By: Jerome Gomez
Star Studio Magazine, September 2003
As Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay closes its final chapter this month, John Lloyd Cruz, the hot young actor of the moment, reflects on his party-hardy past, his never wanting to be an actor, and finally learning to love his craft.
For a guy who used to party like there was no tomorrow, John Lloyd Cruz doesn't look so bad. True, the dark circles under his puppy dog eyes need a retouch of concealer every so often for the cameras. But the circles are not anymore products of those all-nighter gimiks that often went on until early morning.
It's an afternoon at the Talent Center's lounge area and the soap star, clad in slim black shirt, arrow-straight denim jeans and sleek square-toed shoes, fresh from a full eight-hour sleep and a new haircut, is being asked to take us back to those party-hardy days.
He replies with that famous sheepish grin. He was around 16-17 then, he says, when he and his friends didn't see the need to call it a night because, hey, all of them were still up and there was always another bar to close. He misses those days. He sits back on the gray sofa and smiles at the memory. "That was the time na, 'Sarap nito! Baka wala nang ganito. Let's seize the day!' "
Last June, he turned 20 and, for now, all that's in the past - the party-hardy days, not the "seize-the-day" part, John Lloyd, if you haven't noticed, is the hot young actor of the hour. He headlines the highest-rater of all the teleseryes, Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay, Tabing Ilog, the Sunday drama he shares with other stars from this Star Circle batch, is still going strong on its fifth year; the love story that involves his character and that of Kaye Abad's remains the program's main focal point.
And then there are the product endorsements. He's the new image model for the clothing line Blue Soda and footwear brand Outland. There's that little sanitary napkin and that whitening soap, too - both targeted for female consumers but curiously relying on the association with this male celebrity endorser. Come October, just after Kay Tagal's final book comes to a close, his first feature film, My First Romance, where he stars with her small-screen partner Bea Alonzo, is due for the movie houses. Talk about seizing the day.
"I never wanted to be an artista," says the boy who still dreams of becoming a pilot. "When I was growing up, every Sunday we had a family gathering, so we always watched mga Sunday noontime shows. My cousins, nababaduyan sila, 'Yuck, artista.' " And then a talent agent spotted him. "napilit nu'ng discoverer 'yung parents ko. Sabi nila dapat lang huwag ma-affect 'yung studies, so sinbukan ko."
His dad's business of selling marble wasn't doing as well as it used to. The family, which includes his mother Aida and two brothers, was struggling financially and the 14-year-old wanted to help. He was launched as part of Koolits, the trio of boys that included Baron Geisler and Marc Solis. Even with a regular stint at ASAP, the group never took off. He became the family's breadwinner when Tabing Ilong came.
"I learned to love the job lang after a year or so (in show biz), but not the craft," he says. "A year ago, du'n ko lang na-realize na 'Ay, ganito pala, ito pala 'yung craft na gusto ko.' " This was the time Kay Tagal arrived. It was also the break that would make him a star. That his name is now in the same privileged ranks as Piolo Pascual and Jericho Rosales is not surprising. He has that Piolo air of mystery, and Jericho's easy, approachable charm. He is Piolo but cooler and Jericho but more laidback. Like the two, he is steadfast in becoming a serious actor. The only difference, perhaps, is that their passion doesn't seem to occupy their minds the way it does John Lloyd's.
Whoever said it's easy to be an actor should have a session with the guy. And it's best to take him seriously because, after all he's already got notices. In 2001, Jericho lost in the Best Actor category of Star Awards for TV. He talks about getting into further, losing John Lloyd and embracing other personalities totally different from his. Like that of Rovic, the young father in Tabing Ilog, or Yuri, the vengeful son and lawyer in Kay Tagal (some text missing)
"I'll tell you what," he says, "Kapag mas bata ka, mas sensitive ka, madaling umarte, mas madaling umiyak. hindi mo pa alam yung craft so hindi mo ma-meet 'yung dalawa. Andun yung lines pero hindi mo alam kung paano mo i-deliver. As you grow old, you learn the craft but your emotions nagfe-fade out. If I'd been playing a role for a long time, mas pwedeng mag-endure sa isang pain for so long kase tatagal, matatanggap mo na 'yan, lilipas na 'yan, mawawala na 'yan, so du'n pumapasok yung craft. You get into the character, you learn techniques."
"Kaya as an artist, minsan gusto ko ng sakit eh, I'd love to welcome pain because I know it will help me in a way with my craft. So, parang, 'Come on, give it to me!' "
This is, the pain outside of the scripts come in trickles, if they come at all. The last time he was in major news was not even about him; it was about his girlfriend Ciara Sotto's rumored attempted suicide. Before that, the two had a sort of falling out and the gossip mills were citing this temporary break-up as cause for Ciara's being rushed to St. Luke's Hospital. The Sunday that followed, the young singer-actress celebrated her birthday in ASAP and she would tell her guest, cousin Mico Sotto, "Sana ikaw na lang boyfriend ko kase pinaglalaban mo girlfriends mo." John Lloyd chose to be quiet about all this, and now he and Ciara are a couple again.
Are there things about being an actor, one with the kind of popularity he now possesses, that keep him from living a more interesting personal life? "An actor's life is very interesting," he says. "Dami mo nakikilala, dami mong nagagawa. Feeling ko being an actor is a journey, portraying different roles. Parang ang sarap kase. Parang may nabubuksan kang isang side sa buhay mo. Hindi naman siya talaga nangyayari sa buhay mo pero parang, 'Ganito pala dito, dami mong nae-explore, kung saan-saan ka nakakarating. Actually it won't stop you from being someone or something. Siyempre merong downside, unang una, being an artista, nag-suffer studies ko, (and) time for my family (which) I'm trying to regain now."
The studies part is what he really wants to come back to, except that his schedule won't permit him yet (he was a sophomore under the Distance Learning Center when he stopped). For the teleserye alone, he tapes two to three times a week, from sun up to sun down. So he's trying to make the most of this moment. And getting as much life lessons as he can. "I find it more interesting kung nasaan ako ngayon. Alam ko importante pag-aaral pero mas masarap na teacher yung experience eh."
Indeed, where else would he rather be? In a club partying? He smiles again. It's part of group up, he says, taking this path that chooses to be more focused on this career, and this craft he's learned to love. After all, before he decided to meet Ciara's mom Helen Gamboa for the first time to ask for permission to court her daughter, he promised to himself that he would leave the party-hardy days behind.
"Alam ko, 'yung having fun, hindi mo mababayaran 'yan," he says. Never mind that he still doesn't get as much sleep as he wants, or that sometimes he still misses those non-stop all-nighters. Never mind the concealer retouches. For now, those things under his eyes are like badges of honor that say this boy's grown up, working hard and with the dark circles to prove it.