Tom Rodriguez originally got started in showbiz by becoming a housemate in Pinoy Big Brother: Double Up. After he got evicted from the Pinoy Big Brother house, he signed under Star Magic and made his television debut in Precious Hearts Romances Presents: My Cheating Heart. This lead to other projects with ABS CBN such as a small role in an episode of Maalaala Mo Kaya with Angel Locsin, he also played the love interest of Valerie Concepcion in Precious Hearts Romances Presents: Love Me Again, he made his film debut in Here Comes The Bride and later appeared in the film Petrang Kabayo.
In 2011, Rodriguez was cast in the remake film of Temptation Island in 1980 opposite Marian Rivera which catapulted him to superstardom. Rodriguez later appeared in ABS-CBN’s hit drama series Angelito: Batang Ama as a regular and in the year 2012, he also appeared in the movie The Reunion and in the hit daytime soap Be Careful with My Heart. He played Jeff Macavinta as the father of Aiza Seguerra’s character, Cristina Rose’s son, Pocholo.
In 2013, Rodriguez left Be Careful with My Heart and signed a three-year exclusive contract with GMA Network. Since then he has appeared in several notable TV shows such as My Destiny, Someone To Watch Over Me, Mulawin versus Ravena, I Heart Davao, The Cure, and Love of My Life. He also appeared in several movies such as So It’s You, The Amazing Praybeyt Benjamin, No Boyfriend Since Birth, The Significant Other, and Maledicto. Currently, he’s one of the leading protagonists in the drama romance series The World Between Us where he plays Bryan Libradilla.
InLife Australia recently caught up with Tom to discuss his role in World Between Us and here’s what went down:
Can you tell us about your role as Bryan in The World Between Us?
I play Bryan Libradilla, he’s the eldest Libradilla sibling. Bryan is really starved for love, he’s longing for it. But the ironic part is, the love is there, in fact, it’s abundant but he’s not seeing it because he’s only looking for it in a very shallow, selfish, and one-dimension way. He doesn’t see that there’s love available there for him. To the point where he feels he’s been starved and deprived of love so much that he starts to harbour insecurities to the point where he starts to hurt the people that are there readily available to give him the love. I find Bryan a very ironic and tragic character.
How is this character like you? Different?
There are some parts of the character I can relate to – like being the eldest in the family. There are 6 of us siblings in my family, I have 2 older sisters but I’m the eldest male so I always carried that type of misplaced sort of pressure, where I have to be the man of the house and I have to be this and that… To the point that when I was going through puberty I was very very strict with my siblings. I love the relationship I have with my siblings now, we’re all super cool and very much bonded. But when I was growing up, this was when I was about 12 or 13, I was so strict because I felt I was the man of the house and I had the right to be strict. I can relate to my character in the series as if we both have this possessive type of love. I didn’t really try to understand what my siblings were going through at the time, I was just seeing everything from my perspective which caused a lot of friction with my siblings when we were growing up.
What’s the biggest challenge to taking on this role?
I found Bryan’s character very challenging because I knew how the audience would perceive him. I wanted him to not just be blood-driven though, I want viewers to understand that the things that he does are coming from a real place – that he’s not just an a**hole for the sake of being one. Luckily, the script involves the characters in the plot in a very big way so there’s less pressure on the actor. That said, there’s still the challenge for me to deliver what’s on the script.
Besides yourself, which actor/s in this series is going to blow people away?
I would say, Jasmine is one because she really goes into detail in relation to her character. It’s her little nuances that make a difference – even the way she would move or the way she would run was on point. There was a scene in the series where it was the first day of school and she ran like a little schoolgirl. Since I’ve seen the script I’m excited to see the other version of Lia and the type of nuances she’s going to apply to the character – I love how she just morphs into her character!
Another character I think would blow people away is Alden. I’m betting that people will be surprised by Alden as well. Just like everyone else, I’m excited to see that grey part of his character. Alden has been so excited about this that he’s going to blow people away. He’s been wanting to do this a very long time.
What has been the most memorable experience of your career so far?
Well, so far this series! It’s the most recent, and things are literally happening as we speak. I’m glad to still have work in this pandemic and I’m grateful for the opportunity.
I find it so powerful to be a part of this industry and this medium. Not only the collaboration of us on the set but also the feedback we get from the viewers.
The World Between Us returns with new episodes on November 15. It also airs abroad via GMA’s flagship international channel, GMA Pinoy TV. To subscribe, visit GMA Pinoy TV.
