MANILA – Once tagged as the country’s “Pambansang Leading Man”, Derek Ramsay has always felt that there’s more to him as an actor than just portraying men who find themselves torn between two women.
“I feel like I have more to offer than just playing roles like that. That’s why in 2014, I concentrated on showing my versatility,” Derek told InterAksyon and other entertainment media during the recent story conference for his upcoming TV5 sitcom, “Mac & Chiz”.
“If you noticed, I had some really extreme role changes as of late. I was the typical Derek that people are familiar with in ‘Trophy Wife’. After that, I jumped to playing a kontrabida for the first time in ‘The Janitor’. I was happy I got a lot of compliments for doing that.
“And then I did my first rom-com with ‘English Only, Please’ which was totally different. I went from shooting people’s heads off to being a guy who’s making people pa-kilig,” he noted.
And with favorable results, too. Aside from the kudos he earned for his villainous turn in “The Janitor”, Derek also won his very first Best Actor award in “English Only, Please” courtesy of the Metro Manila Film Festival for his sensitive performance of a lovelorn Filipino-American who hires an English tutor to help him confront the ex-girlfriend who dumped him.
In the process, Derek also proved that his box office appeal, established by phenomenal blockbusters “No Other Woman” and “A Secret Affair”, is no fluke and remains very much intact. As of this writing, “English Only, Please” has now overtaken “Kubot: The Aswang Chronicles 2” as the fourth top-grossing film in the ongoing MMFF.
In a recent post in its official Facebok page, the makers of the film are claiming that “English Only, Please” has reached the P100 million mark in the box office as of Sunday, January 4.
But the actor is not through taking chances. Derek is starting the year with his first ever sitcom in “Mac & Chiz”, which teams him up with comedian Empoy Marquez who believe it or not, plays his twin brother. Even more surprising is the fact that in the series, it is Empoy who is considered the babe magnet, not Derek.
“Matinik yan si Empoy. Kala niyo, gaganyan-ganyan lang yan. Yung bigote niyan, may magical powers,” Derek joked.
Taking on a more serious tone, Derek said he thought the show’s concept was brilliant when it was first presented to him. He now looks forward to learning a lot not just from Empoy but also from fellow cast members Jojo Alejar and Jun Sabayton who are also both identified with comedy.
“I have the best guys to learn from. I’m going to be a little boy again learning from them when it comes to doing comedy, masaya silang kasama,” he enthused.
One thing Derek is particularly keen on learning is comedic timing. He’s already wondering how he’ll respond to his equally talented co-stars the minute they start resorting to ad-libs instead of what’s called for in the script.
“Acting on TV and acting on the big screen are two different things. On TV, you are given more freedom to ad-lib and that’s what I have to learn from them. Pag nagsimula nang mag-ad lib sina Empoy, dapat alam mong sabayan sila dahil kung hindi, hindi gaganda ang eksena,” he pointed out.
“On the big screen, you are given slight freedom to ad-lib but you still have to stick to the script. So for me, it’s easier to play around with that.”
Now that he has managed to put his personal affairs in order and is very happy that he now gets to spend a lot of time with his son Austin, Derek has also shifted his focus to his flourishing career.
“I’ve been really challenging myself and have been trying to show the many things that I can do as an actor. Hopefully, more exciting projects will come my way,” he concluded.
Also starring Bianca King, “Mac & Chiz” premieres this January on TV5.
“I feel like I have more to offer than just playing roles like that. That’s why in 2014, I concentrated on showing my versatility,” Derek told InterAksyon and other entertainment media during the recent story conference for his upcoming TV5 sitcom, “Mac & Chiz”.
“If you noticed, I had some really extreme role changes as of late. I was the typical Derek that people are familiar with in ‘Trophy Wife’. After that, I jumped to playing a kontrabida for the first time in ‘The Janitor’. I was happy I got a lot of compliments for doing that.
“And then I did my first rom-com with ‘English Only, Please’ which was totally different. I went from shooting people’s heads off to being a guy who’s making people pa-kilig,” he noted.
And with favorable results, too. Aside from the kudos he earned for his villainous turn in “The Janitor”, Derek also won his very first Best Actor award in “English Only, Please” courtesy of the Metro Manila Film Festival for his sensitive performance of a lovelorn Filipino-American who hires an English tutor to help him confront the ex-girlfriend who dumped him.
In the process, Derek also proved that his box office appeal, established by phenomenal blockbusters “No Other Woman” and “A Secret Affair”, is no fluke and remains very much intact. As of this writing, “English Only, Please” has now overtaken “Kubot: The Aswang Chronicles 2” as the fourth top-grossing film in the ongoing MMFF.
In a recent post in its official Facebok page, the makers of the film are claiming that “English Only, Please” has reached the P100 million mark in the box office as of Sunday, January 4.
But the actor is not through taking chances. Derek is starting the year with his first ever sitcom in “Mac & Chiz”, which teams him up with comedian Empoy Marquez who believe it or not, plays his twin brother. Even more surprising is the fact that in the series, it is Empoy who is considered the babe magnet, not Derek.
“Matinik yan si Empoy. Kala niyo, gaganyan-ganyan lang yan. Yung bigote niyan, may magical powers,” Derek joked.
Taking on a more serious tone, Derek said he thought the show’s concept was brilliant when it was first presented to him. He now looks forward to learning a lot not just from Empoy but also from fellow cast members Jojo Alejar and Jun Sabayton who are also both identified with comedy.
“I have the best guys to learn from. I’m going to be a little boy again learning from them when it comes to doing comedy, masaya silang kasama,” he enthused.
One thing Derek is particularly keen on learning is comedic timing. He’s already wondering how he’ll respond to his equally talented co-stars the minute they start resorting to ad-libs instead of what’s called for in the script.
“Acting on TV and acting on the big screen are two different things. On TV, you are given more freedom to ad-lib and that’s what I have to learn from them. Pag nagsimula nang mag-ad lib sina Empoy, dapat alam mong sabayan sila dahil kung hindi, hindi gaganda ang eksena,” he pointed out.
“On the big screen, you are given slight freedom to ad-lib but you still have to stick to the script. So for me, it’s easier to play around with that.”
Now that he has managed to put his personal affairs in order and is very happy that he now gets to spend a lot of time with his son Austin, Derek has also shifted his focus to his flourishing career.
“I’ve been really challenging myself and have been trying to show the many things that I can do as an actor. Hopefully, more exciting projects will come my way,” he concluded.
Also starring Bianca King, “Mac & Chiz” premieres this January on TV5.
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