino language has reached 4,500 likes and 1,100 retweets on the microblogging platform.

The streaming giant quipped in return: “Paalam ka muna sa parents ko (winking emoji).”

It was not the first time that Min interacted with the account in Filipino language.

In September 2020, Netflix Philippines released two stills with the implication that it found Min’s character cute.

“Don’t make me kilig,” Min responded.

The Filipino word “kilig,” when used as a noun means, exhilaration or elation caused by an exciting or romantic experience; an instance of this, a thrill.

When used as an adjective, it refers to the feeling of being “exhilarated by an exciting or romantic experience; thrilled, elated, gratified.”

Oxford English Dictionary has added “kilig” as part of its new words for March 2016.

The American-Korean actor plays the character of Ben Hargreeves in “The Umbrella Academy,” a popular Netflix series that tells the story of estranged siblings with extraordinary powers who are supposed to save the world.

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