How Barbie Forteza is able to resist David Licauco’s charms

Barbie Forteza in “That Kind of Love” —PHOTOS COURTESY OF POCKET MEDIA PRODUCTIONS

I consider being with him my safe space,” said Barbie Forteza of on-screen partner David Licauco, as a way to explain how they’ve managed to remain good friends even though their supporters continue to “ship” them romantically.

Barbie has been dating fellow GMA 7 artist Jak Roberto since 2017. Her love team with David was formed after they received rave reviews for their portrayals in the 2022 period drama series “Maria Clara at Ibarra.”

“It’s a big factor that David and I are really good friends. I’m the type of girl who, once I already consider a guy as part of the gang, it’s already hard for me to see him as someone more than that. I’m glad that I’ve met a person in David that I now consider my safe space. I don’t want to risk losing that by deciding to take the relationship to the next level,” Barbie told Inquirer Entertainment.

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Barbie said another factor is that she already feels “very secured” in her relationship with Jak. “This isn’t the first love team that I’ve become a part of. I feel like, over the years, I’ve gotten used to working with a partner. To me, it’s just work, and as a professional, I know that the romantic feeling doesn’t have to be real all the time,” she pointed out.

Reel-life romance

As advice to younger actors who are also trying to manage their reel-life romance, Barbie said: “I have nothing against love-team partners who eventually end up dating each other in real life. My advice is to not give in to the pressure. If you fall in love, it should happen naturally, and not because you’re both pressured to get into a relationship as a consequence of being in a love team.”

She continued: “It’s better if you separate your romantic relationship from your professional life. It’s hard when two partners become a romantic couple and then experience lovers’ quarrel on the set.”

Forteza (left) with David Licauco, collectively known as BarDa–POCKET MEDIA PRODUCTIONS

Between her and David, Barbie is more experienced when it comes to managing the demands of show biz. She has been working as an actress for over 15 years, and claims to already know “when to be sociable and when to demand for my personal space.”

She added that David would personally seek her advice on this, “because he is very much willing to adjust [in order] to stay long in this industry. I always remind him that his other businesses will benefit if he does well in show business. His [restaurant] business is the one thing that he is really passionate about. I guess he understood what I was telling him, so he adjusted accordingly.”

Barbie continued: “I help him by always trying to make him feel comfortable around me. I’m never demanding, but I encourage him to share more of what’s on his mind to people. I understand him because his popularity happened so suddenly for him, and telling people that he wasn’t prepared for it is not a valid excuse.”

‘Our comfort zone’

David, on the other hand, would often encourage Barbie to put up a business of her own, the actress said. “Surprisingly, the advice he gave me was something that I’m already practicing whenever I create characters for the projects I’m involved in. He told me, ‘Always know your whats and whys. Why do you want to put up this particular business? What made you decide to invest here?’ I do the same thing with the characters I create. I would ask, ‘What is your character’s personality and her family background? Why does she behave this way?’ It’s good to know that business and acting are quite similar. That felt kind of reassuring,” the actress said.

Meanwhile, Barbie said she was pleased that her first big-screen project with David, titled “That Kind of Love,” is a romantic comedy “that is right within our comfort zone.”

Forteza as Mila

She added: “We are both fans of rom-coms. I was also surprised to learn about this from David. This was why work had been easy and enjoyable for us. Also, it’s our first time working with Direk Catherine Camarillo and Pocket Media Productions. It was a happy and memorable experience for us. They were all very professional and hardworking. It was obvious that they all love what they’re doing. Everyone was very passionate.”

In “That Kind of Love,” Barbie plays Mila, a love coach who takes it upon herself to find a romantic partner for David’s character, Adam, who is self-absorbed and distant. “This is my most sophisticated role so far. I usually play characters who are young and bubbly and sweet. Mila is career-oriented. She helps people find their match or arrange for them to get the guy or girl they are pining for. She considers herself good at her job until she meets Adam, who thinks he is Mr. Perfect. She vows to find Adam a match without realizing that she is slowly falling in love with him,” Barbie explained.

“That Kind of Love,” written by Ellis Camarillo and distributed by Regal Entertainment, opens in cinemas nationwide on July 10. INQ