Ruru Madrid-led action series Black Rider to promote Filipino martial arts

MANILA, Philippines — GMA Network’s Public Affairs arm has enlisted Ruru Madrid to lead its latest primetime series, Black Rider, following the success of Lolong in 2022. This action-packed show not only promises “compelling” storytelling involving heroism, revenge, justice, and family drama, but also highlights the enduring popularity of motorcycles in the Philippines, a country with around 30 million motorcycle riders among its 100 million population.

A very grateful Ruru, who plays the lead character Elias Guerrero, shared during a recent mediacon that ever since he was a child, he has dreamed of doing action, and now, it’s become a reality.

“Nung una palang talagang hiniling ko na sana sa akin mapunta itong programang ito dahil ever since bata ako pangarap ko talagang mag-action and ngayon, ito ang katuparan,” he said.

“Ayokong sayangin kasi hindi lahat ng artista ay binibigyan ng action na serye. So, I might as well give my everything with the trust that has been given to me. I don’t want to take it for granted and I want to surpass their expectations of me.”

Ruru Madrid

Ruru, as Elias, works as a motorcycle driver for the delivery app Biyahero. However, his life takes a dramatic turn as he assumes the identity of the “Black Rider,” a vigilante determined to fight the notorious Golden Scorpion syndicate.

In an exclusive interview with the lead cast, Ruru hinted at how Elias evolves into Black Rider, saying, “He started out as Elias, but eventually, something will happen in his life that’s why he becomes the Black Rider.”

Yassi Pressman portrays Vanessa ‘Bane’ Bartolome, a petty thief whose life becomes connected with Elias. She also carries a dark past linked to the Golden Scorpion

Discussing the challenges of playing “dual” roles, he mentioned, “‘Pag nag-te-taping may mga talon-talon sa storyline. You shoot for Week 1, then you shoot for Week 4, so it’s a little tricky, medyo challenging, pero ako naman kasi bago mag-taping, papunta palang sa set, binabasa ko na lahat ng eksena na gagawin ko for the whole day. At least, mabilis sa akin kung ano ang kailangan ko sa character.”

Jon Lucas is Calvin Magallanes, who shares Elias’ motorcycle skills but he is driven by ambition and thirst for power as part of the Golden Scorpion.

Matteo Guidicelli, who has made his return to the Kapuso network, joins the main cast alongside Ruru. This marks the actor-athlete’s first GMA series, and he finds the cast to be dynamic in terms of their personalities. He added, “We have a lot of fun on set; there’s always laughter in the air.”

Katrina Halili plays Rona Marie Ana ‘Romana’ Tolentino, a vigilante who fights alongside Elias against the Golden Scorpion.

In the show, Matteo is police officer Paeng Policarpio. “I play a cop who is the bestfriend of Ruru Madrid. Masaya because we have a lot of action stuff together because I represent the law, I enforce the law. I enjoy my character, it’s my first time to play a police officer,” he said.

According to Ruru, Matteo had the chance to showcase his skills and training as a military reservist and former race car driver in the show. Ruru particularly praised his co-star’s markmanship and his car stunts.

Matteo Guidicelli, who has made his return to the Kapuso network, joins the main cast alongside Ruru as police officer Paeng Policarpio, the bestfriend of Elias.

The stunts were so daring that a minor accident occurred on set, but Matteo humorously recalled the incident, saying, “Akala ko na spinal cord (injury) na, gout pala.”

“Kasi ‘di na gumalaw, nag-ambulance na lahat,” he continued. “Sabi ko, pasensya na talaga, yung pamilya mo…The next day I called (to check on his condition), ‘Kumusta na si Kuya?’ Ay, gout lang pala. It was a (minor) stunt accident and OK naman siya.”

But they’re really committed to performing their own stunts, stressed Matteo.

“Especially Ruru, he really likes doing everything on his own. That’s what makes everything really, really awesome… and his stunts are intense.”

The TV host continued to commend the lead star, “Sabi nga ni Monsour, ‘Taekwondo black belter ka rin ba?’ In all seriousness, Monsour really said this, ‘I’m so happy to be working with Ruru because everything is one take with him,’” referring to a comment from Monsour del Rosario, who’s just one of the veteran action stars who are part of the series.

But the action in Black Rider isn’t limited to the male cast. Ruru revealed that even the female stars, such as Yassi Pressman and Katrina Halili, tackle their own stunts.

Yassi, portraying Vanessa “Bane” Bartolome in the series, is making a return to teleserye work and GMA. Her character, Bane, is a petty thief whose life becomes connected with Elias, and she carries a dark past linked to the Golden Scorpion.

The actress-dancer enjoyed the action choreography she has done so far for the series: “Choreography-wise, exciting and fun. For me, dancing or whatever choreo, it keeps the mind active and fun because nahahaluan ng acting. Those are the things that I love the most. And I’ve been doing muay thai already for 10 years.”

The homegrown GMA actress, Katrina Halili, portrays Rona Marie Ana “Romana” Tolentino, a vigilante who fights alongside Elias against the Golden Scorpion.

“First time ko po mag-portray ng assassin character and ang hirap pala, ang daming inaaral na mga martial arts, knife skills, hand combat… tapos nag-motor pa,” shared Katrina.

The training got so intense at one point that “I fell off the motorcycle while training in Tagaytay. Namaga yung paa buti nalang no fracture. So ginagawa talaga namin, pati yung pagmo-motor.”

The whole cast trained together months before actual filming, revealed Jon Lucas. In the series, he is Calvin Magallanes, who shares Elias’ motorcycle skills but he is driven by ambition and thirst for power as part of the Golden Scorpion.

“We all trained together at the Belarmino Sports Complex under the guidance of coach Erwin Tagle,” said the resident villain of the show.

According to Jon, they were instructed what to do on set, including how to execute punches and kicks for on-screen action. He noted that even if one has a background in boxing, karate, or taekwondo, the art of “cinematic” action is a different story. There’s a proper way to strike and move to make it as realistic as possible, Jon added.

“So thankful kami paano gawin ang mga eksena na ito kasi baka maging katatawan nga kung wala kaming idea or knowledge about doing fight scenes.”

Asked about their most thrilling action scenes so far, Katrina cited her “six-hour” fight sequence with Ruru.

“Maiksi lang siya pero kapag ginawa mo siya, aabot siya ng six hours,” Katrina said. It took that long because of the different shots they had to make.

For Matteo, it’s the car stunts. “But we’re still shooting more fight scenes with Ruru so I’m excited for that.”

For Ruru, there’s one fight scene that took about four days to shoot. “Sobrang haba na mapupunta ako sa isang building, lalabas ako, babalik ako, may makikita naman na kalaban. Parang nasa 100-plus goons yung kinakalaban ko sa isang araw. This (scene) is so far the most memorable for me.”

The fight scenes in the series are truly a source of pride, according to Ruru. He said they drew inspiration from international action movies like John Wick, Extraction, Atomic Blonde, and The Raid.

“We apply them here. Because siempre kaya din natin siya, but at the same time, we want to promote Filipino martial arts.”

Ruru went on to mention that Black Rider showcases such Filipino martial arts as the weapons-based Kali, Arnis, and the stand-up fighting style Yaw Yan. And in addition to the involvement of Monsour, the show boasts a cast of accomplished action stars, including Raymart Santiago, Roi Vinzon, Zoren Legaspi, Gary Estrada, and Kier Legaspi.

“At meron pa kaming ipapasok pero ‘di pa namin pwede i-reveal. Marami pa po kaming guests na papasok dito na mga tinitingala po natin na mga action stars,” Ruru teased.

However, going beyond the action, Black Rider unfolds a narrative that mirrors real-life struggles, emphasizing the themes of family love, heroism in the face of adversity, and the transformation of Elias from an ordinary motorcycle rider into a symbol of justice and hope.

“It’s not just a story of delivery riders. Of course, we also highlight them because sila po yung ating mga bayani lalo na nong panahon ng pandemya,” said Ruru.

“But it’s also a story of every Filipino who’s fighting in life. Of course, we have so many problems, numerous challenges that are thrown at us every day, but we will show how they fight every day to live.”

Black Rider also stars Isko Moreno, Rio Locsin, Gladys Reyes, Maureen Larrazabal, and Almira Muhlach. Joining Elias as Biyaheros are Janus del Prado, and Rainier Castillo. The Golden Scorpion Boys are Joem Bascon, Dustin Yu, Joaquin Manansala, Kim Perez, Vance Larena and Saviour Ramos.

Comedians Empoy Marquez and Jayson Gainza, as well as rapper Shanti Dope, social media personalities Pipay and Ashley Rivera, drag queen Turing, Sparkle artists Prince Clemente and Mariel Pamintuan, and young love team Ashley Sarmiento and Marco Masa add color to the series.

Black Rider is helmed by action director Erwin Tagle with master directors Rommel Penesa (Lolong) and Richard Arellano. It premieres at 8 tonight on GMA Telebabad, with simulcast airing on Pinoy Hits and livestreaming via Kapuso Stream, and delayed telecast on GTV at 9:40 p.m. Pinoys abroad can watch it on GMA Pinoy TV.