The third season of Your Face Sounds Familiar premiered on the Kapamilya Channel on February 20, 2021. The season is the first to air outside ABS-CBN after the network's shutdown and franchise denial in 2020. The season was presented by debuting host Luis Manzano while the jury was composed of Sharon Cuneta, Gary Valenciano, and Ogie Alcasid. Taped during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, the season was filmed without a live audience and was subject to a number of health and safety protocols.
Klarisse de Guzman was named as the winner at the season finale held on May 30, 2021, attaining a total combined score of 90%. This season was also the first to implement the scoring system used in the finales of the Kids editions.
The show follows a competition where celebrity performers are tasked to impersonate any icon, living or dead, regardless of their age, race or gender. A three-person jury ranks the contestants, with their cumulative points being combined with points given by the performers amongst themselves to determine a winner for that week.
The contestants and their monikers were revealed on February 4, 2021. Jhong Hilario decided to withdrew on Week 7, becoming the first to do so in the show's history, leaving seven performers competing for the grand prize from then on.
Matty Juniosa of iDolls later auditioned in series 19 of Britain's Got Talent, where he received a golden buzzer from Simon Cowell.
The eight performances are divided into two nights â the first four contestants perform on Saturdays and the remaining four on Sundays.
Notes
Owing to the inability to press the iconizer in the previous weeks, the icons were revealed through the show's social media accounts without revealing who the icon was assigned to.
Jhong announced his withdrawal from the show on April 17, 2021, to care for his newborn daughter, leaving the show with 107 points and two weekly wins. Geneva was not able to perform for this week and the following three weeks following her mother's exposure and subsequent death to COVID-19. Due to the absences, the highest score a member of the jury can give to a contestant is 6.
With Jhong's withdrawal, the format was re-adjusted, four contestants performed during Saturdays and the remaining three during Sundays.
Guest Juror
Due to being slightly ill at the time of taping, Sharon Cuneta appeared virtually through a remote work setup via Zoom. This would continue on the following week.
After three weeks of her absence, Geneva returned to the competition. Her icon was revealed via a television screen in the training room as she was not able to press the iconizer in the previous weeks.
For the first time in the mainline series, all of the remaining seven contestants perform in the grand showdown. For the round, the contestants will select the icons they will impersonate. The winner is determined by a composite score of the final total points accumulated throughout the competition and public votes cast during the finale broadcast. The finale was held in Studio 10, ABS-CBN Broadcasting Center with a virtual audience instead of a live audience due to the COVID-19 restrictions at that time.
As Sharon Cuneta was on her vacation at the time of the Grand Showdown, she appeared virtually through a remote work setup via Zoom.
During the second night, Vice Ganda appeared on the show to promote their then-upcoming series "Everybody, Sing!" which premiered on June 5, 2021.
May 29
May 30
Due to restrictions established by the Enhanced Community Quarantine that was in effect from March 29 to April 11 in the Greater Manila Area resulting in a suspension of tapings of newer episodes, no new performances were aired from April 4 to 11. Instead, performances from the previous weeks were re-aired.
Due to Holy Week pre-empting regular programming from Thursday to Saturday, the Sunday episode was supposed to air duet performances. However, due to the Enhanced Community Quarantine being reimposed over the Greater Manila Area from March 29-April 11 that became the result of the surge of COVID-19 cases caused by the Alpha (B.1.1.7) and Beta (B.1.351) in the aforementioned areas, the plans for a duet week was cancelled, and a director's cut version of Week 1's episodes was aired instead for that night.
April 10
April 11
The season was confirmed in December 2020 during the Ikaw ang Liwanang at Ligaya: The ABS-CBN Christmas Special 2020. This season marked the first regular season in five years after two consecutive seasons of the children's edition. In 2021, the show revealed its first teaser along with the new title card and logo. The taping of the show's first three episodes started sometime in late January 2021.
As the season was held during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, which caused the country to go into various forms of community quarantine, the show implemented several health and safety protocols in the studio to ensure the safety of the artists, crew and staff from the threat of COVID-19. The show also entailed a lock-in taping set-up to produce three weeks of episodes per taping cycle, being taped without any studio audience admitted inside the studio. Instead, a virtual audience via Zoom is admitted instead while using artificial crowd noise, while Darren Espanto and AC Bonifacio hosted the online companion show through remote work also via Zoom.
In late March 2021, a surge of COVID-19 cases in the Greater Manila Area caused by the Alpha and Beta variants of the said virus resulted in a reimposition of the enhanced community quarantine in the aforementioned areas from March 29 to April 11, 2021, which caused the show to temporarily suspended tapings of new episodes in compliance with the community quarantine guidelines during the said period, and Director's cut versions of several past episodes of the season were aired instead on April 4, 10 and 11.
The show's taping of new episodes resumed on April 14, 2021, while rehearsals for the third taping cycle started on April 12, 2021, following the downgrade to modified enhanced community quarantine.
After six weeks of being part of the show, Jhong Hilario, one of the contestants, chose to quit the show due to the pandemic. He mentioned that he made the decision for the wellbeing of his newborn baby, as babies are among those who are susceptible to the coronavirus. At the time of his withdrawal, he had 107 points, having won weeks 1 and 2.
On April 18, 2021, Geneva Cruz was also unable to perform on the third taping cycle, which spanned three weeks of airing (Week 7âÂÂ9) due to her exposure to COVID-19 at the time of the third taping cycle. This occurred after her mother was confirmed to have contracted the virus and subsequently died afterwards. She returned to the competition on Week 10, with Toni Braxton being her icon to impersonate upon returning.
Sharon Cuneta and Gary Valenciano reprised their roles as members of the jury. Ogie Alcasid replaced Jed Madela, as he did during the two Kids seasons.
Luis Manzano served as the new host, replacing Billy Crawford due to his departure from the network in the aftermath of its shutdown, franchise denial and layoffs, which saw his transfer to blocktimer shows that are aired on TV5.
The show's online companion show, Your Face Sounds Familiar: KaFamiliar Online Live is hosted by Darren Espanto and Kids Season 1 contestant AC Bonifacio. It airs simultaneously with the main show, being streamed live on the official YouTube channel of the show and through Kapamilya Online Live.
Awra Briguela or Jeremy Glinoga occasionally served as substitute hosts whenever Bonifacio or Espanto are unable to host the online companion show.
Jeremy Glinoga co-hosted the online show along with Bonifacio and Espanto in The Grand Showdown on May 29, 2021.
In January 2021, Cuneta confirmed that Jed Madela and Nyoy Volante will reprise their previous roles as mentors for vocals and choreography.
In certain weeks, guest judges substituted for members of the jury in their respective absences.