Tanggol Montenegro (Coco Martin) may be our primetime hero, but we all know that there are people who have helped him to become one. And one of them is Divina Mondragon, played by veteran actress Rosanna Roces, whom he met in the second chapter of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo.”
As the well-loved primetime action-drama series commences its new chapter and enters its third year, CCM Film Productions caught up with Rosanna via this interview, wherein she talked about her character and her experience working with Coco and the “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo” team.
She began by reminiscing on the journey of Divina, who used to be a businesswoman with both legal and illegal ventures. Despite not really knowing him yet and only seeing potential in him, she still offered Tanggol to do business with her since she wanted to help elevate his and his friends’ lives and give them a little dignity so that they would not suffer anymore nor go back to their old, bad ways.
Although he knew that her once peaceful life would get in trouble because of Tanggol, Divina still showed her support to him and his endeavors since she felt right off the bat that he was her lucky charm, or the one who would bring prosperity to all of them, due to his determination.
But as time went by, she realized how hardheaded Tanggol could be, to the extent that he would fight against his father in pursuit of finally living a morally upright life. Unfortunately, his relationships with other people, especially with those closest to him, as well as the lives of his loved ones, have become the collateral damage of his crusade against corruption and other criminal acts.
Thus, in the new chapter of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo,” Rosanna related that since Divina had already lost her faith in Tanggol due to the series of misfortunes that she and their group had gone through mostly because of his stubbornness and persistence, she would become one of his enemies.
However, even before Tanggol could get revenge on her for betraying him and his friends, Divina would be able to seek help from somebody who had a special connection with her before, as well as who taught her how to do business and get rich.
When asked what her reaction was regarding the new twist on her character, Rosanna conveyed, “Maganda. Magandang-maganda kasi mapapasama ako sa mga hindi mo rin talaga matatawaran ang mga acting, mga bagong kasama gaya ni Baron Geisler, ni Roi Vinzon.”
She shared how excited she is to share some scenes with them since they never had the chance to really work with them in the past. Similarly, she is also thrilled that from being a mere lackey of Tanggol, her character is going to be relatively “meaty” in this new chapter of the series.
“Natutuwa nga ako kasi napag-isipan ni Direk CM na bigyan ako ng mas meaty na role. Sabi nga niya, ‘Mi, alam mo mas magaling ka magkontrabida. Nasasayangan ako kapag ang role mo ganyan na lang, ‘yong nakabuntot ka lang [kay Tanggol]. Bibigyan kita ng pagkakataong i-elevate ko ‘yong role mo. Galingan mo,’” Rosanna related.
She went on to impart, telling him that he reminded her of legendary Hollywood actor and film director Clint Eastwood, who is known for his brilliance in astonishing viewers with the dumbfounding twists and turns in the movies that he had helmed.
Meanwhile, when it comes to being part of a project handled by CCM Film Productions, the veteran actress raved that it’s really different since everyone is expected to be really disciplined. She mentioned how almost everybody is on the set an hour before the call time, with her and her co-stars Mammoth and Baby Giant being the first ones to usually arrive.
At the same time, she actually feels good everytime she goes to work, as she has already considered “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo” as her second home, or home away from home. She enthused about how all of them seem to always look forward to seeing each other.
When quizzed if she ever felt intimidated by her fellow veteran actors, Rosanna said that rather than feeling daunted by their presence, she actually gets amazed. Thus, there were instances when she just stood and watched them do scenes together with her mouth agape.
She is totally astonished by how showrunners are able to put some of the celebrated and respected stars in the country in one frame, as well as spend a lot of money in order to mount enormous and hard action scenes that we only usually see in films. She went on to boast how a week’s episode of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo” can be equivalent to five movies because of how huge almost every scene is and how the production never scrimped, especially the action scenes.
From being a sexy and dramatic actress, it’s indeed astounding how Rosanna can be considered an action star because of Divina—and she couldn’t be any prouder.
“Sobrang proud. Sobrang proud hindi lang sa role na ginagampanan ko. ‘Yon lang makasama ka sa ‘Batang Quiapo,’ na number one show, talagang kikiligin ka na. So, bilang ganti, ibibigay mo ‘yong best mo at magiging masunurin ka sa lahat,” she remarked.
Then she added, “‘Yong pakikisama, ‘yon ang importante; na maging magaan kang kasama at katrabaho. ‘Yon lang naman ang gusto ni CM din.”
With regard to working with Coco, Rosanna commented that he’s the humblest big actor she has ever met, particularly because of how he genuinely aspires to help his fellow artists and other celebrities. In fact, some of their goons actually work as marshals whenever they’re not included in the take, which is Coco’s way of continuously providing them with a source of income. Thus, she can say that he and his character, Tanggol, are completely similar to each other.
Rosanna capped off the interview by thanking the avid viewers for their unwavering and overwhelming support, which has inspired them to continue doing their best and making the narrative better. She also hinted about the exciting things we should watch out for in the upcoming episodes, so we must stay tuned!
Catch her on “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo,” weeknights at 8 PM, on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL), A2Z, TV5 and iWant.