For Jake, acting projects a welcome respite from heartbreak, other challenges

Cuenca (right) in “My Father, Myself”

It was one of the hardest things I had to go through in my life,” said actor Jake Cuenca of his breakup with actress Kylie Verzosa in April 2022. He was reacting to comments that said, because he got too busy with work late last year, he didn’t have time to grieve over their splitup.

“I couldn’t just ignore what happened and pretend that I had it easy. I had to go through so much because of that breakup, though I just wasn’t vocal about it. I didn’t want to talk about it with a lot of people because it was something very personal to me, just like how my relationship with Kylie was very personal—it was only between me and her. Certainly, the hardest part is over now—nakalusot na tayo. I can see the light now,” Jake said during a recent virtual chat. “I can say that we’re much better now. Like I said earlier, it wasn’t easy. That was three years of my life and I couldn’t just throw that away in six months. I just want to be honest with people. Of course, that relationship meant the world to me, so it’s not something I forced myself to forget, just like that. It will happen in time, but, right now, I can say that I’m fortunate that I have work and that they’re keeping me busy,” said Jake, whose latest film, Joel Lamangan’s big-screen drama “My Father, Myself,” is still screening in theaters nationwide as part of the 48th Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF).

Jake admitted that he was “going through hard times” when the role of Robert in “My Father, Myself” was offered to him. He said dealing with “personal issues” helped him come up with an emotional performance.

Tragic incident

Jake Cuenca (right) with ex-girlfriend Kylie Verzosa

“When I said I went through a hard time, everyone seems to associate it with the breakup. While it was certainly a big part of it, there were other things that happened to me during the pandemic. To be quite honest with you, I lost very close family members to COVID-19. Also, while we all just want to forget the tragic incident, it really happened. I had to deal with that thing with the police last year. When people start shooting at you, this changes something in you,” Jake began.

The actor got arrested in October after hitting a police vehicle in Mandaluyong City. Instead of stopping, he sped off which prompted a car chase that ended in Pasig City. Disobedience and reckless imprudence complaints were filed against him.

“It’s an accumulation of a lot of things that happened. Thankfully, these are all part of the past now, and I’m just happy to be alive and happy to be able to promote all these projects at the end of the day,” he declared.

With the new year, his goal is to “reintroduce Jake, the actor” to people. He explained: “I’m no longer concerned with Jake, the celebrity. I want to reintroduce myself in order to prove, including to myself, that I am capable of creating buzz with my talent and not because of what is happening in my personal life. I was lucky to have stumbled upon projects that enabled me to show a little bit of everything to my audience. I want to be able to do different genres. I’m glad that I have been doing that since 2022.”

On the small screen, Jake played Troy Ramones in the mystery-drama “Viral Scandal.” He will soon be seen as Benjie dela Rosa in the action-thriller “Cattleya Killer.” Currently, he is Eros del Mar in the crime-drama “Iron Heart.”

Reaching his full potential

Cuenca in “The Iron Heart”

Jake said that if there’s anything good that happened to him during the pandemic, it was that he was “able to reach my full potential.” By this, he meant, “Everything I learned from acting school, from the books I’ve read, I was able to apply to my craft. I was able to portray all these characters who are very different from each other. I think God wants me to prioritize acting, what with all these performances.”

He continued: “I once said in an interview, I might have lost a relationship, but doors have opened. I also did a stage play recently! I hope I’m able to frame this well—women have come and gone in my life, but my career has remained constant. It’s my work that stayed, so I want to give it more value. I’m lucky I still have it, so I promise to take care of it well.”

When asked to talk about his future career goals, Jake admitted that “the pandemic made me so hungry.” This was why, he said, “I’ve structured my life in such a way that it will always complement my craft. I read every day, I constantly search for scripts, I also write in my journal every day. For the characters I play, I shop for them personally, like watches and shoes. I realized that I still have so much to give in terms of doing work for theater, TV and the movies.”

He added: “During the pandemic, I’ve fallen in love with my process, unlike before when was in love with just the end product, with the prestige and the acclaim. When you’re still going through the process, there’s no audience, there’s no one telling you you’re doing a good job. I’m on my own. I’ve learned to appreciate that.”