Karen Reyes not after bida roles

When Karen Reyes landed a slot in Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition 4 in the summer of 2012, she entered the most famous house on TV with one goal in mind. No matter how long or short her stint as a housemate would be, Karen was determined to parlay it into a full-time showbiz career.

?Part of her expected to be among her season’s first few evictees. But as fate would have it, she remained in the house for 90 days. She did find herself on the chopping block four times, but luckily the public saved her each time. Karen was eventually named the first runner-up or Second Big Placer of Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition 4 with 11.91 percent of the total number of votes cast.

?When the show ended, Karen and her fellow ex-housemates were signed to Star Magic, ABS-CBN’s talent development and management arm. They were all given opportunities to make their dreams come true at last. At the time, it seemed to be a foregone conclusion that cosplayer Myrtle Sarrosa, the girl who beat Karen out for the Teen Big Winner title that year, would become a fixture on TV. Hardly anyone thought Karen would be able to transition from being a housemate into a working actress. But again, fate — and Karen herself — had other ideas.

Myrtle ended up pursuing a career in music, while Karen was the one who ended up appearing on TV frequently. Shortly after exiting the Pinoy Big Brother house, Karen appeared on the sitcom Toda Max and won a recurring role on the afternoon soap Angelito: Ang Bagong Yugto.

Although Karen proved herself equally adept in comedy and drama via roles in soaps like Forevermore, Moon of Desire and Walang Iwanan — in addition to her occasional appearance in anthologies Ipaglaban Mo and Maalaala Mo Kaya — she is perhaps best known for her work on the youth-oriented sitcom Luv U as student Ayen Timbol.

?The show ran for four years, from February 2012 to January this year, and although Karen joined the cast of Luv U midway through the first season, she remained on the show until it ended. Luv U was a big hit with critics and fans alike — it won Best Youth-Oriented Program at the PMPC Star Awards for Television for three straight years.

Thanks to all the work she got as an actress following her stint as a housemate, Karen was able to expand her fanbase beyond the people who supported her in Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition 4. She was also able to build a reputation as someone who isn’t just good in acting, but is easy to work with as well.

?That reputation is probably what led to her latest achievement. She has been cast in the upcoming teleserye The Promise of Forever. That means she might soon be seen on TV twice a day, every day.
?“The Promise of Forever is the new teleserye of Paulo Avelino and Ritz Azul under Dreamscape,” Karen shares excitedly. “To be honest, I feel hashtag blessed because this is my first project not just with those two very talented actors, but it’s also my first time to be part of a Dreamscape production.” (It’s worth noting that Dreamscape is the ABS-CBN business unit behind Ang Probinsyano and Till I Met You, among others.)

Karen admits to feeling overwhelmed by this turn of events. “In my four years in the industry, this is my chance to do a teleserye for Dreamscape. At first, it was hard for me to adjust because of all the new faces. I had no idea who everyone was.”

?Luckily, her co-stars made the transition easy for her. “I play the best friend of Ritz’s character, so we have a lot of scenes together. I love her. She’s so nice and we have a lot of fun on set.”

Karen has done what she set out to do all those years ago. She’s already living the dream, but she wants to shine brighter — although not necessarily as a leading lady.

?“I do want to have my own show someday, but I’m really not after being a bida. More on character roles ako. I’m actually open to playing kontrabida roles,” she says. —With reports from Almed Garcia and Julian Mauricio