Gerald no longer just a pretty boy

MANILA, Philippines - When Gerald Anderson first joined showbiz in 2006, a lot of people saw him as just another pretty boy, someone who would get by on his looks and be forgotten after a few months or years, especially since he wasn’t that fluent in Tagalog and had a very obvious American accent.

But Gerald has outlived his critics’ worst predictions. Through the years, by taking on progressively more challenging roles, he has become one of the top actors of his generation and a prime leading man of the Kapamilya network. Gerald’s transformation began with shows like Maalaala Mo Kaya (MMK, where he won a Best Actor award for the Lubid episode), Tayong Dalawa and Budoy (where he played a young man afflicted with autism), although traces of it could be seen as early as 2009 when he was nominated for his role in My Only Hope.

He has come so far since he started in the biz — and even Gerald knows that. But he got to where he is now by working hard, practicing constantly and pushing himself to top each performance. He admits that he entered acting knowing that he had so much to learn. He was not born into a family of actors, and whatever Gerald learned, he learned as he went along. “Since I got out (of Pinoy Big Brother house), I siyempre nararamdaman ko na malayo talaga ako sa gusto kong mangyari,” says the actor. “But it’s (acting) just like basketball or when you’re just starting to learn how to ride a bike. Of course, when you’re starting, hindi ka naman magaling agad. To some, acting comes naturally for them but in my case, I initially underwent acting workshop and everything. I had to work on it kasi alam ko naman na di ako gano’n ka-talented.”

Slowly, Gerald has been improving as an actor. His recent projects, particularly the gritty crime thriller On the Job, showcased a different side of him. He has tried taking on roles that required physical strength — running, jumping, doing martial arts — and these also presented a different kind of challenge. It seems that these days, Gerald’s goal is to try something new each time so that a different facet of him as an actor will be put to a test.

He looks forward to both the so-called “physical” roles as well as the emotionally-demanding ones. “I prefer both because you have a connection with your audience. The moviegoers always see themselves in the actors. So as an actor, I want to give them something real but, of course, I also want to do stunts and it would be better if I’ll be given a project that requires both. Hopefully, in the future.”

The themes of his projects have also become more serious. His latest big screen project, the movie Halik sa Hangin, (still showing at SM Cinemas), is a romantic story that’s a bit on the dark side. “Romance talaga, grabe!’ exclaims Gerald. “But not just romance but also passion. May konting pagka-dark. It’s a love story with a twist. It’s not a rom-com movie but at its core, it’s a serious drama about love.”

And because his career is moving along at a good pace now, Gerald wants to train his focus on it before getting into other things, like marriage. He and girlfriend Maja Salvador are doing okay but they’re not yet ready to settle down since both of them are still busy doing so many things.

With so many of his friends and showbiz colleagues in relationships and at that interesting stage of settling down, Gerald admits that, yes, he has thought about it, but whether he will actually enter into matrimony is another question altogether. “Oo nga eh, parang laging may nababalita sa TV na ganyan pero usapang pang-matanda na ‘yan,” jokes the 25-year-old actor. “I don’t think it would be possible now but, of course, dumaan na sa isip ko na ang bilis ng panahon, that I’m not getting any younger. At this age, you’re hoping for the best, but right now, hindi talaga eh. It would be really unfair for my special someone if there are still more things I want to do. I have so many personal and career goals, and right now, I’m just trying to take it day by day. Eventually, we’ll get there.”