Gil Cuerva: A new face from the star

Not yet, not now.

That was two months ago when GMA revealed the “mystery guy” tapped to play Jennylyn Mercado’s love interest in the network’s adaptation of the hit Koreanovela My Love From The Star (starring Kim Soo-hyun, Jun Ji-hyun and Park Hae-jin) which is set to premiere end of this month.

“He’s not yet prepared,” said GMA PR head Angel Javier. “He’s still shy.”

During the photo shoot, Jennylyn confirmed that Gil Cuerva is, indeed, shy but only in the beginning. “Once he warms up to you,” added Jennylyn, “okay na siya.”

Last week, Angel finally arranged the delayed one-on-one with Gil for The STAR, his first-ever extensive interview (over a late lunch at Frazzled restaurant on Scout Gandia, Quezon City).

When I greeted him, “Hello, Gil!” (which I pronounced like the surname of Cherie, Enrique and STAR Sounds Familiar columnist Baby), he gently corrected me. It’s pronounced like, you know, gigil. “Short for Guillermo, my first name,” he explained.

On TV and in pictures as well as in the flesh, Gil does resemble Borgy Manotoc (especially when Borgy also wore his hair shoulder-length). Angel Javier was right: Gil was “ripe” for a no-holds-barred interview.

Asked if he’s ready for showbiz, Gil was definite, “Yeah. I wouldn’t jump into something I wasn’t sure of. I see that now is a good time and a good opportunity. I couldn’t have asked for a better project. I’m blessed.”

And, yes, he’s aware of the intrigues, the gossip and the scandals that are the lifeblood of showbiz.

“In a way, I am updated about showbiz by social media. I’m informed but not necessarily invested in it. I just have to get used to it. I like to focus on my career and how I’ll be moving forward.”

His entry into showbiz generated mixed comments on social media.

“But so far,” he smiled, “the comments have mostly been positive, and about the only negative comment is about my hair kasi in the Koreanovela daw, the character has bangs. You know how specific fans are and how they want the material to be. A few are below the belt but they don’t bother me. You see, I graduated from an all-boys high school, Ateneo, and when I began college, in La Salle, I felt relieved that there was no more haircut requirement.”

Is his haircut some kind of a personal statement?

“I’ve been wearing my hair long for three years now. It’s just how I want my look to be. I guess it’s more unique if a guy wears his hair long.”

When the waiter brought in more food (pasta, etc.) and I told Gil that he had to eat it all, he joked, “I should. Kelangan kong tumaba.” (He stands 5’11.5” and weighs 150 lbs.)

While Gil took an ober-da-bakod leap from Blue (Eagle) to Green (Archer), his father, Jake Cuerva, was a true-blue Atenean from grade school to college, who played at the UAAP for four years. Gil’s mom is Tina Eleazar. The middle of three siblings, Gil started modeling at 18. He was a senior at La Salle (taking up two courses, LiaCom and Broadcast) when he auditioned for My Love From The Star.

“I guess it was luck, destiny,” recalled Gil. “I was in Hong Kong for modeling when I got an e-mail from Cornerstone, my co-management (with GMA Artist Center). They wanted me to audition and I said, ‘Why not?’ since I was going on a two-week break in Manila before flying to Thailand for another show. Maraming nag-audition and I guess I was the lucky one.”

For his debut scene, Gil was required to pull Jennylyn’s character from the salon as they went down the elevator.

“Her character looks exactly like a girl my character met 300 years ago. My character is an alien who keeps in his wallet the baby photo of a girl who looks like Jennylyn. We were supposed to be meeting for the first time.”

And how did Gil fare?

“Well, naka-take seven ako.” Good enough for a newcomer.

On the set, Gil said that he was impressed by Jennylyn with whom he created perfect chemistry during the photo test. But no way can they be touted as a loveteam because, as everybody knows, Jennylyn is committed to Dennis Trillo while Gil is going steady with a blogger, 19, a freshman at Ateneo whose initials are KC. At 21, Gil is much younger than Jennylyn.

“Jennylyn is sobrang mahinhin, so demure, so prim and proper and has no star complex at all,” noted Gil. “She says ‘po’ and ‘opo’ all the time, something I am not used to. I hope that doesn’t make me look bastos or mayabang. We siblings were not raised that way and we show respect for our parents some other way. I’m not the hugging type; I show affection another way. But when I hug you, it means that I really like you, mahal na mahal kita. How many girls have I hugged?,” he asked laughing, “Marami, hahahaha!!!”

Before they met, Gil had a different impression of Jennylyn. To know her better as an actress, Gil watched her movies (English Only Please, Walang Forever, Just The Three Of Us, etc.) over and over again.

“In real life, ibang-iba siya. I assumed na lahat ng nasa showbiz may ere. She has no ere at all. She’s very grounded. That’s why I feel comfortable with her and she makes me act myself. I wasn’t conscious about making mistakes during the shoot.”

Is he having a love scene with Jennylyn?

“Maybe.”

And how much of his body is he willing to show?

“Actually, I will have a shower scene, just by myself, and I’m showing only half of my bare body, form the waist up.”

Any favorite K-Pop star?

“Nobody in particular. When I was a kid, my favorite show was Meteor Garden (a Chinovela). And then I became an avid follower of Boys Over Flower, a Korean remake of Meteor Garden. That was the first Koreanovela that I saw. I’ve also watched Love From The Star.”

By the way, how does Gil feel when, because of his androgynous looks, people mistake her for a girl? Or that, he is, you know…?

That made Gil laugh, not offended.

“Yes, I’m aware of that. You know…babae ba siya o lalaki or gay? I’m sure of myself and I am secure with my sexuality even if I look, as you said, androgynous. At the end of the day, I still hang out with my male friends and play basketball. Ito lang ang masasabi ko, I am straight. Whatever people think doesn’t bother me.”

A Lion (in Chinese calendar) and a Leo (in western horoscope, he was born in August), Gil dreams of being a director.

“That’s why I answered that way to your first question,” he explained, “you know, if I’m ready for showbiz. I want to observe not just actors but also directors because I consider myself a story-maker. I also observe cinematographers. I’m determined to stay long in showbiz. I will do what it takes to stay long. I’m learning everything as an actor and later branch out to other aspects of filmmaking.”

Trivia: Who does Gil root for during a game, Ateneo or La Salle?

“To be fair,” he replied, “I cheer for Ateneo in volleyball and for La Salle in basketball. Pantay lang. So I cheer for both Blue and Green.”

(E-mail reactions at [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos, visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on Instagram @therealrickylo.) - Photos by VER PAULINO