Minsan pang mapasama sa bottom three ang Fil-Am StarStruck V finalist na si Ian Batherson ay automatic na siyang matatanggal. Among the remaining eight finalists, si Ian at ang Filipino-Japanese na si Nina Kodaka ang nasa gano'ng posisyon.
Sa pocket presscon na ipinatawag ng GMA-7 para sa natitirang contenders ng StarStruck V last Wednesday, January 20, nakausap ng PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) si Ian. Tinanong namin kung ano ang nararamdaman niya ngayon parang nasa hukay na ang isa niyang paa?
"Sobrang kinakabahan po ako," pag-amin ng 21-year-old commercial model. "Maraming pressure, tapos malapit nang matapos yung StarStruck. So, maraming mixed feelings ako. Parang mabuti kung natanggal ako early, di ba? Kasi nakalagay ako sa bottom three, two times in a row. Parang kung may third time in a row, okay lang. Pero mas mahirap na ngayon kasi I kept surviving all these weeks, every week. So, parang it means so much to me. So, kung matanggal ako just so easily, it will hurt.
"Gusto ko talaga manalo dito. Or hindi [man] manalo, top four talaga. Kung top four ako, I'll be so happy. Kasi it's like I'm cheating death every week. Parang I'm walking on a tightrope. Pag malapit na ako sa destination ko, parang it gets more windy. So I'm skating on thin ice," tuluy-tuloy na sabi ni Ian na talagang pinipilit magsalita ng Tagalog.
A CINDERELLA STORY. Last Sunday, Jan. 17, hindi man nakasama sa bottom three si Ian ay wala namang natanggal sa kanilang mga kasamahan. Iniligtas kasi ng StarStruck Council members na sina Floy Quintos, Iza Calzado, at Lolit Solis ang nasa bottom two na sina Rocco Nacino at Sarah Lahbati sa bisa ng Factor 2. Sa Factor 2, maaaring itigil ng Council members ang elimination kung magkakasundo silang lahat. Isang beses lamang itong magagamit ng StarStruck Council at ginamit na nga nila ito para iligtas sina Rocco at Sarah.
Ano ang naging reaksiyon ni Ian nang hindi na-eliminate sina Rocco at Sarah?
"Of course, masaya po ako kasi silang dalawa, kaibigan ko talaga," sabi niya. "Pero there's also a competitive side of me that is thinking like, sayang talaga kasi I was hoping kung mapalagay ako sa bottom three, they can use Factor 2 on me. Pero ngayon, ubos na yung Factor 2. So, hindi na puwede.
"So, sobrang maraming pressure ngayon. Yun ang totoong feelings ko for that. But masaya ako kasi alam ko talaga yung dalawa, si Sarah tapos si Rocco, malakas silang dalawa. They deserve to stay."
So, he's just hanging on?
"I am hanging on, pero it could be a Cinderella story kung manalo ako," ngiti niya. "Kasi pagsimula nung StarStruck, ako talaga yung one of the underdogs. Like yung Tagalog ko... Pero I'm making an effort magsalita sa Tagalog. Talagang halata yung effort ko sa Tagalog. Hard!"
Except for his difficulty in speaking Tagalog, ano sa palagay ni Ian ang advantage niya sa ibang male contenders na sina Rocco, Enzo Pineda, at Steven Silva?
"Well, Ms. Lolit Solis and the rest of the Council, like Direk Floy and Ms. Iza, said I'm a charming guy, I have charms. So I also think that my charm got me this far in the competition," sagot niya.
Pero gaano tatagal yung charm niya sa competition?
"Pero pinakita ko talaga yung improvement ko. Kasi last week, I was picked by Direk Floy for the acting challenge [with Eula Valdes]. 'Tapos two weeks before, I was consistent in all three challenges... I was mentioned by Direk Brillante [Mendoza] for my acting. 'Tapos, the hosting, Lucy Torres and Wilma Doesnt, they mentioned me. 'Tapos si Kyla, she mentioned me as well.
"So, ever since that week, parang I have this new thing of confidence. It's not overconfidence, pero... Kasi dati, parang wala akong confidence. Kasi nung una talaga, palagi ako sa bottom three. Pero ngayon, parang there's a chance. Pero also it's a double effort. Meron akong chance, pero chances are also slim. Kasi pag isang bottom three, wala na. Yun talaga yung feeling ko," mahabang saad ni Ian.
Among the three boys na natitira, sino sa tingin ni Ian ang pinakamatindi niyang kalaban?
"Ang toughest competitor ko talaga po, si Rocco talaga," sagot niya. "Pero gusto ko talaga makasama... Kung nakasama ako sa top four, for the top two guys, if I was ever to be it, gusto ko kasama talaga si Rocco. Kasi feeling ko talaga, deserving siya. He went through... Parang parehas kami ng situation. Kasi, we both play [musical] instruments. I play guitar, he plays drums... It would be pretty cool.
"Tapos parang maganda kung yung winner talaga, isang Pinoy at isang mestizo. Parang it's really nice. Kasi first time in StarStruck, di ba? Kasi alam ko talaga, they're trying to make this season different. And in making this season different, it would be nice to make it one mestizo and one Pinoy [in the finals]. Not two mestizos or not two Pinoys, or two mestizos na hindi marunong mag-Tagalog!"
ISSUE WITH ENZO. Is he good friends with Rocco?
"Yeah, we're pretty close friends."
What about Enzo?
"We're okay. We're friends," sabi ni Ian. "But with Enzo, parang hindi talagang close kami. Actually with the Top 8, we're all close kasi we're always together. But, yeah, we're actually close, to be honest. We're close, but not like me and Rocco, or me and Steven, something like that."
Very vocal sina Ian at Rocco sa kanilang pangamba na posibleng gamitin ni Enzo ang yaman ng kanyang pamilya para makausad sa competition sa pamamagitan ng text votes. Sa magkahiwalay na interview ng PEP kina Enzo at Rocco ay sinabi nilang hindi nila pinag-uusapan ang bagay na ito. Kinausap ba ni Ian si Enzo tungkol dito?
"Hindi kay Enzo kasi ayaw [ko] siyang magalit," pag-amin niya. "I think lahat ng pagsimula ng StarStruck, kahit Top 14 na, lahat ng taga-Starstruck... I'm not gonna mention names, but it's always been brought up... Pero hindi ko talaga sigurado if he [Enzo] does use his money for votes.
"Pero I will say this though," patuloy ni Ian, "si Enzo, he went to the same stuff we did. Yung waiting period namin, he waited just like us. Yung challenges, he did the challenges just like us. Parehas talaga yung experience namin. So, wala siya talagang special treatment dito.
"Pero the voting thing is different kasi hindi ko talaga... I don't know, hindi ako psychic, hindi ko talaga alam kung nagbabayad siya or hindi. So I have no right to accuse that he bought votes. Maybe he doesn't, maybe talagang..."
But is there a possibility?
"Yeah, there's a possibility," sagot niya. "There's always a possibility na merong pera. Coz I think if kung meron akong maraming pera parehas, I would... I don't really know kasi I'm not in that position. Pero there could be a possibility also. So, hindi talaga ako sigurado. I'm just being honest."
But he's not taking it against Enzo naman porke maykaya ang pamilya nito?
"No, like... he's a good guy for being a man in his position. Maraming sa position niya na parang mayabang. But he is actually a pretty nice guy. But, talagang advantage niya."
THE NEXT SAM MIBLY? What was the hardest challenge for him so far?
"Yung unang acting test kasama si Katrina Halili," sagot ni Ian. "Kasi yung lines, like we only have three hours to memorize. Tapos yung lines sa Tagalog. Tapos, I was against the wall, tapos si Katrina tinawag and I turned around. Parang starstruck ako dito sa StarStruck! Nakita ko siya 'tapos nakalimutan ko yung lines ko. Yun ang talagang nahirapan talaga ako. It was just a bad thing."
Ang acting test na tinutukoy ni Ian ay ang paggaya nila ng isang prison scene mula sa isang eksena sa dating afternoon soap na Magdusa Ka, na pinagbidahan nina Katrina at Dennis Trillo.
Pero in fairness, malaki na ang improvement ni Ian sa challenges at napapansin din ito ng Council members at mentors. But why does he deserve to become the Ultimate Male Survivor?
"Kasi po naiwan ko yung lahat ng ginagawa ko sa Guam, 'tapos sa States. I gave up everything I have to come here to do my dream, which is to become an artista. Ito talaga yung dream ko ever since I was 15. Pero nag-aaral pa ako sa high school. Sabi ng parents ko, 'Okay, mag-try ka, pero pagkatapos ng high school.' So, parang waiting game talaga yun. Kasi alam ko talaga kung anong gusto kong gagawin. And it's to be an artista dito sa Pilipinas.
"They also asked me, 'Bakit hindi ka nag-try sa States?' Pero I said kasi, parang mas challenging dito. I want to take the challenge. Kasi sa States, I know English fluently. Pero dito, parang I'm taking on the challenge. Tapos parang I wanna show off that I'm a proud Pinoy. Kalahati lang ako, alam ko yun. Pero I also want to show that I'm a proud Filipino and I can do something. I can make a difference here and be an artista. Kasi ang mukha ko, I really look like an American. So, I want to show that, you know, that you could be half-Filipino, pero meron kang future sa showbiz dito sa Pilipinas.
"Like for instance, Sam Milby," patuloy ni Ian. "To be honest, he's one of my idols here. Kasi parehas ang sitwasyon namin. We were the same age when we left [the States]. Nagsimula siya ng modeling, ako din nagsimula ako nag-model. Tapos nag-enter siya sa PBB [Pinoy Big Brother], nag-enter ako sa StarStruck. Tapos, 21... I turned 21 last week.
"So, parang I look up to him a lot. Kasi pagsimula niya, hindi siya marunong mag-Tagalog, like not even a sentence. So, pag nakita ko na si Sam, parang there's talagang hope for me. Like puwede na ako maging artista dito. Siya talaga yung motivation ko. Oo nga, hindi ako marunong mag-Tagalog masyado. But Sam Milby, he risked it all tapos ngayon he's one of the biggest stars here. I was like, you know, Sam Milby did it, so why don't I try? He's a motivation for me. He's awesome to make it this far.
"Kasi akala ko kanina pa ako matanggal, earlier. Tapos I'm outlasting all these other guys, like Piero [Vergara], Sef [Cadayona]... Akala ko sila yung manalo, pero it's an awesome feeling. Oh man, it feels so good!" tuluy-tuloy na sabi niya.
"I'M SO MOTIVATED NOW." If ever na hindi siya makasama sa Top 2 boys, sa palagay kaya ni Ian ay may chance pa siya to become the next Sam Milby?
"I think puwede po," kampanteng sagot niya. "Kasi si Sam Milby, hindi siya nanalo, mabilis siyang natanggal... Also, it depends on kung anong gagawin mo pagkatapos ng StarStruck. Kung meron kang magaling na manager, if he can give you projects, or kung if you really want it. Kasi maybe there's some people who gusto silang mag-StarStruck pero parang pagkatapos sabi, 'Oh, it's not for me.' Pero ako, this is for me. Nagpunta ako dito to be in showbiz. I'm at the doorway now. Ito talaga yung key ko sa showbiz. I was given the key. So, pagkatapos ng StarStruck, I'm gonna open the door. I'm so motivated now."
Nabanggit din ni Ian na meron daw mga Fil-Ams na humihingi ng advice sa kanya dahil gusto rin nilang pumasok sa showbiz.
"I just tell them, 'You know, kung meron kang dreams, talagang go for it. You only live once, isa lang talaga ang buhay mo," payo niya sa mga nagtatanong sa kanya.
Dagdag ni Ian, "So I just think, for me kung tapos na yung StarStruck, kahit matalo ako, manalo ako, I'm still gonna go full force."
So, it's not all about the title?
"The title would be nice!" natatawang sabi ni Ian. "Yung title ko, gusto ko talaga, Ultimate Hunk. I want that title. Kasi I was a model before. It would be awesome to have that title. Kasi kahit hindi Ultimate Survivor, Ultimate Hunk, I would be happy."
Sinabi ng PEP kay Ian na ngayong season ng StarStruck ay dalawa lang ang mananalo as Ultimate Male Survivor and Ultimate Female Survivor. Sa Batch 4 ng StarStruck ay apat ang nanalo, sina Aljur Abrenica (Ultimate Hunk), Jewel Mische (Ultimate Sweetheart), at sina Mart Escudero at Kris Bernal (Ultimate Loveteam).
"Walang hunk? Talaga? So, walang limang winners?" nagtatakang tanong ni Ian.
Sabi naman namin, dalawang Ultimate Survivors at magiging First Prince at First Princess ang dalawang runners-up.
"I would like to win First Prince," sambit ni Ian. "Actually, I would like Ultimate Survivor, pero kahit First Prince na lang. Sobrang saya ko kasi meron akong title. Kasi kung hindi ka manalo, they'll be asking, 'O, 'yan si Ian sa StarStruck.' 'Kailan ka natanggal?' 'Pang fourth, pang fifth...' Pero, 'Ay, siya yung First Prince,' ganyan, I think it would be nice. It would be an awesome feeling kasi I've been cheating death all this time."
Ayaw niyang maging Avenger?
"Ayaw ko talagang maging Avenger. Grabe naman yung pangalan, Avenger! Hindi ako Avenger, I wanna be a Prince," nakangiting sabi ni Ian.