Since entering showbiz as a child actress, Barbie Forteza has become known for showcasing her talent in drama and romance, starring in various primetime projects through the years. This year, she decided to take on a very different kind of role as she expands her range in acting. In her latest film, Saving Cherry, she plays the role of new bride Cherry Valdez who discovers that the love of her life (played by Khalil Ramos) has not been totally faithful to her.
“Ang role ko dito ay I am the wildest virgin you will ever see and you will find out why. I’m excited for everyone to see it dahil iba talaga ito eh. Nung binasa ko yung script, sabi ko talaga, ‘Ah okay, patong-patong kami? Okay, okay? Go!’ . Dito in-unleash ko lang yung wild side ko. Yun lang,” she shared.
“Actually ang saya. Aminin natin, hindi naman lahat pag mabait, mabait di ba? So hindi ko rin akalain na may ganun din akong side. Wild pero may dahilan, may lalim, and most of all, so far ito yung most mature role ko because we will tackle marriage eh. Eto yung role ko na kasal na ako agad-agad, umpisa pa lang. So marami talagang pagdadaanan ang pelikula namin and we would all love for all of you to join us in this journey,” she said.
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Compared to her roles in previous projects, Barbie admitted that playing Cherry is on a whole different level. “She is the wildest woman I’ve ever portrayed to date! And most freeing I think, for me. And lahat yun pinagpapasalamat ko kay Direk Ivan (Payawal) — not just yung role, pero yung freedom of approaching every scene. Binigyan niya kaming lahat ng buong laya as to how we understood every scene. Nakinig siya sa amin and he is a really good captain.”
The Saving Cherry star also talked about how she was able to shift from drama to comedy in her comeback project with Regal Films.
“It was very challenging kasi yung timpla. Iba kasi yung nag-shi-shift, iba yung pinagsasama mo yung more than one emotion eh. Dahil may mga eksenang ganun si Direk Ivan sa akin. Ako naman bilang pinagkatiwalaan talaga, hanggang sa abot ng makakaya ko, kung ano man ang in-order sa akin, I try to deliver really. Siguro lagi ko lang tinatandaan na dahil lahat kami ay na one-on-one ni Direk Ivan bago kami mag-script reading. So bago namin mabasa yung script as a group, kargado na kami kasi alam namin yung gusto niyang mangyari. Alam na namin yung vision niya. And so with Cherry, sabi niya all out comedy ito, as in wild comedy. Pero punong-puno ito ng puso. So yun din ang ginawa ko. Kahit nagpapatawa ako, totoo yung emosyon. Kahit ang atake or ang scene objective is supposed to be funny, where I’m coming from emotionally should be real and coming from a place of truth lagi,” she explained.
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While she is ready to go wild in film, Barbie admitted that doing it on television is a whole other decision that she is not ready to make just yet. “Feeling ko lahat ng ginawa ko dito hindi ko puwede gawin sa TV. Parang ganun eh. Actually, meron kaming isang location, hindi na-approve ni Daddy. Ayaw niya. Sabi niya, ‘Barbie, dito ba yung location natin?’ Hindi approve sa magulang ko, ganung level. Pero excited sila. They’re both very excited to see this dahil nga ibang-ibang Barbie ito. Pero ito ang masasabi ko, alam ko rin naman na pelikula siya, alam ko rin na gagastos ang manunuod nito, so I made sure at least kahit papaano, hopefully, maging worth it yung ibabayad nila kasi hindi mo nga ito mapapanuod sa free TV,” she revealed.
One of Barbie’s favorite moments when the cameras weren’t rolling was when she was just hanging out with her co-stars, some of whom she has never worked with before this project and play her barkada in the film. “I-su-sum up ko na lahat nang naging bonding namin off-cam. Nag-translate siya on cam when we shot our very last scene all together. Totoo yung emosyon namin kasi ang dami na naming pinagdaanan off-cam. So I guess I would say na off-cam na rin siya kasi parang naging totoong Mikee, Mika, AC, at Sassa kami eh, nung huling eksena. Yung adlibs na yun eh, totoo na yun eh, galing na sa puso lahat yun. So yung foundation ng friendship na nabuo namin makikita niyo talaga sa pelikula,” she recalled.
Saving Cherry stars Barbie Forteza, Mika Salamanca, Mikee Quintos, AC Bonifacio, Sassa Gurl, JC Alcantara, and Khalil Ramos. Directed by Ivan Andrew Payawal under Regal Films, the movie opens exclusively in cinemas nationwide on September 2, 2026.