Birthday boy and Pambansang Bae Alden Richards thanked the members of the entertainment press for their unparalleled support by spending an afternoon with them on Sunday.
Right after his show Sunday PinaSaya, the actor who turned 27 on Jan. 2, headed directly to Concha’s Garden Cafe’, a restaurant he owned, located on Sct. Madriñan St, Diliman, in Quezon City.
“Sorry for being a bit late, I was just doing so many things,” he started.
After mingling with the press, the actor gladly welcomed their questions on what he plans to do in 2019, what his wish for himself was when he turned a year older, and what his fans can expect from him this New Year.
“I’m wishing for a love life in 2019,” was his straight answer. “Nothing stops me from having one right now but I find it difficult to find one because I’m really after the attitude of the person. I haven’t met someone who has the attitude I’m looking for. Basta supportive and understanding then I am okay, looks is just a bonus, either showbiz or non-showbiz.”
The bedimpled star is very secretive when the subject is about his romantic life but he assured the press that they would be the first to know once he’s found the “right one.”
The star, who was last seen in the action fantasy series Victor Magtanggol, felt ecstatic when the conversation was about his projects in 2019. He said that he has a movie in the offing, a television series which would air probably in the second or third quarter of the year, some shows overseas and a possible reunion with Maine Mendoza.
“I have international shows lined up starting Holy Week with GMA Pinoy TV, two in the US and one in the Middle East. Of course, I’m still with Eat Bulaga and Sunday Pinasaya. Then, by second or third quarter of the year, I’ll do a soap but we don’t have any concept yet,” Alden shared during the interview.
For his TV and movie projects, Alden wanted to explore characters different from the usual roles he portrays. If he were to choose, he prefers to do a drama or a TV series with dark theme.
“The last dark character I played was in the movie The Road. I like those kinds of roles because they allow me to showcase my talent,” he said further adding that they have already received a few movie pitches for romcom, horror, and dark stories, but they are still weighing their options which one to accept.
“It’s going to be my first movie after my movie with Maine so the management is really serious about planning things out,” he expressed.
Talking about his television comeback, there were rumors that he and Maine have been handpicked by the GMA Network bigwigs to play the lead roles in the local adaptation of the worldwide hit K-Drama, Descendants of the Sun. Although he would glad to do it, he said the projects have not been offered to him yet and he hasn’t heard any solid plans about the series, too.
“I really wish that it’s Maine and I who will star in the remake of Descendants of the Sun, but there’s no final word yet. I want to do drama this year, and Descendants is drama, the story is good sana nga,” Alden’s wishful response.
Apart from being fueled by his passion for his craft, Alden is also inspired by his desire for financial security. He has been aggressive in investing his hard-earned money in the food business—opening two branches of Concha’s Garden Cafe in less than a year and now his very own McDonald’s store.
“Our McDonalds store is opening soon in Biñan, Laguna. Probably in April. We are eyeing to open it on Easter Sunday. It’s just beside Perpetual University, which is along the highway,” he gladly shared.
“It was my family’s dream to have our own store. Before we used to dine in this McDonald’s store in a supermarket. And I thought they don’t allow people to have a franchise of the store but I said I wish one day we could have one because I’m an avid fan of the restaurant,” he added.
Since he’s busy and pretty much occupied by his showbiz commitments, Alden’s new fast-food restaurant will be managed by her sister.
Asked what inspired him to have his own store he said: “Maine shared the idea with me, she said owning a McDonald’s restaurant is a good business and some franchise owners I have met during my trips in the other provinces really encouraged me to open a store.”
He revealed that he did not get any special treatment when he applied for the business franchise. He went through the normal process of application and was surprised when he learned that there are only two Filipino celebrities who own McDonald’s franchise in the country.
“We went through the normal process of application, there’s no special treatment, and when we checked the record Maine and I are the only people in showbiz who appear to have McDonald’s stores to our name,” he said.
Meanwhile, talking about Maine Mendoza and AlDub Nation, Alden couldn’t hide how grateful he is for their fans’ continued support. He’s thankful for the people who still root for them despite not being together most of the time. But going separate ways contributed to their growth he said.
“Mas close kame ni Maine ngayon, we are open to each other so we hope we could do a project together this year. We are more mature now, being together as a love team for four years now. It helped that we parted ways temporarily because it allowed us to grow. I’m just very thankful to the fans who are still rooting for us despite us doing or having individual projects.”
“We just want to appreciate the good things that happen to us. We don’t discuss personal stuff but if she’s willing to share I am willing to listen,” he concluded.
