Iñigo not just Piolo’s son

Iñigo, the teenage son of heartthrob Piolo Pascual, was recently in the country to help promote his first-ever movie Relaks, It’s Just Pag-Ibig. He will be back soon to promote another project, which had many people asking, “Is he in this for the long haul? Is he really this serious about building his own career in showbiz?”

People will always have something to say about that — some might not even believe him — but even in the face of doubters who believe he will have a hard time proving himself and living up to his father’s achievements, Iñigo is determined to make showbiz a career. The fact that his dad finally allowed him to try it once just made him crave it even more. With his eye on the future, Iñigo, in the two months that he was here, signed up with a manager, said “yes” to another project, performed in the ABS-CBN Christmas special, did a radio tour, guested in several programs (including The Buzz) and plans to come back to the Philippines soon to continue what he started. Meanwhile, his handlers at Cornerstone Talent Management (which also manages the careers of Sam Milby, Jericho Rosales, Erik Santos, Angeline Quinto and Richard Poon, among others) and which co-owns Spring Films, producers of Relaks, It’s Just Pag-Ibig, are lining up other projects and opportunities for him.

Iñigo thanks his dad for inspiring him in pursuing a showbiz career. “Since I saw my dad doing this kind of stuff, I thought, ‘Maybe, this is what I want to do, too’ because he inspires me so much. Then, I thought of other things that I can do, but this (acting) is my No. 1 thing that I always go back to.”

His dad is a big motivator. Piolo has worked really hard for what he has, and Iñigo gets a lot of ideas just from watching him.

“He’s like his own kind. He’s crazy, to be honest. I don’t know how he does his job and stays amazing and still looks good,” laughs Iñigo. “Like one time, he flew out to the US from the Philippines, and then after two days, he flew out to Hawaii and then flew back to Los Angeles. It was like five or six days only. I was like, ‘How do you do this? How do you stay alive and good-looking and still have a voice? How do you do this?’ He said he enjoys it, that you really have to enjoy it, because if you don’t, you won’t be able to do it. You’re gonna be stressed, you’ll have a hard time and you’re not going to like it. So I try to enjoy it lang. Right now, I’m just enjoying the moment.”

Aside from looking to his dad for motivation, the other thing he has learned to use to make him a better actor is having critics and bashers. “I learned to use (what they say) as motivation to help me want it more and be better and show who I am instead of just being his (Piolo’s) son,” says Iñigo. “I mean, I’m proud being his son but I also want to show who I am as well.”

He’s been ready for bad publicity, critics and bashers since Day One. Piolo — while he maintains a generally hands-off approach to his son’s career — has told Iñigo to just “be careful and always be patient and to always remember that not everyone’s going to like you. Just enjoy everything and I’ll just always be there.”

It’s not an easy lifestyle that the 17-year-old has chosen, to have a career that requires him to fly back and forth between two countries. Although he’s eyeing some opportunities in the US (where he auditioned for a boyband), the Philippines will always be a home base, says Iñigo.

“I am, for sure, gonna come back here no matter what. It’s my country and I’m trying to make it in the States. It’s a bigger field, a bigger place to be in but I’m always gonna come back here no matter what. If that thing in the States doesn’t work out, I’m always gonna come back here and always be proud of my country.”