JENNYLYN Mercado and Lovi Poe
Actress Jennylyn Mercado, who claimed she was never the type to engage in a catfight for a guy, recently had one with Lovi Poe on the set of the Joel Lamangan romantic drama, “The Bride and the Lover.”
“I had to do it for real,” said Jennylyn, who admitted to slapping, kicking and pulling Lovi’s hair while working on the movie. “We exchanged slaps, kicks and punches for almost five hours.”
Jennylyn plays Sheila, best friend to Lovi’s character Vivien. The latter is set to marry her fiancé Phillip (Paulo Avelino) when she discovers he is having an affair with Sheila. Thus, a catfight ensues.
“Five hours was such a long time for only one scene, so Lovi and I thought of doing the fight for real, or else Direk Joel would never allow us to pack up and go home,” the actress told the Inquirer. “When we were done, we hugged each other. It was only the following day when we both discovered we had scratches and bruises, and we ached all over.”
She had never been in a real catfight, Jennylyn swore. “I’m the type who would just walk away and cry in one corner. Often, I just keep my feeling to myself. Ayaw ko ng gulo. If I discover that my guy is with someone else, I’d just break up with him.”
This she said she’d do in spite of her being a martial arts fighter for years.
Martial artist
Jennylyn has been into Brazilian jiu jitsu since late 2011. In fact, she met her current boyfriend, actor-TV host Luis Manzano, while taking up the sport. The 25-year-old actress is also into muay Thai and triathlon.
Jennylyn quickly denied rumors that she and Luis, 32, were already living together and were planning to tie the knot soon. “My son (Alex Jazz, 4) is my first priority. He’s still very young and he still needs me. Being the breadwinner, my whole family needs me. I live where my family lives,” she pointed out. “Luis understands this. Besides, he is in no hurry to settle down himself.”
“The Bride and the Lover,” written by Rody Vera, also stars Joem Bascon, Hayden Kho Jr., Alex Castro, Ahron Villena, Carmi Martin, Carlo Gonzalez, Timmy Cruz and Snooky Serna, among others. It will be shown on May 1 in cinemas nationwide.
(Email mcruz@inquirer.com.ph)