Ruru Madrid
Love teams usually go from reel to real. But in the case of Bianca Umali and Ruru Madrid, it’s the other way around. The real-life couple is finally being paired off onscreen in “The Write One” (streaming on Viu starting today, and premiering on GMA on Monday).
Ruru portrays Liam, a frustrated writer married to Joyce, played by Bianca. With the help of a mysterious typewriter, he gets to revise his love and life story. All his “what ifs” suddenly turn into “what is.”
Here’s my chat with Ruru:
If you could rewrite your life story, which part would you want to edit out?
Nothing. The lessons I learned from my past mistakes shaped me to become who I am now.
What stage is your relationship with Bianca in?
We are exploring, growing together and helping each other fulfill our dreams. We are each other’s No. 1 supporter.
Since Bianca and you play a married couple, what are you learning about marriage?Our show is making me realize that the cliché, “Marriage is not a bed of roses,” is true. But if two people work as a team, then they can weather any storm.
Kylie Versoza and Marco Gumabao —PHOTO From Versoza’s Instagram
Marco and Kylie explore ‘sugar dating’
Money can’t buy love. But love can’t pay the bills. That dilemma does not exist in the world of “sugar dating,” which is explored in Viva Films’ “Baby Boy, Baby Girl.”
Showing in cinemas on March 22, the rom-com directed by Jason Paul Laxamana stars Marco Gumabao and Kylie Verzosa. It will show how a romantic relationship is treated like a transaction, where every expectation is laid out and agreed upon.
Marco plays Seb, who rose from rags to riches by becoming a sugar baby. His lifestyle change catches the attention of his ex, Josie (Kylie) who asks him to groom her for sugar dating.
As Seb helps Josie achieve the “sweet life,” feelings for her are rekindled. But since Josie has been transformed into a material girl, will Seb’s love make her realize that the best things in life are not things àpres tout?
Here are quotes from Kylie (K), Marco (M) and Jason Paul (JP):
K: It’s my first time to do a rom-com, so the audience will see a different side of me. I let my walls down. Among all the roles I played, Josie is the closest one to my personality.
M: The theme of our film is quite controversial. It’s a brave move to tackle a topic that’s frowned upon by many. May it serve as an eye-opener that sugar dating also has a positive side to it. We must not judge sugar babies because, for some, that’s the only hustle they can do to survive.
JP: Documentaries about sugar dating sites intrigued me, that’s why I delved into it. Our movie will humanize sugar dads and moms. It will show that not all of them are lust-driven … some just yearn for companionship.
K: Money is just one factor in a relationship. There are other important factors like honesty, trust, commitment, etc. Even if your man spoils you with material stuff, that’s worthless if he does not treat you right.
M: I am not courting Kylie because I don’t want to ruin our friendship. Besides, I was part of her journey when Jake Cuenca and she were still a couple, so out of respect, I would rather remain as her friend.
JP: At first, I thought Kylie would be hesitant to do wacky scenes and be deglamorized since she’s a beauty queen. But I was wrong. Her style of comedy is à la the “Mean Girls” movie.
From left: Jerald Napoles, Gianna Iguiron and Kim Molina
Kim and Jerald’s ‘fun-serye’
Live-in couple Kim Molina and Jerald Napoles get the feel of married life and parenthood in “Team A.” The “fun-serye” premieres tonight and airs every Saturday at 9:30 p.m. on TV5, with catchup episodes every Sunday at 9 p.m. on Sari-Sari Channel. It revolves around the Ambida couple (Kim and Jerald) and their daughter, Yeye (Gianna Iguiron), whose lives are complicated by intrusive in-laws (portrayed by Yayo Aguila and Anjo Yllana).
The comedy series will remind us that when all else fails, family prevails.
Here are quotes from Kim (K) and Jerald (J):K: When the show was offered to Je and me, we asked them, “Sure po kayo na kami ang gusto n’yong mag-bida (laughs)?” It’s exciting because parang rehearsal namin ni Je ang show para sa future roles as mag-asawa or as mom and dad.
J: Our show will tackle family issues in a light manner. It’s like “John and Marsha” with a new flavor.
K: Living in was not our plan, but because of the pandemic lockdown in 2020, my parents who live abroad felt it would be safer if I lived with Je. There are days we give each other space para ‘di kami ma-umay.
J: Kim and I are best friends first and foremost, that’s why we click. We can be brutally honest with each other. But it’s quite tricky to separate “KimJe,” the love team, from KimJe as girlfriend and boyfriend, so we make an effort not to bring to work what we should leave at home as far as our relationship is concerned.
BingoPlus anniversary
Luis Manzano was in high spirits during the fab BingoPlus (BP) Night at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. He did not look affected at all by the Flex Fuel controversy hounding him. Celebs came in full force to the fab first anniversary celebration of BP.
Regine Velasquez, Vice Ganda, Billy Crawford, Coleen Garcia, Sam Concepcion, SB19, Bela Padilla and many more stars joined the revelry. BP gave away P1 million worth of raffle prizes. Two winners split the P50 million megajackpot. BP will donate more than 10M to its chosen charity as a way of paying it forward (for more info, visit www.bingoplus.com).