Matteo Guidicelli Turns 28 On March 26, Opens A New Italian Restaurant In Westgate Alabang

MATTEO GUIDICELLI has played support to the LizQuen love team in “Dolce Amore” so he doesn’t mind supporting them again in “Bagani”. Just like LizQuen, Matteo’s involvement in the show is being questioned since he is half-Italian and not pure Pinoy, so how can he represent a Pinoy tribe. “Well, sabi nga ng creators ng ‘Bagani’, this is just fiction, hindi based on actual history,” he says. “And yes, I may be half-Italian, but in my heart I’m very Filipino. I’m proud to be a Filipino. I’m also an actor and I’m here to portray a role. So before they judge us and the show, sana naman, panoorin muna nila.”

In the story, he plays Lakam, who belongs to the taga-Kalakal region or Traders. “Lakam has everything, money, power, an army to defend him. But he still feels unhappy and incomplete because his father, Robert Sena, does not really like him and so he does everything to gain his father’s love and approval.”

He’s happy that the creators of their show have cleared things up with the Commission on Higher Education that they don’t mean to mislead viewers with their show. “This is one of my biggest projects and it’s a beautiful fantaserye. We’re proud of it as we really worked so hard to make sure viewers will find it worth watching and I'm honored to be a part of it. Sobrang laki nito, ng concept at ng execution. It’s the first of its kind in our country.”

He is celebrating his 28th birthday on March 26. What are his plans? “As of now, nothing really grand. I just opened a new restaurant at Westgate Alabang, Gianni Cucina Italiana. My second after Trattoria de Gianni in Cebu. Gianni is my first name and Matteo is my second. Siguro we’ll just have a small gathering there para sa mga makakaalala.”

His sister Georgia also celebrated her birthday recently and, in the photos that came out on social media, it was seen that his girlfriend, Sarah Geronimo, is happily celebrating with their whole family. Sarah’s fans express their satisfaction that Matteo’s family accepts her wholeheartedly.

“Yes, magkakasama kaming lahat doon at masaya naman. Everything is going on smoothly even if we’re both busy. I have my tapings for ‘Bagani’ and she’s busy preparing for her coming concert at the Araneta Coliseum on April 14. But we always find time for each other. I will always be here for her and she’ll always be there for me. We’re very supportive of each other.”

So will he be doing a guest performance in Sarah’s concert? “Everyone knows we don’t want to involve ourselves with each other’s careers. Baka mapagbintangan pa akong ginagamit ko siya.”

But will he watch it, at least? “Hopefully, kung may tickets pa. Sold out na raw, e,” he laughs.

Of course, he’s just kidding. For sure, he’ll be there because when he had his own recent concert at the Kia Theatre, Sarah was right there on the front row to show her support for him.