After-‘Quezon’-uproar,-Jericho-Rosales-embraces-lessons-learned

MANILA, November 20 ------ Actor Jericho Rosales said he emerged “calmer, wiser, more understanding” after facing controversy over his portrayal of former Philippine president Manuel L. Quezon in the recent film "Quezon."

“There were a lot of big lessons, all good ones,” Rosales said at Esquire Philippines’ Man at His Best event Tuesday night, where he received the Actor of the Year award. “I’m happy to be part of a film that speaks about something important and entertains people at the same time,” he said.

Ricky Avancena, a descendant of Quezon, slammed the cast and the creators of the movie at a talkback session held during one of its screenings. The tense interaction between Avancena and Rosales, director Jerrold Tarog, and some cast members was caught in a viral video. “I’m chill now after the very busy promo season of ‘Quezon.' More promotional days than the shooting days, and I have never promoted a film this much, only because I believe in the film,” Rosales said.

Despite the uproar from the Quezon family as well as some moviegoers, the Kapamilya actor said, “We welcome naman everything. Open naman kami sa lahat ng reactions, comments, and stuff. It was a very interesting year for me, I’ve learned a lot, I became calmer, wiser, more understanding, more accepting."

But he quickly added, “I still believe in what we made, I love what we did. I’m so honored to have served cinema.” Any lessons learned from being part of a biopic? “Ang daming lessons. But it just really pushed me to become a bigger person. I picked wisdom talag., I thought 30 years in the industry, pero ang dami ko pang matututunan. I learned to become compassionate,” said Rosales, who also previously played boxing champ Manny Pacquiao.

After "Quezon," Rosales is taking a much-deserved break this holiday season but will immediately get back to work, as he revealed that he is set to shoot a project with Kapamilya star Anne Curtis.

Source: news.abs-cbn.com