Jane De Leon and Janella Salvador on the price of action stardom

Jane de Leon and Janella Salvador

Jane de Leon, who has been working on the action-fantasy series “Mars Ravelo’s Darna” since 2019, suffered so many on-set accidents that she has already considered them part of the job description.

“Before I started taping for ‘Darna,’ I also appeared in ‘FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano.’ It was Coco (Martin, lead star and director of the series) who told me, ‘Accidents are normal in any action series. You’ll experience more of it when you work on ‘Darna.’ He was definitely right,” said Jane during a recent media gathering to announce the final two weeks of “Darna.”

“On-set accidents can’t be avoided. You have to really be careful. So for those who are planning on becoming action stars, be warned. You have to be ready for them, and accept that they’re part of the work you enlisted yourself in,” the 24-year-old actress said.

Jane then recalled some of the more memorable mishaps that affected not only her performance, but also the entire “Darna” production team.

A trip to the ER

“Once, I was rushed to the ER (emergency room) after taping for this particular scene with Joshua (Garcia, her leading man),” Jane began. This was after she knelt on the floor not knowing that the pointed tip of a nail was sticking out.

“It poked my knee and almost hit a bone. It kept bleeding. At first, I tried hard not to cry because I wanted people to see that I was strong, but it was really painful. I was brought to the hospital and was given a tetanus shot,” she recalled.

There was also a time when Jane got punched in the face by a stunt double while taping a fight scene. “It was the first time I got a solid punch in the face. That time, I really cried. My face was swollen for days,” she said.

Jane also fell and sprained her ankle. “This was before shooting the scene where I get to say I’m Darna for the first time. I hurt my ankle, so we had to pack up the set for two days,” the actress said.

Six months ago, Jane’s right thumb got sprained while in a fight sequence. “My thumb got stretched too far back. It hurt so much, but I carried on. Good thing it didn’t get injured, although it was really painful to move. I’m OK now. After that, I would simply hide my thumbs during fight scenes,” Jane said.

She then rolled up her pants to show Inquirer Entertainment her bruised right knee, which she got only last week while taping with costar, Janella Salvador. “I slipped and fell. This is nothing compared to that knee injury I got with the nail. That still hurts up to now. It’s OK. Ganon talaga ang buhay action star.”

Uncomfortable costumes

Janella, on the other hand, said she didn’t suffer from injuries, but experienced discomfort whenever she was in her costume. Janella plays Darna’s archenemy, Valentina, as well as her alter ego, Regina.

“My costume is so tight because the fabric is not stretchy. It actually constricts blood flow,” said Janella, who wears a green-and-black body suit whenever she transforms into Valentina. “I wear a head cap most of the time, that’s why I get chronic headaches during tapings. Compared to Jane’s, mine is just discomfort.”

Janella said she would complain to her wardrobe team about this, “but they also can’t do anything about it. There are a lot of factors why this happened. For one, we weren’t as prepared [to shoot for long hours]. As an actress, I just carried on. I just tried to give my best in terms of performance,” she said.

The final two weeks of “Darna” can still be seen on weeknights, at 8 p.m., on the Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, CineMo, A2Z and TV5. The cast is scheduled for a meet-and-greet at the KCC Mall in General Santos City on Feb. 3 and at Ayala Malls Trinoma in Quezon City on Feb. 5.