From left: Althea Ablan, Jillian Ward and Sofia Pablo
Jillian Ward, Althea Ablan and Sofia Pablo are back with their “sister act” na “pak na pak” in Season 2 of GMA 7’s well-loved afternoon series, “Prima Donnas.” Their story is lovelier the second time around, courtesy of newfound “kilig providers” (aka ka-loveteam) for the Tres Marias.
Here’s my chat with Jillian (J), Sofia (S) and Althea (A):
How do you manage not to upstage each other?
J: Our director is meticulous, so we all know what to provide in a scene. Therefore, nobody upstages anyone.
S: Upstaging doesn’t happen because we give the spotlight to one another whenever the scene calls for it.
A: Our acting coach Anne Villegas and Direk Gina Alajar give us all the instructions we need to embrace the character we each portray and respect the characters played by our costars. So we know when it’s our moment or their moment to shine.
How would you handle prima donnas?
J: I will talk to them privately, and remind them about the importance of humility.
S: I just ignore them and remind myself to never be like them.
A: I would help them become better by giving them advice.
What do you find hard to understand about boys?
J: I don’t know how to answer this. Everybody is quite complex in his or her own way.
S: Nothing much. I just enjoy bonding with them.
A: How they hide their true feelings. How they pretend to be weak because people expect them to be strong always.
Louise delos Reyes (left) and Diego Loyzaga
Diego and Barbie call it quits
With all the recent celebrity couples’ “splitups,” Valentine’s Day is more of a red-alert day than a red-hot one in “showbizlandia”—just like in the case of Diego Loyzaga and Barbie Imperial.
During the digital media con of their Vivamax movie “Dulo” last month, Diego and Barbie’s virtual PDA (public display of affection) made us all giddy. That is why their sudden breakup is quite surprising.
A few months ago, Diego messaged me about a vlogger who has been spreading crazy stories about Barbie and him. He was so protective of their relationship.
I also remember the time Barbie reached out to me. Since she knows that Diego’s dad (Cesar Montano) is my BFF (Best Friend Forever), she requested for a birthday video greeting from him for Diego. And during her birthday, she invited BFF and me. Too bad we were not able to make it, though.
Barbie has long been wanting to meet Diego’s dad and was so concerned about their “father and son tampuhan” back then. But when BFF was hospitalized due to COVID-19, my BFF and Diego finally made peace.
What I am trying to say is, I felt how emotionally invested Diegs and Barbs were in each other. It’s sad that their love has gone to waste. Barbie said in her interviews that it wasn’t a bad breakup and they just both needed to grow. Could that be just a “show biz answer?” And so it goes. Only their hearts know.
Demystifying wives and mistresses
To be a good wife, you must know how to act like a mistress. That is what “The Wife” (streaming on Vivamax) proves to a certain extent. The adult drama directed by Denise O’Hara is topbilled by Diego Loyzaga, Cara Gonzales and Louise delos Reyes. It’s menage à trois with a Pinoy twist.
Here are quotes from Diego (D), Louise (L) and Denise (DH):
D: In our movie, you see all sides of extramarital affairs. We are all victims of love at some point in our lives. “Love conquers all” is such a cliché, but our movie shows that it is possible to forgive in the name of love.
L: I am living in with my boyfriend. Hanggang kaya, I will fight for my happy ending. I am borderline tanga. I’m willing to give many chances till the situation is hopeless already.
DH: Our movie demystifies wives and mistresses. It breaks the stereotype by making them both on equal footing.
D: Direk Denise called me out to do more or do less. I welcomed her correction because no other director has done that to me.
L: My role taught me how to believe in second chances and hold on to love if it’s bigger than the wrongdoing of our partner.