'Di ka anak ni Piolo': Inigo happy to reach Hollywood dreams not as Piolo Pascual's son
MANILA, Philippines — Filipino actor-singer Inigo Pascual knew he was starting from scratch when he decided to try his luck in Hollywood.
He had the surprise of his life when on the first day of taping for the Susan Sarandon-led Fox musical drama "Monarch," he discovered he has his own trailer on their set in Atlanta, Georgia.
It all happened when he was done with his makeup on the first day of their taping last September 2021. He had no idea where he could wait while waiting for his cue and when he had to go to the restroom, he asked his makeup artist where he could find the toilet.
The makeup artist was surprised and told him he had his own restroom in his own trailer. Pascual was dumbfounded because he was not expecting to have one. He was eventually able to locate his trailer with his character name, Ace, pasted on his door entrance.
"I entered the trailer and umiyak ako siyempre. 'Di ko in-expect na I would have my own trailer as in coming into this na bagong artista," Inigo recalled at yesterday's virtual presscon for his first American drama that will be shown in the Philippines via IwantTFC starting today, September 13, with new episodes dropping every Thursday at 9 a.m.
He continued, "'Di ka anak ni Piolo. Wala akong expectations na may sarili akong trailer. In-expect ko siguro na meron kaming shared standby area sa mga other stars that aren't there yet."
The actor was even more surprised that he had his own TV, microwave, fridge, couch, and of course, restroom.
"Umiyak talaga ako. I called my manager. Sabi ko, 'I have my own trailer. I can't believe this.' And when I got to set, ano 'yung nakikita sa mga pelikula, 'yung may mga pangalan ka na 'Inigo Pascual'? Yeah, I had one of those (director's chair)," he shared, asking presscon host and entertainment reporter MJ Felipe for the answer to his query.
Inigo plays Ace Roman Grayson, the adopted Filipino son of Nicolette Roman (Anna Friel), who is the daughter of "Queen of Country Music" Dottie Cantrell Roman (Susan Sarandon).
The actor is happy to inform that he is a series regular alongside Sarandon, Friel, country singer Trace Adkins (Albie Roman), Joshua Sasse (Luke Roman), Beth Ditto (Gigi Taylor-Roman), Meagan Holder (Kayla Taylor-Roman), Martha Higareda (Catt Phoenix) and Emma Milani (Ana Phoenix). The latter plays his girlfriend in the series.
He also experienced a lot of firsts on the set of the drama about the Roman family, considered a powerful country music dynasty in the United States.
"Siyempre a lot of things that I experienced for the first time. In a way VIP treatment... A lot of things na in a way, when you experience it, 'yung parang nahihiya ka na, 'Ba't ganu'n? Ba't ako?'" he shared.
He recalled how he was fetched from the airport via a luxury car that also drove him to his hotel and the set.
The actor also shared that there were times he felt it was all a "surreal experience" when he got to hobnob not just with Sarandon but with Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine and "The Vampire Diaries" star Nina Dobrev.
He had to remind himself that he's one of them and he's not a fanboy when they had gatherings at the sprawling area in Atlanta where many productions are being filmed or shot in.
"Monarch" was, in fact, shot from September 2021 to March 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia.
"Ang daming, kailangan kong, wait lang hindi ako fan. Kailangan, ano ako dito, one of them. Ang dami kong beses na, (sinasabi ko sa sarili ko na) 'Kalma lang. Hindi ka fanboy dito.' Ang dami kong beses na na humble ako sa sarili ko sa pinagdaanan ko before," the actor shared.
Inigo shared that Filipino viewers and supporters of his Fox drama should wait for the second episode where they will see him sing more. He also called for the Filipinos' support so "Monarch" will have its second season.
RELATED: WATCH: Inigo Pascual in Hollywood series' new trailer
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