MANILA, Philippines - Eugene Domingo is singing a different tune these days. If a couple of years ago the comedienne was vocal about having shut the door on marriage, her attitude now is: Bring it on.
What could have possibly prompted the surprising change of heart?
“Well, I’m surprised myself. Dati parang okay lang sa akin na mag-isa, na diretso na ako sa kumbento. Oo, naisip ko ‘yon,” she told the media in a presscon for her latest film Wedding Tayo, Wedding Hindi, under Star Cinema and OctoArts Films.
“(But now) wedding na wedding na tayo,” she said. “Kung mayroon mang lalaki talaga na iibig sa akin, I’m ready. At saka ikatutuwa yan ng mga magulang ko at mga kaibigan ko, ha, ha, ha!”
As in her past presscons, Eugene addressed questions in her signature tongue-in-cheek manner, but the serious and meaningful undertones in her take on marriage and family life were hard to miss.
She explained her newfound openness: “Dumarating pala ang panahon na matatanggal yung pride mo na kaya mo mag-isa ka lang. Time will come when you’re ready to be selfless… when you’re ready to be a supporting actress to your husband.”
She added, “I also think it comes with age, because at the end of the day, after the glitz and glamour, you still want that one person in your life.”
Eugene plays one half of a married couple (Wendell Ramos is her love interest) on the verge of separation in Wedding Tayo, Wedding Hindi. She laughingly admitted that the role is new to her as she often, if not always, gets to portray a woman desperate to get married.
She also shared weddings make her teary-eyed. “Naluluha ako sa tuwa because it means giving yourself. Being married is a career.”
That’s why, should she face the same situation her character goes through in the film, she’d do everything to keep the marriage from falling apart, in the same way she would be willing to sacrifice her career if it meant focusing on the family. “You have to be selfless, you have to think of the children, and the promise you made to God,” she said.
Interestingly, Eugene also shared that she has already been tapped to become a wedding sponsor. “Tumanggi muna ako kasi unang-una mag-kaedad kami. Awa ng Diyos, di ako naka-attend,” she quipped.
How many romantic relationships have she had? “Wala talagang mga seryoso. Nabaling sa (acting) passion ko. Nauna akong ikinasal sa aking career,” she admitted.
Her Wedding Tayo, Wedding Hindi co-star Toni Gonzaga says that an ideal husband for Eugene will be a foreigner. Is she open to finding The One online? “I’ve not tried it, but I’m not closing my doors on it, as well as on matchmaking, blind dates… But it’s not how I visualize it. I’d rather that I meet him personally.”
She said being single, nevertheless, has its perks like choosing to take care of oneself with the right reasons and motivations — and not because you’d do it to please someone else.
Eugene, whose slimmer and blooming self didn’t go unnoticed among the media, said, “As they’ve said, learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all. But then no man is an island as well, so I’m praying for him.”
Meanwhile, Wedding Tayo, Wedding Hindi is her fourth film this year alone, making her one of the most in-demand actresses to date. Her goal nowadays is to do more films than TV projects. And when it comes to her choices, she aims for a balance between indie and mainstream projects. “Di naman pwede na gawa ng gawa ka ng pelikula, pero di nakaka-reach out sa nakakarami. Di naman pwede yung puro formulaic. And I always go for balance.”
Just recently, she won the Best Actress award for Ang Babae sa Septic Tank in this year’s Cinemalaya. Septic Tank, which will compete at the Vancouver International Film Festival and will screen at the Busan Film Festival in South Korea and the Hawaii International Film Fest, also found a mainstream distributor in Star Cinema — a development that Eugene is happy about.
“Yes, gusto ko sanang mangyari na mag-merge ang indie at mainstream, or ‘wag masyadong bigyan ng gap. Sana magkaisa nalang tayo in presenting new stories to tell and to trust our audience to enter our cinemas if we serve them something new. Tayo (in the industry) kasi ang nagbibigay ng division.”
She is also all praises for her younger co-stars in Wedding Tayo, Wedding Hindi. Of Zanjoe Marudo, she said, “I always tell him that I look forward to seeing him launched (as a lead star). I remember before feeling contented with supporting roles but when I was given the chance to be launched through Kimmy Dora, I realized every actor deserves to be launched.”
Of Toni, she said that she is a class of her own among her generation with her great timing in comedy and her willingness to undertake a role diverse from the image that viewers have been used to. “Toni reminds me of my younger self. Ageless dapat ang acting passion.”
Wedding Tayo, Wedding Hindi, directed by Jose Javier Reyes, will hit theaters nationwide on Aug. 31.