Play It Again, Sam!

Conflict of schedules prevented Sam Milby from working with Jennylyn Mercado in English Only, Please (EOP) which turned out to be a surprise hit in last year’s Metro Filmfest. Sam was replaced by Derek Ramsay for the role of a Fil-Am who visits the Philippines in search of his girlfriend. The movie won Best Picture, and Jennylyn and Derek Best Actress and Best Actor, respectively.

Sam and Jennylyn are finally together in a movie, Regal Films’ The PreNup, which should be as entertaining as EOP, directed by Jun Lana who shot some scenes at the same place in New York where he and his partner, director-producer Perci Intalan, got married two years ago. The Big Apple may also be memorable to Sam who tried to kick off a Hollywood career there by attending a few auditions, given moral support by actress Anna Maria Perez de Tagle (the granddaughter of Sylvia La Torre) who has appeared in a Hollywood movie and has done Broadway.

In Pre-Nup, opening nationwide on Wednesday, Oct. 14, Sam plays a professional photographer and Jennylyn a girl whose goal is to meet her long-lost father. Of course, you can guess who Jennylyn finds instead.

In playing the “Who, What, Where, When, How” game, Sam bared himself much more than he has ever done.

WHO

Who are your heroes in life?

“Ate Ada, my big sister. She’s only eight months older than I am so we are very close. Siya ‘yung laging leader, siya ‘yung laging nangunguna so siya ang palaging sinusundan ko. I would follow whatever she did. She’s super-outgoing, the captain of Lady Volcanoes, the national (rugby) team here. She was the only girl who did football in high school. I really look up to her. She’s good in music and she has influenced me on that aspect, kaya naggi-gitara ako. My other heroes are my parents, Lloyd (Milby) and Elsie (Lacia). There’s also my manager, Erickson Raymundo.”

Who would you have been if you were not an actor?

“Hmmm, hard question, huh! My life radically changed when I joined PBB (Pinoy Big Brother). It was a turning point for me. If I were not an actor, I would be a musician, maybe a member of a band. My passion is music. When I was in the States (Ohio), I was in a few bands.”

Who is your inspiration in life?

“I remember telling you who in a previous interview and I will say it’s the same…God.”

Who is the Sam Milby that the public doesn’t know?

“I think the Sam Milby that the public doesn’t know is the makulit Sam Milby. That’s how my friends know me. Makulit. But actually, even if I’ve been in showbiz for 10 years, I’m still shy, mahiyain talaga ako. I think the public saw the real Sam Milby when I was in PBB. I was young then, only 21.”

Who would you be if you were somebody else?

“There’s a lot of actors that I look up to but I’m happy with who I am, with myself, so I wouldn’t want to be anybody else. I’m a work in progress. I’m my worst critic. I always wish I could do better. I’m happy that I’ve been growing so much in the past few years.”

WHAT

What was the craziest thing that you did for love?

“I came here in 2002 and even if there were a lot of opportunities that I could have taken…for commercials, studies, etc. I decided to go back to the States to be with my girlfriend…the woman I loved. She was my high school girlfriend, four years naging kami. She’s married now.”

What were you wearing when you went to bed last night?

“Only boxers and sando.”

What’s the best thing said or written about you?

“When they said that ‘Si Sam, 10 years na sa showbiz hindi nagbago, mabait pa rin, grounded at humble pa rin siya.’ That makes me very happy.”

What’s the worst thing said or written about you?

“Negative things said or written about you are part and parcel of the job; they go with the territory. The worst thing written about me? Yes, about my hygiene, mabaho daw ako. Hehehehe! And, of course, the most outstanding one is my gender, sexual preference. You know, people will think what they want to think. But my close friends, the people who really know me and what they know are the ones who matter to me.”

What did you sacrifice for showbiz?

“My privacy. You just have to live with the intrigues, you know.”

WHERE

Where is your Achilles’ Heel?

“My vulnerable spot? Perhaps when people hit those that I love. I can take it but not when they drag people that I love into the mess.”

Where would you settle down if and when you get married?

“It depends where I fall in love. But I assure you that happy ako dito. It’s either in the States or in the Philippines, pero sana dito. Ask me again in five or six years and I’ll give you a definite answer.”

Where are you most comfortable in…at peace with yourself?

“I’m a big nature lover so it has to be outdoors. Even when I was a kid, I was so much happy when I was outdoors, lying in the grass in a quiet surroundings. I would love to be out in the mountains.”

Where did you go last night and with whom?

“Actually, nasa condo ko lang ako. I seldom, if ever, go out at night. Hindi na ako mahilig lumabas. If I ever go out, it’s to watch a movie.”

Where would you be 10 years from now?

“Happy with my family. Maybe in five years, gusto ko may pamilya na ako, with just two children, a boy and a girl.”

WHEN

When was the last time you said “I love  you” to somebody?

“Hmmm, let me see. A long time ago! If you mean in a romantic sense. I said that to my last girlfriend almost six years ago. But I always say ‘I love you’ to my sister and my parents.”

When was the last time you saw yourself in the nude?

“Every time I take a shower. The last was this morning when I took a shower, hahahaha!”

When are you at your highest performance level?

“I’m a morning person so I am at my most productive in the morning, continuing through the rest of the day.”

When did you realize that you were famous?

“You know, before PBB, I would always go to Glorietta, doon ako kumakain at nanonood ng sine. After I came out of the PBB house, my manager Erickson and I went to Glorietta. Hindi na puede. People were all over me so I went inside a store and they closed the doors. Sobrang dami ng tao; I was being mobbed. That’s when I realized na iba na ang buhay ko.”

When do you tell a lie?

“I’m an honest person. I believe that honesty is the best policy. So it’s hard for me to tell a lie. Halatang-halata if I’m telling a lie.”

HOW

How do you woo a girl?

“Ahhh, I must admit that most of my life medyo torpe ako. Kasi nga, as I’ve said, mahiyain ako. As guys, we pursue the girl and try to win her heart. I’m more about time. Don’t rush things. Everything happens at the right time. I think it’s also important to win the hearts of the people close to the girl.”

How do you deal with gossip?

“I’m the type of guy na easily affected by nasty gossip, even if I know that it’s pat of the business. There are times when I am praised 99 percent and the remaining one percent na negative comment still affects me.”

How would you make a girl know that you admire her? Do you wink at her?

“Hehehehe! Sa totoo lang, hindi ako marunong kumindat. With social media, it’s easier to connect to a girl that you admire. You can do it on Twitter or Facebook or Instagram. Or you can ask a friend to tell the girl that you admire her.”

How would you rate Jennylyn as a person and as a co-worker?

“Napakabait. Sobra! She’s very open. As an actress, she’s very giving. She has a lot of work. Kung minsan walang tulog and yet never siyang masungit. She’s outgoing, always positive, a joy to work with.”

How would you describe yourself in three words?

“Work in progress.”

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