Aljur: No regrets revealing loss of 'innocence' at 17
Aljur Abrenica shocked not a few people with his Ricky Lo interview published last January 9 in The Philippine Star.
In the interview, the star of GMA 7's new soap "Machete" revealed that he lost his "innocence" when he was 17 to an older woman. Although some thought the revelation was ungentlemanly of him, Aljur said that he merely shared a bit of himself through the interview.
"Kung ano yung tinanong, natural lang naman po sa mga tao yun. Nasabi ko lang yung bahagi ng aking pagkatao pero hanggang dun lang ang masasabi ko," the 20-year-old actor told members of the press during the "Machete" press conference on Tuesday, January 18.
He added, "Hindi na po siguro magiging kiss and tell (yung interview) dahil wala naman akong binanggit na pangalan saka shinare ko lang po ang bahagi ng aking buhay."
In fact, Aljur refused to divulge any other information on his revelations. When asked if the girl he pertained to in his interview got offended with his admission, he merely said, "Sa akin na lang po yun." As for those who claim they identified the girl based on his answers, Aljur said: "Hindi po kayo nakakasiguro kung sino yun."
Dream come true
All the talk about his loss of innocence is somewhat expected, considering the nature of Aljur's latest primetime work. Aljur describes Machete as "Pinoy na Pinoy, moreno, macho." And surprisingly, the young actor said he'd always dreamed of playing the iconic character.
"Ang una pong nagsabi sa akin na magma-Machete po ako ay si mister Ricky Reyes. Pabiro nya pong sinabi sa akin sa resort nya nung SOP (GMA's Sunday variety show) pa nun. Sabi nya, 'Ikaw si Machete.' Ang sabi ko naman, 'Sno yun?' Alam ko si Machete, pero anong ibig mong sabihin. Since then, nag research na ako," Aljur said.
And when Aljur learned more about the character that inspired two movies starring Cesar Montano and Gardo Versoza, "Sinabi ko sa sarili ko na bagay sa akin. Kaya ko. At simula nun, parang inasam-asam ko na na magampanan si Machete."
Constant pressure
Now that Aljur is starring in yet another primetime soap just months after "Ilumina" ended, is he pressured to succeed in the ratings, especially since his former onscreen partner Kris Bernal's afternoon show "Koreana" is a success?
"Syempre naman po. Lahat naman po ng proyektong binibigay sa akin, may pressure. Even before magkasama kami ni Kris. Dahil malaki po talagang binibigay sa amin and yung tiwala po talaga, iba. So on our part, ginagawa po namin lahat ng aming makakaya," he said
"Machete," which also stars Ryza Cenon and Bela Padilla, will premiere January 24 on GMA-7's Telebabad primetime block.
Photo by Jerome Ascano, NPPA Images
