Kiko Matos
Getting along with Baron Geisler, an actor as talented as he is volatile, takes a certain level of understanding, according to one of his friends, Kiko Matos.
“He just needs someone to support him, and I’m willing to help. I know more or less how to deal with him. You stay away when he’s having an angry episode; you talk to him again once he has calmed down,” related Kiko, who had come clean earlier this month that the series of run-ins he had with Baron that led to a mixed martial arts fight, was—as what many had speculated—part of a social experiment.
Kiko related that he has had the controversial celebrity at his house a couple of times in the past, for drinks. And while Baron had displayed questionable behavior every so often, Kiko opted to let those things slide.
“At the end of the day, we still had a good time,” he told reporters at a press conference for “Kabisera,” an entry in this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival. “I didn’t want to make him feel that I was befriending him just so I could expose or rat on him.”
Baron Geisler
Baron’s most recent stunt that angered many of his colleagues in show biz was urinating on costar Ping Medina, while shooting a scene for Arlyn dela Cruz’s coming indie movie, “Bubog.”
The incident prompted the Professional Artists Management Inc., an organization of talent managers, to urge its members to prohibit their wards from working with Baron in the future.
Kiko couldn’t help but feel sorry for his friend. But still, he pointed out, Baron needs “to face the consequences of his actions.” “That would be my advice for him. I texted him after I heard of what happened. He answered, but it was apparent that he had to be left alone for the meantime,” he said.
How would he react if Baron did to him what he did to Ping? “In that case, magkakagulo—for real,” he quipped. “Hats off to Ping for handling the situation well and, somehow, still maintaining some respect toward Baron. Ping didn’t act how you would expect him to, given what happened.”
Meanwhile, the 25-year-old actor stressed that it wasn’t his intention to make a fool out of anyone, with the staged fights he and Baron did for the documentary, “Beastmode,” which was screened by the UP Film Institute. “Since it was a social experiment, there had to be subjects,” explained the actor, adding that he took on the project even without a talent fee.
“I did it out of passion—I wanted to step out of my comfort zone,” added Kiko, who insisted that he’s not the trouble-maker he portrayed himself to be in the documentary. “As an adult, I knew what the consequences were, but I wanted to do something new.”