How Jennylyn got her groove back, discovered Xian’s most ticklish body part

Xian Lim (L) and Jennylyn Mercado | PHOTO: GMA Entertainment

For Jennylyn Mercado, the biggest challenge in doing “Love. Die. Repeat.” was picking up where she left off.

The production of GMA 7’s new drama fantasy series started in 2021 but because Jennylyn got pregnant with her second child amid taping, the network had to put off the show until the actress was ready to go back to acting in mid-2023. It wasn’t easy, she admitted. Since a number of scenes were already finished prior to her pregnancy, she had to make sure that she looked similar to how she did two years ago for the sake of continuity. This meant having to wear the exact same outfits.

“I’m older now, so getting back in shape was harder. Things are different from when I had Jazz (her first child, in 2008). After only a month, I was already slim. This time around, I still had on extra weight a year after giving birth. There was pressure to get my body back to how it was when we first started taping. Kailangan kong habulin ‘yung hitsura ko doon,” she said at a press conference.

The acting part proved to be just as difficult. How does one get back in character after a lengthy break?

“Two years had passed. I was busy being a mommy. I had to rest. So, when I came back, I was like, ‘Paano ko gagawin na pareho pa rin ang acting ko?’ Parang ‘di na ako marunong … Para akong natatanga,’” related Jennylyn, who gave birth to her and husband Dennis Trillo’s baby girl, Dylan, in April 2022.

“I told the team, ‘Kayo na ang bahala sa ‘kin.’ I was really so nervous upon my return. That’s why I’m grateful for everyone’s support,” she added. “They really guided me throughout the process.”

‘Excitement still there’

Thankfully, Jennlyn’s supportive leading man, Xian Lim, helped her get her groove back. “There were some instances that had us wondering, ‘Tama pa ba ‘tong ginagawa natin?’ But we believed in the project. I feel like it’s what kept the two of us grounded. And the excitement was still there two years after we started,” he said.

The challenge for Xian, meanwhile, was acting alongside someone he used to watch on-screen. There was awkwardness at first. But with the help of their directors, Irene Villamor and Jerry Lopez Sineneng, Xian and Jennylyn eventually broke the ice. “When I saw her, I was like, ‘I used to just watch you. Paano ako aarte? Nakakahiya’… We didn’t know each other prior to taping. How would we be able to act like we’re a loving couple from the get-go? But the support of the cast and directors helped us,” Xian said. “Later on, we started to enjoy each other’s company as well as the laughter and the little things that happen on the set.”

“Love. Die. Repeat.,” which starts airing on GMA 7’s primetime block today, follows Angela (Jennylyn) who loses her husband Bernard (Xian) in a car accident. But one morning, she wakes up in a state of confusion. She looks at the bedside clock and realizes that it’s the same date Bernard died.

As it turns out, Angela is stuck in a time loop and is forced to relive her life’s most harrowing moment every single day. Will she be able to save her husband? Or will she be doomed to a life of unceasing grief and pain?

As such, Jennylyn and Xian were required to shoot the car accident scene—and its dramatic aftermath—multiple times.

“It’s tough, but we had no choice but pull off the scenes,” Jennlyn said, laughing. “The characters are in a time loop, so we have to repeat that accident scene, but with a different approach and level of intensity each time. ‘Di siya basta-basta. We had to really talk things over before our takes.”

Emotionally draining

“I had to be covered in blood again and again because I was the one who figured in the accident. But that’s nothing compared to what Jen had to do—screaming and crying for several takes. I just had to lie face down on the car (hood)!” Xian said. The material was emotionally draining, needless to say. “Wala akong eksenang masaya. In almost all of them, I was crying,” Jennylyn joked. “So I don’t really know how I managed to do them.”

Occasional moments of levity, however, provided some much-needed breathers for the actors. Case in point: the morgue scene where Jennylyn accidentally discovered Xian’s ticklish spot.

“In the scene, Xian was supposed to be dead. He didn’t have a top on and just had a blanket over his body. I had to hug him while I was crying. I had no idea that his chest gets ticklish. So, I was giving it my all, wailing in the scene. But I kept getting distracted because Xian kept on nudging me away with his elbow,” related Jennylyn, who described Xian as “easy to work with” and “easy to be friends with.”

“I was just lying down and wasn’t allowed to breathe. Direk Jerry told me, ‘Hold your breath for a while because it’s noticeable on-screen. So it was a tough scene. Jen was holding onto my chest. And I couldn’t do anything but try to push her with my elbow!” Xian said. “But moments and bloopers like those made taping more fun.”

Asked what message they hope to convey through “Love. Die. Repeat.,” the two actors agreed that the story underscores the power of love and the lengths some people would go to save the people they cherish.

“It shows some of the problems married couples face. Bernard’s wife is willing to die for him and do everything she can to save him. But at what cost? Is love enough?” Xian said.

“It’s also about love for your family and parents. It’s about loving your partner, so much so that you end up doing everything, even if your own life is at stake,” Jennylyn added. INQ