In “Mallari,” Piolo Pascual proves he can still surprise us, 25 years since his start in showbiz

Right from the get-go, it was obvious the horror film “Mallari” had what it takes to become a respectable box-office hit. It had two things going for it.

One, the film is supposedly about Father Juan Severino Mallari, the country’s first reported serial killer. Not much is known about Mallari, except for a few established facts: he was a Filipino Catholic priest who served in Magalang, Pampanga during the 19th century. He reportedly killed 57 people. He was hanged for his crimes in 1840.

There was palpable interest in the story of Mallari. Around the time Mentorque Productions revealed that they were working on a movie about Mallari, Variety reported that a series about the Philippines’ first documented serial killer titled “Severino” starring Dennis Trillo was in development.

The interest in Mallari only grew when it was chosen to be part of the 2023 Metro Manila Film Festival, chosen over other high-profile films reportedly submitted to the MMFF for consideration — specifically, long-running horror franchise “Shake, Rattle and Roll” and the Nadine Lustre starrer “Nokturno.”

Directed by Derick Cabrido and written by Enrico Santos, “Mallari” turned out to be an ambitious horror film that features three separate time periods, requiring its lead actor to play three different characters: serial killer parish priest Severino Mallari from the 1800s, documentary filmmaker Johnrey Mallari from 1948, and doctor Jonathan de Dios in the present day. The film isn’t about Mallari, the biographical figure, per se. Instead, it borrows from what little Mallari lore is available to create a high-concept horror film that involves the expected jump scares, Philippine mythology, and time travel.

"Mallari," according to unofficial reports and industry talks, is doing well at the box office. Critical and audience responses vary. Some viewers describe it as a “breathtaking horror movie.” Critics have praised the film for its “interesting imagery” with a “couple of neat ideas” but it “doesn't stand up to scrutiny.” At the 2023 MMFF Gabi ng Parangal, "Mallari" won 3rd Best Picture, Best Musical Score, and Best Visual Effects. Actor JC Santos also won Best Supporting Actor.

What stands up to scrutiny, it can be said, is the second thing "Mallari" has got going for it: its lead actor, Piolo Pascual.

Piolo fever

Pascual is an interesting choice to headline "Mallari."

Given online reactions to his casting earlier this year, it may have seemed like an easy, obvious choice. The actor is celebrating his 25th year in show business this year, which should be proof enough that he has the acting chops to star in a movie that requires him to play three characters.

Of course, it helps that, as an actor local show business may consider among its top leading men, Pascual should have a fan base to help propel the film to box office success.

Audience consideration was important for John Bryan Diamante, president of Mentorque Productions. As a new film producer (his company produced the 2022 MMFF entry “My Father, Myself”), there is pressure to earn big. And because “Mallari” is essentially a period film, producing it wasn’t cheap. “I was able to make five movies last year. Lahat ng kinita ko doon, nilagay ko dito. We decided to do one film this year instead of five. We really focused on this,” Diamante said.

These two factors made Pascual their main choice to headline “Mallari”.

“There were considerations for other actors din naman. But siya ang first choice namin, e,” Cabrido said.

Cabrido, who previously directed horror films “Clairta” and “U-Turn,” said the film might have turned out differently had Pascual declined the offer to do “Mallari.” That means “Mallari’s” primary conceit — one actor playing the film’s three central characters — may have been scrapped if they got a different actor.

But looking at Pascual’s filmography and career history, you might say the actor isn’t actually the obvious choice — which makes the success of “Mallari” an indication that Pascual still has a lot of things to offer past his 25 years in show business.

The ultimate

Joining showbiz in 1994 through the afternoon variety show “That’s Entertainment,” and the children’s TV show “ATBP: Awit, Titik, Bilang na Pambata,” Pascual attained mainstream popularity, much like his contemporaries, via primetime soap operas in the late 1990s. But it was his onscreen love team with Judy Ann Santos that propelled him to stardom.

He was, at one point, considered the most commercially successful young male star of Star Cinema, the film outfit of his home TV network ABS-CBN. His films with Santos during the late 1990s and the early 2000s — particularly “Kahit Isang Saglit,” “Bakit Di Totohanin,” and “Till There Was You” — were hits. These films were also precursors to what eventually became Star Cinema’s bread and butter a decade later: romance dramas and romantic comedy films starring ABS-CBN’s top TV love teams.

Thus began Pascual’s reputation as showbiz’s “ultimate leading man.”

What made Pascual’s early filmography interesting were his roles in two seminal Star Cinema films: the 2002 MMFF entry “Dekada ‘70,” a movie adaptation of the Laulhati Bautista novel of the same name, and “Milan,” the 2004 romantic drama which also stars Claudine Barretto. The films are straight dramas; one is about a Filipino family’s struggles during martial law under Ferdinand Marcos, and the other is a love story that features the struggles of the Filipino diasporic working class.

In short: movies with themes the mass audience don’t often associate with Star Cinema’s box office machinery. (It should be noted, however, that Star Cinema is known for producing films with Filipino diasporic narratives).

“Dekada ‘70” and “Milan” remain in the local Filipino audience’s consciousness as Pascual’s best film performances.

For instance, Diamante considers Pascual’s performance in “Dekada 70” as among his personal favorites.

The films’ importance in local cinema and pop culture has also helped obscure the fact that, from the late 2000s until the early 2010s, Pascual has had his share of misses and critical misfires.

Pascual isn’t the box office draw some people may think he is. To be sure, this isn’t entirely his fault, having starred in movies that may be deemed experimental (for Star Cinema’s standards, anyway). But soon enough, Pascual had to give up his distinction as Star Cinema’s most successful young male star.

For instance, in 2008, he starred in “Love Me Again” with Angel Locsin. According to figures released by Star Cinema, the film earned around 70 million pesos at the box office. This was a gross for a movie in the late 2000s by any means — but an achievement that seemed smaller when compared to the 200 million-peso box office gross of John Lloyd Cruz’s “You Changed My Life” (with Sarah Geronimo) and the ₱137 million gross of “In My Life” that same year.

What should be noted during this period is Pascual’s involvement in independent films. He starred in and produced a couple of them, to varying results. But this was a time when actors of his stature very rarely get involved with indie films — perhaps an indication of his desire to step out of the romantic, pretty boy roles he’s known for. Later, with director Joyce Bernal and talent manager Erickson Raymundo, Pascual built the film production firm Spring Films.

In 2014, Pascual attained box office success with the romantic film “Starting Over Again,” which also stars Toni Gonzaga.

“Starting Over Again” was pivotal in Pascual’s career. Not only is it his biggest box office success to date, but it also convinced him to stay in show business.

In an interview during the thanksgiving party of “Starting Over Again,” Pascual revealed he was considering retiring from showbiz after the release of the movie.

"I was seriously considering quitting this year pero when the movie became a big hit, I said the joke is on me. I guess hindi pa po time para umalis ako sa showbiz,” he told members of the press.

Following romantic mainstream films such as “The Breakup Playlist” with Sarah Geronimo, Pascual did a rethread of what he did after his string of hits in the 2000s: produce and star in independent films.

2016 saw the beginning of Pascual’s collaborations with director Lav Diaz in “Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis” — which, interestingly, also stars John Lloyd Cruz. During promotions for the film’s local release, showbiz press highlighted Pascual and Cruz’s perceived rivalry during the late 2000s. Pascual later worked with Diaz in the 2018 musical “Ang Panahon ng Halimaw.”

More than range

Before “Mallari,” one would be hard pressed to cite an important Piolo Pascual work outside of “Starting Over Again” and his Lav Diaz films. Which isn’t to say the appeal of Pascual has waned. If anything, this just proves that his power remains timeless.

Pascual does not need to stay in the spotlight to remain relevant. He can afford to wait for the right project, one that deserves his presence.

An example of this is the 2023 “Replacing Chef Chico,” the first original Filipino series on Netflix. While the series is undeniably Alessandra de Rossi’s show, it proved he still has the charm to pull off being a project’s romantic interest.

Cabrido attributes this to Pascual’s innate ability to jump from one type of film project to another. But it is more than just a matter of skill and range, he said.

Rather, Cabrido said Pascual is one of the few local actors who has the “commercial appeal na may sapat na hatak sa tao para panoorin yung pelikula” but who can also process and express emotions for more “artistic” projects.

“Hindi kasi lahat ng artista, merong ganun,” he said.

Cabrido shared that Pascual’s turn in “Starting Over Again” remains his favorite performance of the actor, as it shows “meron pa syang pwedeng ibigay.

“And not all actors do that, yung kayang tumalon from a commercial to an art film. Hindi siya simple, e. Hindi siya madaling trabaho. Madaling sabihin na, yeah, magaling siyang artista na kaya niyang tumalon ng ganun. But to internalize and process the characters sa mga films na yun, lalo na the films of Lav Diaz, tumatalon to Star Cinema films, ibang bagay yun.

“For me, hindi ako nagdalawang isip na he could deliver the material or what we were asking him to do,” he said.

While Pascual failed to win the Best Actor award at the 2023 MMFF Gabi ng Parangal, it’s clear his performance in “Mallari” will be remembered as proof that he deserves the title of Philippine showbiz’s ultimate leading man — and that, even in his 25th year in show business, he has what it takes to surprise us.