Katrina on the receiving end of contravidas’ wrath for a change

Katrina Halili

For most of her career, Katrina Halili has portrayed contravida characters.

But in GMA 7’s afternoon drama series, “Prima Donnas,” she finds herself in an unfamiliar position. This time, she plays the role of an underdog, the one on the receiving end of all the antics and havoc her past characters wreak.

But as it turned out, Katrina can still be effective on the other end of the soap opera spectrum, viewers observed. And she still can’t believe it, she admitted in a recent virtual conference.

“To this day, whenever I read my script and see that my character is almost kind to a fault, it gets me thinking: ‘Is this role really for me?’” related the Kapuso actress, who plays Lilian Madreal, mother to Donna Marie (Jillian Ward), and stepmother to Donna Belle (Althea Ablan) and Donna Lyn (Sophia Pablo).

There was pressure when she first accepted the job, she recalled, because she had been so used to doing the tormenting. “Nanibago ako. I felt like playing villains is easier somehow, because you’re always stressed when you play a protagonist. One time, I was crying from morning to morning. I thought I was going to get wrinkles!” she said.

She knew that there were people who were doubtful about her playing a downtrodden character, mostly because of her strong look. But she didn’t mind, Katrina said, because she herself was unsure about it at first.

But “Prima Donnas” director, Gina Alajar, was pleasantly surprised and, to a certain extent, felt vindicated, because it was her idea to have Katrina in the said role.

“I’m happy with the response Katrina has been receiving. It wasn’t easy to defend casting her as someone api because she has been long perceived as mataray or palaban. Because that’s how almost all her characters were. But I said, ‘No, trust me. The way people view Katrina will change,’” Gina related. “And thankfully, that was what happened.”

“I’m happy because I’m able to get by with Direk’s help. I don’t think I could have done it without her,” added Katrina, who also drew inspiration from her costars, like Aiko Melendez, whose character, Kendra, make Lilian’s life a living hell.

Will this show signal a future shift in her direction as an actress? “I’m still OK with contravida roles. But of course, if I were given the chance, I would also like to explore other roles,” she said. INQ