Some big shoes to fill for this budding love team
Being born to prominent showbiz parents is often a double-edged sword. On one hand, the advantages go without saying: early immersion in the industry, access to influential people who can open doors, and financial and professional support to fall back on. But the disadvantages can be just as overwhelming. Comparisons are inevitable, and many struggle to define themselves beyond being extensions or beneficiaries of family legacy.
Robbie Jaworski and Angelina Cruz know a thing or two about this reality. They understand from the get-go that following in their parents’ footsteps mean filling their big shoes. It’s a daunting prospect, but at the very least, the cards have already been laid out for them.
How they play their hand, though, is entirely up to them. “There’s always that kind of pressure. But it’s up to us whether we use that as a tool to motivate us to work harder or see it as a distraction that affects and bothers us,” says Jaworski, son of former basketball player and Pasig City Vice Mayor Dodot Jaworski and former actress and decorated equestrian Mikee Cojuangco.
An honor and privilege
Cruz always opts for the former. If you have acclaimed actors like Cesar Montano and Sunshine Cruz for parents, who needs an acting coach?
“It’s a big advantage because they get to guide me with my acting. I learned some of the nuances from my dad. They teach me exercises I can do before my scenes,” Cruz shares in a recent roundtable interview. “There’s pressure, and expectations are high, but I feel like the good things outweigh the bad.”
“I was also taught that consistency is key,” adds the 24-year-old actress. “Practicing, working hard, and honing your talent—these things aren’t just one-off efforts.”
And the perks aren’t limited on set; every so often, they also play out in real life. There were instances in public, Jaworski recalls, when people would shove past him to get to his grandfather, the basketball legend and former senator Robert Jaworski. But then they find out who he is, and suddenly he’s treated with kindness and respect.
“It’s an honor and privilege being born to a family that’s appreciated and acknowledged by many,” Jaworski says. “So it’s a blessing.”
But of course, it does get to a point where he starts wondering if that’s all there is to him. He knows it’s not—but he still has to prove it. Right now, he has found an unexpected niche in hosting as a VJ in the music channel Myx, and has recently forayed into acting. His recent projects include the movie “Meet, Greet & Bye,” and the television series “The Alibi,” which marked his first onscreen pairing with Cruz.
“I’m still trying to find my own way out of the big shadows they have cast,” Jaworski, 25, says. “We’re not our parents—we’re our own people. I hope I can continue discovering the passion as I work on my roles and gain more experience.”
The perfect icebreaker
The process won’t be easy, his mother cautioned, because leaving a mark often entails being his authentic self and making peace with the fact that there’s no pleasing everybody. “She tells me to just be myself. People will react either negatively or positively, and that’s okay,” Jaworski says. “It’s always better than pretending someone you’re not.”
It’s exactly this way that the two actors’ chemistry developed. Jaworski is the fun and talkative one—“not in an annoying way,” jokes Cruz, who, in turn, has a quiet demeanor that shouldn’t be mistaken for guardedness. And this natural contrast translates well onscreen in “The Alibi,” where they play the younger siblings of Kim Chiu’s and Paulo Avelino’s characters.
Curiously, it was from Jaworski that Cruz first learned that they would be working together. He got wind of the news and spilled it to her at the ABS-CBN Ball. But while they were aware of each other and had crossed paths at a previous go-see, they hadn’t really had the chance to talk.
But they knew the perfect icebreaker. Montano and Cojuangco starred in two movies in the 1990s, “Kasangga Kahit Kailan” and “Manalo, Matalo, Mahal Kita.” “It’s like a full circle moment,”
“There was also a period in 2013 or 2014 when I found myself playing basketball with Angelina’s dad almost every Sunday—only by chance,” he says. “The ways we were connected before we got to actually meet are pretty interesting. So I was like, ‘Panindigan na natin ‘to!”
Unlocking their potential
Sure enough, Cruz already has an idea what their next project should be. “I would love to do a horror project. I grew up watching horror films with my mom and sisters; it was our bonding time,” she says. “I want to play someone crying out of fear, the final girl, or maybe the girl who turns out to be the murderer. Or maybe the manananggal. That would be cool, too.”
Individually, Jaworski hopes to continue landing acting projects and hosting gigs. Cruz, on the other hand, has been raring to revisit music, her first pathway to showbiz in 2018. But should their screen tandem gain momentum and eventually grow into a full-fledged love team, they will gladly take the opportunity.
“Of all genres, the one that helps you grow your craft and earn people’s appreciation is through romantic roles. We could have gotten lesser, non-romantic parts that wouldn’t have allowed us to unlock our potential,” Jaworski says. “So I’m grateful that this is how we started.”
