As part of the action-drama series Roja, Lou Yanong was able to flex her acting skills, this time as the female villain. Her character Gwen, is part of the team of criminals led by Emil Padua (played by Joel Torre), who hijacks the fictional luxury island resort of La Playa Roja.
The 28-year-old actress, who first joined showbiz in 2019 as a housemate in Pinoy Big Brother: Otso, has already had her share of being in the limelight, having started as a child model at the age of seven. Now that she is pursuing acting, Lou shared how she felt after taping for the series wrapped up last January.
“Because there’s so many people there that I didn’t know I would get close to. Sobrang nag-grow na sa akin yung mga cast members and I just really miss them kasi tapos na yung taping so I miss them. Ngayon na-realize ko na tapos na talaga. Sabi ko, ‘Oo nga naman. Hindi na kami nag-taping and everything. Yung trailer yun na yung last.” I loved Roja so much. I learned so much from the show,” she told PUSH ABS-CBN in an exclusive interview.
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Having been part of so many action-packed sequences in the show, Lou revealed which ones were her favorite to shoot.
“It would have to be the fight scenes with Donny (Pangilinan) and Maymay (Entrata) because I was excited to do it! I actually thought na hindi ako makakagawa ng hand-to-hand combat kasi hindi ako makaka-push through with action and acting. The action scenes kasi, it was so empowering. Kasi I never really actually thought na talagang ma-pu-push ko yung sarili ko,” she said.
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Getting to spend more time with her castmates on the island where they had to do lock-in shooting, Lou admitted there were many opportunities for bonding with her co-stars. “So many. But it would have to be when we have bonding because everyone’s there and it’s so funny because we don’t plan it. It’s so far from where everyone is and lahat ng mga taong pumupunta dun. It’s unplanned and everyone just starts to bring whatever they feel,” she added.
As part of an ensemble cast that included a mix of new and veteran stars like Donny Pangilinan, Kyle Echarri, Janice de Belen, Lorna Tolentino, Joel Torre, and Raymond Bagatsing, Lou revealed which actor she would miss being with the most on the set.
“So many. Actually, all of them. If I had to choose one, it would be Ms. Janice. Siya yung hindi lang siya trabaho yung pagkakaibigan. When she sees you, she knows that you have problems and she asks the right questions. And ang nakakatawa is hindi pa rin niya alam na nakakatulong siya sa ‘yo,” she admitted.
For future projects, the morena beauty shared that she would love to get the opportunity to do roles that involve comedy and romance. But for now, she is thankful to those who supported their show Roja since it first started airing late last year.
“Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. Salamat sa pagtutok sa Roja. Talagang pinaghirapan namin yun and I wish you would feel the same fun and thrill that we enjoyed and felt while making it. Maraming, maraming salamat!”