Dawn Zulueta
With her two children now teenagers, Dawn Zulueta feels the need to be more present in their lives.
Show biz, therefore, has to take a back seat for now, she said.
“My time is so precious, and I really want to devote it to my kids. My boy is turning 14 and has a lot of questions; I have to be there to answer them. That’s the reason my focus isn’t so much on work … It’s not my priority,” the actress told the Inquirer at a recent press conference for the upcoming dramatic feature, “Family History.”
“Soaps were all I did since 2012. But it got tiring, so I decided to slow down three years ago,” added Dawn, who has a 13-year-old son, Jacobo, and a 10-year-old daughter, Ayisha, with her husband Antonio Lagdameo Jr.
Dawn could change her mind if presented with a good pitch for a movie or show. Otherwise, she would rather stay at home.
“It would take a really nice offer—a good role, a good story—to make me go out now,” said the actress, whose last soap and movie was “You’re My Home” (2016) and “Meant to Beh” (2017), respectively.
“This kind of work takes up so much of your time. And that’s why I can’t go full blast or do this every day. So, unless it’s something I enjoy, I wouldn’t sacrifice my time with my family,” she added.
Is there anything specific she’s looking for in an offer? “I don’t know … I just know it when I see it. I have always wanted to be a superhero, but I haven’t gotten offers of that kind,” she related, laughing. “But I believe that there are a lot of things that can be done, even at 50.”
For “Family History,” which opens on July 24, the clincher was the rare opportunity of sharing the screen with comedian Michael V, who also wrote and directed the film. “He’s a fun director,” Dawn said. “I find it cute that people call our pairing ‘BiDawn.’ I feel fortunate that people find it interesting enough.”