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Jerry Donato - The Philippine Star
April 13, 2025 | 12:00am
Stereotypes help anyone navigate a whodunit or murder mystery story, while surprises keep a reader or a viewer on the edge of the seat.
After airing a dozen episodes and more to broadcast, viewers of the GMA-Viu collaboration, “SLAY,” are interested to find out if the female characters of Liv, Amelie, Yana and Sugar, played well by Julie Anne San Jose, Gabbi Garcia, Ysabel Ortega and Mikee Quintos, respectively, have something up their sleeves. It is expected to change one’s first impression or initial perception.
That’s why Mikee was inquired about what televiewers can look forward to from her role as Sugar, such as a secret or a surprise in the latter’s persona and past, during the show’s recent press conference.
“Hmmm… feeling ko naman, may mga ganung effect din (I feel like there’s a similar effect or aspect to how the character is written),” answered Mikee.
“I remember saying during the story con… I challenged the cast and said (to them), ‘Magpagalingan tayo sa show na ‘to’ (‘Let’s compete and show our best’)... My motivation for saying that was gusto kong malabas namin yung best ng isa’t-isa (I wanted us to bring out the best in each other).”
“We wanna push each other and I’m glad that on the set, I can feel the competition, but it’s healthy,” added she.
What Mikee was sharing was, if one displayed an inspired performance, the others were on the same page to reciprocate it and deliver the same commitment.
This is what viewers can anticipate and enjoy as the “SLAY” narrative unfolds and progresses.
As for the characterization of Sugar, Mikee had a rundown about the character in the “Kapuso Showbiz News” interview.
The Sparkle GMA artist said that Sugar defines herself in the relationships she has made, such as being a good daughter, sibling and friend.
“Matapang si Sugar (she is brave),” added Mikee in the online content.
“I’m used to playing characters who would quickly burst into tears. When the character is emotional, she will express that by crying.”
Sugar, however, is different since her braveness prevents from being attuned to her real emotions, continued Mikee. The character hides her weakness or being vulnerable from the prying eyes of the public. She keeps that part of her private.
“Yung layers ng character ay exciting kasi duon ako na-fi-fire up (I find the layers of my character exciting because that’s what fires me up),” said Mikee in the said interview, also revealing that each letter of the show’s title stands for the first letter of the characters’ names such as “S” for Sugar, “L” for Liv, “A” for Amelie and “Y” for Yana.
Like her fellow actresses in “SLAY,” Mikee also shared her thoughts on when she felt most vulnerable and most empowered during the presscon.
She reiterated the answer of Julie Anne that they both felt vulnerable (being fragile or sensitive to feelings) when they were on set, playing their characters.
What one could gather from her answers was that it happens whenever Mikee is capturing an emotion, say, of Sugar, that’s either new to her or close to her with the chance to revisit a familiar, painful emotion.
Her craft allows her to look into herself, thinking of past experiences, to access that character’s emotionality and deliver it.
Still at work, Mikee also felt empowered when her scene was considered a good take. That was definitely a pat on the back.
“Honestly, kapag nag-good take yung mga ganung moments, you feel the empowerment right away,” said she, adding that having fun, comforting, light and laughing moments with family is also empowering to her.
“I feel so blessed and I feel so grateful that I have this support system, and feeling ko kahit anong pumunta sa akin, sa life, kakayanin ko, basta kasama ko sila (I feel like whatever comes my way in life, I can handle it as long as I have them with me),” concluded she.
Follow the story of Sugar and her friends in “SLAY” from Mondays to Thursdays at 9:25 p.m. on GMA.
