DAVID LICAUCO seems to be typecast in playing rich boy roles and this is not surprising as he really hails from a wealthy Chinese family. In the recent primetime soap, “TODA One I Love”, he played the son of their town’s mayor. In his two new movies, he also plays a rich boy, “Because I Love You” and “Go La Union”. How does he feel about this?
“E, yun ang roles na binibigay nila sa’kin, so what can I do?” he says. “Pero okay lang, I feel comfortable about it. Baguhan pa lang naman ako, but later on, I would like to try other roles, like yung poor boy ako o adik-adik, for a change. It will be a big challenge for me.”
His movie, “Because I Love You”, is a romcom that will open in theaters on June 26. He is paired with another newcomer, Shaira Diaz, under the direction of Joel Lamangan. “I play Rael, isang estudyante sa Harvard sa U.S. I can relate with him kasi napagkakamalan siyang suplado, but he's not naman, just like me. He is also not that close with his dad and I feel the same way kasi my own dad is so busy with his businesses.
"Sa story, kauuwi ko lang sa Pilipinas and, from the airport, may nadaanan akong sunog. Doon ko na-meet si Shaira, who plays a female firefighter. Noong una, hindi ko pa siya pinapansin kasi may girlfriend ako, played by Michelle Dee, who I thought mas bagay sa akin kasi, like me, she also comes from a rich family.
"But upon getting to know Shaira better, I realized I prefer a more simple but smart girl like her. I enjoyed working with Shaira as she's easy to get along with, also with Direk Joel Lamangan kasi mabilis magtrabaho, maaga kaming natatapos and he's really helpful with a newcomer like me."
In real life, has he found such a girl? “No. I had a girlfriend before, she comes from the other network, pero hindi nagtagal, e. Right now, I want to focus more on my career kasi nagsisimula pa lang ako.”
Doesn’t his parents require him to stick with Chinese girls? “No naman, specially my mom who has very modern views and not traditional. My older sister nga, she has a Korean boyfriend. Engaged na sila. But if ever I’d have a girlfriend, gusto ko, non-showbiz para mas tahimik. Kung Chinese din siya, mas okay kasi we’ll more or less have the same kind of family upbringing.”
He doesn’t seem to have qualms about appearing shirtless on screen, as seen in “TODA” recently. “Okay lang sa’kin. In ‘Go La Union’, mas marami pang shirtless scenes. Not only me but also my co-stars, Derrick Monasterio, Kiko Estrada, Enzo Pineda, Teejay Trinidad and Ruru Madrid. We’ve shot in the beaches of La Union for three weekends na. One more weekend pa, then the rest will be shot in Manila.”
Does he get along fine with his co-stars? “Yes, all of them. Walang pasaway, walang maangas sino man sa amin. Masayang samahan namin. Chill lang. Friends na nga kami talaga. Barkada. It’s a fun movie about young people at maraming makaka-relate sa mga kalokohan namin.”
