- Aiko Melendez had a rough time adjusting from Emilia Ardiente to Matadora
- She is now a happy and proud Bagani cast
- She talks about her thoughts of Wendell Ramos and Sunshine Cruz’ network transfer
There are cases that artist carry their roles in every project to real life, such as the one Aiko Melendez experienced when she suddenly shifted from a luxurious antagonist, Emilia Ardiente, in “Wildflower” to a fictional character as Matadora in “Bagani.”
Aiko Melendez admitted that she had a hard time phasing between her previous role and the current one. Luckily, she received great support from her directors who guided her how to let go of Emilia Ardiente. “Hindi talaga nila ako tinigilan hanggang mawala ko yung pagiging sosyal role ni Emilia. So, ngayon I can safely say, nakakawala na ako don sa ano, sa Wildflower,” she said.
Other than that, she also had a hard time doing action scenes. For a few-second scene, they had to film it for more than five hours. She described doing action scene as “Physically strenuous and draining.” But, Aiko was proud of the results when she saw herself on TV.
In the end, Aiko found love in her role as Matador in Bagani.
Two of the other “Wildflower” cast, Sunshine Cruz and Wendell Dizon, transferred to GMA Network just over a month after the series ended.
During Wendell Ramos’ interview, he stated that he has no issues with ABS-CBN. It’s just that he has an upcoming big project in GMA and he is needed there. As an artist, he goes wherever his career demands. He also stated that he considered the casts of “Wildflower” as his closest friends, and they continue to talk to each other until now.
Sunshine Cruz and Aiko Melendez also received an offer from GMA. Sunshine accepted the offer and followed Wendell Ramos, while Aiko remained loyal to the Kapamilya Network. “I opted to stay with Kapamilya dahil nga ang ganda nung Bagani,” Aiko remarked.
Aiko is happy with Wendell and Sunshine’s decision. She is open to the idea that their acting career is just like the regular career, you go where you know you can grow. She also admitted that she became pretty close to Sunshine and believed that her friend will be coming back to ABS-CBN.
“I’m pretty sure, if after her project with sa kabilang bakod, she’d be happy to be back here in Kapamilya network. Kasi ang Kapamilya, iba rin naman kasing katrabaho,” she concluded.
