MANILA, Philippines — A baby picture kept flashing during the Zoom online media conference with Matteo Guidicelli earlier for his new iWant documentary “Ranger G.” Philstar.com asked the actor: “Is that your baby with Sarah Geronimo?”
With many on lockdown, a baby boom is predicted post-quarantine, but Matteo disclosed that he and Sarah are not hopping into the new parents’ bandwagon — just yet.
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“I don’t think so, not yet. We’re just enjoying our time together after all these years. Hopefully in the right time,” the singer said, dispelling speculations that his “Popstar Royalty” wife is already pregnant.
“Not yet, not yet! Ako ‘yan n’ung baby ako!” he quipped about the baby picture shown onscreen.
“I’ve been very blessed to get married before the quarantine, the pandemic started,” he told Manila Standard during the same teleconference.
Months after getting “secretly” married in Taguig City, how has the couple adjusted to married life?
“Everything’s okay. We’ve been staying home, just going out when we need to go out, doing groceries and all these essential things. But other than that, everything’s okay, okay naman lahat. Masaya naman lahat dito sa bahay namin,” Matteo told ABS-CBN News on his lockdown life with Sarah.
Establishing a routine is key to their married life while on quarantine, he enthused.
“At the beginning of the quarantine, it was really, really scary. Sabi namin, ‘Pa’no ‘to, we don’t know what to do, we don’t have anything to do, etc.’ But after a while, after several weeks, we were able to establish a routine. It’s really very important to establish different activities in times like this.”
He and Sarah take turns in cooking. “Every day, we’re learning,” he said.
"Sometimes, there’s nothing else to do but look at each other in this quarantine situation. But kidding aside, the simple things are what’s really, really beautiful – being together, working out together, talking, playing with the dog. These things are small things that five to 10 years from now we will be remembering, reminiscing and laughing about. These are beautiful moments, experiences,” he told Push.com.ph.
He revealed that he discovered a lot from his wife during the lockdown.
“Marami, marami… but I think every single day as a blessing. Every single day, I thank that I get to sleep and wake up beside her na up to now, it’s still a dream.”
‘Sarah was shocked’
As a reservist, he said he has given a lifetime commitment to his country by serving in times of calamities and the like, but Matteo stressed that Sarah remains his “life” and top priority.
“I’m married now and my number one priority is my wife, for sure. But of course, showbiz is also a priority. That’s work. Of course, every day, we have to make a living. That’s why it’s important to balance work and personal life properly.”
In the original documentary “Ranger G,” iWant offers an immersive exploration of Matteo’s scout ranger training in the Philippine Army, letting viewers in on what soldiers have to go through in order to serve the country.
“She was shocked when she and my family visited me down Tecson, Bulacan,” Matteo said on how Sarah reacted about his scout ranger training featured on “Ranger G.”
“By the time I showed them our tent area, where we sleep, where we eat, they were shocked. Sabi nga nila, ‘Pwede na ba kita iuwi ngayon?’ Dahil iba eh. We slept under a trapal with gravel (underneath). Na-shock silang lahat,” he narrated.
Nice. The time I showed Sarah my room hehe https://t.co/5jDFqh5Mh4
— Matteo Guidicelli (@mateoguidicelli) May 20, 2020
Streaming on Saturday (May 23), “Ranger G” chronicles Matteo’s month-long training at Camp Pablo Tecson in Bulacan. Matteo is the first celebrity to take the course, where he pushed his mental, physical and emotional strength to the limit and learned the value of brotherhood.
One of the hardest military trainings in the world, the scout ranger orientation course focuses on anti-guerilla jungle warfare, raids, close quarters combat and urban warfare. In order to complete his training, Matteo had to endure intense physical workouts, military hazing and torture simulation.
In this constant battle of pain and exhaustion, not only was Matteo’s physical strength put to the test but also his mental toughness.
“I thought I was physically prepared… but it’s overwhelming when people command you,” he shared.
Although the path to becoming a soldier is not easy, Matteo persevered to overcome these obstacles as he wanted to fulfill his father’s dream for him – to become a soldier.
Highlighting spirit, skill and stamina, “Ranger G” serves as an eye-opener to the death-defying job of soldiers as only the best of the best survive the elite force training, and how they put their lives on the line for one another.
Directed by Ver Jacinto and written by Jayson Bernard Santos, “Ranger G” is an iWant exclusive documentary acquired from Viva Films.
Witness Matteo’s life-changing journey in “Ranger G,” which streams for free this (Saturday) May 23 on the iWant app (iOS and Android) or on iwant.ph.