A Beauty-ful year

2014 has been so good to Beauty Gonzales. After placing fourth in Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition Plus in 2008, Beauty embarked on a showbiz career. She was actually the first former housemate from that batch to appear in a teleserye. In that same year, Beauty played Genna in Iisa Pa Lamang, which was bannered by Claudine Barretto, Diether Ocampo, and Gabby Concepcion.

But after that first feather in her cap, Beauty’s career kind of took a nosedive. While she found enough work over the years to keep her occupied and out of debt, what eluded her was the kind of project that would bring her both critical and commercial success. She was relegated to minor roles that sometimes she wouldn’t even have to do anything in a scene except to stand beside the bida looking happy, sad, or whatever emotion the script called for. It wasn’t until 2014 that people actually started to take notice of her.

It all started when Beauty was cast in Star Cinema’s Starting Over Again which starred Piolo Pascual and Toni Gonzaga. Beauty was tapped to play the witty bestfriend of Toni’s character Ginny, and it proved to be a role that showed off Beauty’s impeccable comedic timing. Netizens — composed of critics and fans alike — commended Beauty on her portrayal of Wella. Some even went so far to say that her performance in the Olivia Lamasan-directed blockbuster contributed significantly to the movie’s success.

Aside from movies, Beauty also bagged a plum role in the teleserye Moon of Desire which was topbilled by Ellen Adarna, JC de Vera, and Meg Imperial. Now, Beauty is part of Dream Dad, starring Zanjoe Marudo as the lead character and child actress Jana Agoncillo as his daughter. However, Beauty denies that her character Alexandra “Alex” Sta. Maria is being set up to be the leading lady of Zanjoe’s. At this point, she’s just happy to be in the cast.

“Hindi, marami pa pong iba. Maraming ibang choices yung character niya dito,” Beauty laughs when asked if Alex Sta. Maria would end up romantically involved with Zanjoe’s character, named Sebastian “Baste” Viray Javier. “Pero gusto ko pong magpasalamat kasi finally nangyari na po yung wi-ni-wish ko. When they announced this to me, hindi ako makapaniwala. It took me days to accept na ito na talaga. I was super excited, masayang-masaya at kabado.”

Whether their characters will end up together or not, Beauty is just grateful for the chance to work with someone she’s admired from afar for a while. “Siyempre, sobrang saya ko. Napakaswerte ko kasi ang gwapo ni Zanjoe eh,” she jokes. “Pero seryoso, masayang-masaya lang ako ngayon.”

Beauty describes her character as being somewhat boy-crazy, but only as far as Zanjoe’s character is concerned. She adds that it’s a step up from everything she’s done before. Not only will Beauty’s exposure be greater and longer in  Dream Dad but Alex Sta. Maria will be more ladylike and shyer than any of her previous characters. “Itong role na ito is very opposite from all the roles I played in the movies and on TV. Ako dito yung secretary ni Zanjoe na palihim na may crush sa kanya. Pero pag tumingin na siya sa kin, biglang nawawala lahat.”

Another sign that 2014 was a good year for Beauty is her much-talked about physique. When Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition Plus ended and Beauty returned to the outside world, showbiz-watchers picked on her for being what they believed to be overweight. But now, she’s noticeably slimmer and even parlayed her hot new figure at a sexy fashion show. “I did crossfit, running, and swimming,” Beauty shares when asked about her weight-loss secrets. “I worked hard. Long process din siya kasi tamad talaga ako, eh.”

To top it all off, Beauty also found love once again in the arms of art curator Norman Crisologo who fully supports her career. “Yeah, masaya ako ngayon. I’m very much in love — I’m in love with my boyfriend and my work. Happy ako dahil binigyan ako ng chance. My heart is happy.”