From portraying young angsty kontrabidas and forlorn protagonists in the previous teleseryes and movies that she starred in, Andrea Brillantes went on to astound everyone when she took the bold leap of taking on the relatively more mature role of Fatima Benito in “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo.” And after seven months of impressing us with her acting chops, the time has come for her to sign off, as her character got killed in the October 7 episode.
As her stint comes to an end, Andrea fondly talks about her experiences and takeaways from being part of the show in this exit interview with CCM Film Productions.
She may be one of the most popular and celebrated stars of her generation, yet the young actress revealed that she actually grew in a simple life, which made her able to somehow identify with Fatima.
“Hindi rin naman kasi ako laking yaman, so medyo naka-relate din talaga ako sa kanya, na mahirap din talaga ang buhay. May mga bagay ka na magagawa mo para sa pamilya mo, para makakain, para mabuhay, para maging maayos, mas maging komportable ang buhay ninyo,” she stated, and went on to add how Fatima had reminded her not to do anything bad because the universe has its way of returning that to you.
At the same time, Fatima also made her realize the significance of speaking up and standing for the truth, most especially if what you’re standing for can affect not just you and your loved ones, but other people. She recounted the courage that her character displayed when she exposed the wrongdoings and crimes of the Guerreros, which for her was really commendable.
Even though fighting for the truth came at the expense of Fatima’s life, she’s still proud that she died with dignity, that she didn’t allow herself and her family to be easily oppressed by the most powerful clan in Manila, and that she tried her best to protect the people from the lies of the personalities they were about to vote for.
When it comes to her favorite scenes, Andrea didn’t only mention one or two, but four! The first one was when Fatima delivered her speech against the Guerreros during Team Tanggol’s miting de avance; the second was her intimate scene with Jake Cuenca, since it was her first time to wear lingerie in a teleserye and to do that kind of kiss on-cam; the third was when she pointed a gun at Coco Martin during Fatima’s attempt to abduct Tanggol; and the last was the long running and crying scene of her character when Miguelito took her with him and killed David (McCoy de Leon) in front of her.
With regard to her favorite “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo” character, Andrea said that it would be none other than Mokang, the original love interest of Tanggol portrayed by actress Lovi Poe. She also talked about David, who may not be her favorite, but she liked how the character was written and depicted by McCoy.
“Nagustuhan ko kasi nakakairita. Ang galing. Ang galing galing ng [pang-iirita] niya sa ating lahat. Pero noong nawala siya, nami-miss natin siya, ‘di ba? So, ang galing ng ganoong contrast,” she remarked.
Andrea went on to express her gratitude to her co-star-slash-director Coco Martin, whom she described as “sobrang hardworking” and inspiring because of how he’s able to manage everything without snubbing or abandoning anyone.
“Thank you sa kanya, and sana makatrabaho ko pa siya ulit. It was an honor at madami akong natutunan sa kanya, ang dami kong na-observe. It was definitely an experience, itong stay ko here,” she said.
Don’t miss an episode of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo,” weeknights at 8 PM on Kapamilya Channel, A2Z, TV5, iWant, and Kapamilya Online Live (KOL). Viewers outside of the Philippines can watch on The Filipino Channel (TFC) on cable and IPTV.