"I’d be lying if I’d say no," he says. "But I also know suwertihan din lang ‘yan, so if I wouldn’t be that fortunate, okay na rin. But I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I will also bag the trophy at the Urian, para kumpleto. It’s an added blessing that in the Guillermo Mendoza Foundation Awards, I was also named as Mr. RP Movies."
He’s definitely one of the brightest stars at the ABS-CBN camp today. But stardom was certainly not given to Piolo on a silver platter. The youngest in a brood of six, most of whom have moved to the US, Piolo joined That’s Entertainment at 15. He later took up physical therapy at UST when the show ended and joined a theatre guild where he met Director Wenn Deramas and John Lapuz.
"They asked me to take an audition at ABS. I passed it and was included in ABS Star Circle Batch 3. I was introduced in Batang PX of Patrick Garcia in l997, but I had to go to the US to get my green card so I lived with my mom at Pasadena, California for almost two years. My mom wanted me to just stay with her in the States. But I really wanted to pursue an acting career here, so after taking up some courses at Pasadena City College and joining an acting workshop,
I told her I wanted to go home."
His return was timely. ABS was casting the l3-part mini-series, Sa Sandaling Kailangan Mo Ako. "I took the audition and got the role of Marvin Agustin’s villainous best friend. My performance got favorable notice so I was also included in the show’s Book Two.
They then made me join the cast of Judy Ann Santos’ soap opera, Esperanza, which was later turned into a movie."
He was loaned to Crown Seven for his first solo film and played the title role in Lagarista, directed by Mel Chionglo, for which he got his first acting nomination. This was followed by the romantic drama with Judy Ann, Kahit Isang Saglit.
It was a blockbuster. When he was paired with Maricel Soriano in Mila as her junkie boyfriend, audience reception was lukewarm. But when he was reunited with Judy Ann in Bakit Di Totohanin, the result was another big hit.
Even the movie he did with Joyce Jimenez, I Think I’m In Love and with Donita Rose, Nine Mornings, were not as big a hit as his films with Juday.
"The fans really support and adore our love team," he acknowledges.
After doing a heavy drama like Dekada ’70 where he was shown marrying an NPA amazon (Ana Capri) while fighting with the underground rebel movement, Piolo welcomes being reunited with Judy Ann in a light romance, Till There Was You. Kahit Isang Saglit was directed by Gilbert Perez and Bakit Di Totohanin was directed by Boots Plata.
"This time, we have a new director, Joyce Bernal," he says. "First time ko to work with her and I quickly became comfortable with her because she’s so relaxed with her style as a director. No pressures. She and Judy Ann had worked together several times before and I could see they have a great bonding on the set. I play Albert, a bar topnotcher who is an unwed father. I introduce Juday to my daughter, Pippa, played by child actress Eliza Pineda, as her mother and as my wife.
It’s all just make believe at the start, but eventually, we do fall in love ni Juday. We have our most passionate and longest love scene in this movie which took two rolls of film and two cameras to shoot."
He says he can very well relate to his role as a young father. "Everyone knows I have a son, Iñigo. I really wish we could always be together but I can only see him him on weekends. We hear Mass together then I take him to the mall, usually at Rockwell where the house of his mom is quite near."
The film’s title song, Till There Was You, is the carrier single of Piolo’s debut album which has turned gold. It was originally sang in the Broadway musical The Music Man and popularized by the Beatles.
Both he and Judy Ann claim to be loveless at the moment.
If ever he’d get a girlfriend, does he see Judy Ann as a possible one? "Of course. Okay kami because we’re really comfortable with each other since we worked almost everyday even in our recently-concluded soap, Sa Puso Ko Iingatan Ka. Kung minsan, naiisip ko, parang kami na nga and when I get married, naiisip ko rin, why not her? But at this point, a lot of people, especially the fans, are pushing us to be together, and we both feel that we should not commit ourselves to each other dahil lang sa gusto ng fans. We want it to come naturally."
He is mobbed when people see him in public, but says he is the same old Piolo. "My friends chide me because when I go out with them, people recognize me all the time. Pero siempre, I still value my privacy. At home, I just do what I want to do in my own room, which is my sanctuary. I try to catch sleep, especially when I come from all-night shooting or taping. To relax, I listen to my favorite music on CD while lighting a candle. I just love the smell of scented candles. I also watch videos on TV. I read my favorite books like Seven Spirtual Laws of Success by Deepak Chopra and Choose Your Own Adventure. Or I entertain my friends. Kung tutuusin, boring nga ang buhay ko, e. I’m not fond of going out. I don’t even smoke kasi it’s not healthy. I drink but only occasionally. I prefer to hike in the woods in Batangas or go to the beach since I find being with nature very relaxing." After the movie, Piolo will be busy doing mall shows to further promote his album and to do shows abroad with the Hunks. If he’d be given the chance, he would like to work with Regine Velasquez for his next film.
"We’ve been paired together in an episode of Maalaala Mo Kaya‚ and the result was very positive. She even won a Best Actress award in a Single Performance in the Star Awards. I hope we get to be paired in a movie next time."