Ejay follows the lead of his action idols

Five years after he emerged top PBB (Pinoy Big Brother) housemate, Ejay Falcon finally realized his dream of being an action star.

In Saka-Saka, Cine Bro’s entry in the New Wave section of the 39th Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), showing Dec. 18 to 24 (MMFF opens on Dec. 25), Ejay plays an assassin, a role quite contrary to his PBB image as an uncorrupted promdi (a native of Mindoro province where he helped his adoptive father load sacks of rice at the pier).

“I studied the character of a saka-saka, a farmer by day and a hired killer on the side,” said Ejay. “Direk Toto (Natividad) helped me a lot. I trained in several forms of martial arts, like Aikido, studied the cinematic way of doing action scenes. I also watched as many action films as I could.”

Natividad was also Ejay’s director in the just-concluded Kapamilya action-series Dugong Buhay which came after they wrapped Saka-Saka.

“I hadn’t met Ejay at that time but I knew that he would make an ideal action star,” Natividad was quoted as saying in a recent interview with The STAR. “He has the height, the build na matipuno. I was thinking then that I would cast him in a project that would showcase his action-star qualities.”

It turned out that Ejay is a Toto Natividad fan whose admiration for action stars was nurtured by Natividad films starring Cesar Montano, Rudy Fernandez, Phillip Salvador and Victor Neri.

“So direk Toto and I clicked right away when we first worked on Saka-Saka,” said Ejay. “By the time we started working on Dugong Buhay (which was such a hit that its airing was extended to six months) we were comfortable with each other already. ‘Yung training ko sa Saka-Saka nagamit ko sa Dugong Buhay.”

Back in Mindoro, Ejay’s fantasy was nourished by the films of (aside from those mentioned earlier) Fernando Poe Jr., Rudy Fernandez, Ace Vergel and Robin Padilla. He was just a fan then, never imagining that he would end up in showbiz. Some of his idols’ memorable movies that left an indelible mark in Ejay’s memory are Kalibre .45 and Ising ng Tundo (FPJ’s); Markang Bungo and Baby Ama (Rudy’s); Pieta and Anak ng Cabron (Ace’s); and Mistah (Robin’s).

Aside from Natividad, Robin also saw Ejay’s potential as an action star. He appeared with Robin in My Pledge of Love (shot in India, with Robin’s wife Mariel Rodriguez) and Robin’s ABS-CBN action series Guns & Roses.

“It was Kuya Robin who pushed me to be an action star. When we were doing Guns & Roses, where I played his brother, he told direk Trina (Dayrit), ‘Yan ang pinupustahan ko na magiging action star.’ I kept that in mind. That was what gave me confidence, kaya masyadong lumakas ang loob ko. Kuya Robin is my inspiration. Sinusundan ko ang mga bakas niya.”

For Saka-Saka (which also stars Joseph Marco, Baron Geisler, Kathleen Hermosa, Perla Bautista, Mon Confiado and Toby Alejar), Ejay refused to have a “double” even if Natividad wouldn’t have minded, concerned as he was for Ejay’s safety.

“That was for a scene where I had to run on the roofs of the houses in a squatter area,” Ejay recalled. “Medyo delikado kasi bulok na ‘yung mga yerong bubong ng mga bahay. One wrong move and I could have fallen.”

Asked if he was insured, Ejay smiled, “No, I wasn’t.” 

His dream role is like the one played by Kevin Costner in The Bodyguard (with the late Whitney Houston as the superstar he was guarding), with Sarah Geronimo as his dream leading lady. Never mind if Rudy had done a similar story with Sharon Cuneta and Robin with Regine Velasquez.

“I won’t exactly play a bodyguard,” clarified Ejay. “Medyo kahawig lang ang story.”

2013 has been a good year for Ejay who got good reviews for his breakout role in Dugong Buhay.

“I am spending Christmas in Manila,” said Ejay, “but on Dec. 29, I am going to Mindoro to sponsor a basketball league. I have already prepared the uniforms of the players.”

Hardly blinded by the harsh city lights, Ejay has remained a probinsyano at heart, unchanged by the dizzying klieg lights.

As they say, you can take a boy out of the country but you can’t take the country out of a boy.

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