Body Talk with Mario Maurer

This “body talk” is a follow-up to the exclusive Conversation with Thai popstar Mario Maurer that came out a few issues ago. The twin interviews were done last month in Bangkok where Mario signed a contract as endorser of Penshoppe with Penshoppe’s brand manager Alex Mendoza. The deal was arranged by Joyce Ramirez’s PR Asia, Inc., the same company that paved the way for Gossip Girl star Ed Westwick also as Penshoppe’s image model. Watch full video

Mario, who’s turning 23 in December, won a lot of fans in the Philippines, most of them from the gay community, with his first Thai movie, Love Of Siam, which won him a Best Actor award at the 2008 Cinemanila, the international film festival headed by Tikoy Aguiluz. In that movie, shot when Mario was barely 18, he plays a high school student who gets into a romantic relationship with his childhood friend and neighbor, also a teenager, when they meet again after they got separated years back.

The movie, followed by Crazy Little Thing Called Love (a top-rater when aired early this year by ABS-CBN), is highlighted by a lip-locked kissing scene between the two lovers that lasts for more than one minute. Asked how he felt about having a largely gay following, Mario smiled, “I’m used to them because I belong to an industry that has many of them.”

Part-German, part-Chinese and part-Thai, Mario will be here maybe in October to shoot for Penshoppe. If negotiations ran right, Star Cinema might hire Mario for a movie. The initial negotiation was done by Star Cinema executive Enrico Santos who joined the Penshoppe team in Bangkok. Mario’s latest movie, Bangkok Ghost Stories, is now showing in Metro Manila theaters.

“I can’t wait to visit the Philippines,” said Mario.

What did you have for breakfast today?

“Today? No, I didn’t have any today because I woke up very late. We shot until early morning. So my first meal for today is at 3 o’clock in the morning before I went to sleep.”

What did you take?

“Thai Fishball Soup.”

 Usually, what do you have for breakfast?

“Cereals with milk.”

What about for lunch?

“Just Thai food.”

Do you take snacks between meals?

“I love chocolates but I cannot eat a lot because they make me fat.”

What kind of food do you always crave for?

“Aside from Thai food? Yes, Japanese food.”

Food that you don’t like?

“None. I like all kinds of food.”

How much water do you take per day?

“A lot! I think many liters.”

What workout do you do?

“I run and I lift weights. And I skateboard. I also play football.”

You look good enough. Any part of your body that needs improvement?

“I want a six-pack.”

What part of your body is your favorite?

“My eyes. They are kind of like those of my mom’s and my dad’s. A mix of their eyes. My mom has brown eyes and my dad has blue eyes.”

What part of a girl’s body do you notice first?

“The legs.”

What else about a girl turns you on?

“I like a girl who dresses up good, who is kind of fashionable. I don’t like a girl who wears the same clothes every day.”

What else don’t you like in a girl?

“Sometimes you cannot understand them.”

You are so busy. How much sleep do you get per night?

“Most of the time I sleep for six hours.”

Favorite sleepwear?

“Boxers and old shirt.”

How many pillows do you sleep with?

“Many pillows…about six. One under my head. Two on my left side and two on my right side, and one that I hug. Too many pillows!”

Do you snore?

“Sometimes.”

Do you talk in your sleep?

“Sometimes I talk in my sleep. My brother said I do that.”

What do you talk about?

“I don’t know because I’m sleeping. My brother said that it’s very scary. He said that I would get up, scream at him and then go back to sleep.”

Oh, so you also sleepwalk?

“Yes. My brother told me that I would get up, with my eyes closed, and walk to the bathroom, and then walk back to my bed.”

What’s the last thing that you do before you go to sleep?

“I brush my teeth.”

And the first thing that you do when you wake up?

“I brush my teeth.”

Your favorite hideaway…you know, where you want to go when you want to relax?

“My best friend’s house.”

What do you do in your best friend’s house?

“Fix the cars.”

Favorite city?

“I like Tokyo.”

Your job is very stressful. How do you cope with stress?

“Sometimes I have a massage; it helps me a lot. Or I go skateboarding. It makes me forget my work.”

You have nice skin. How do you take care of it?

“For my skin, I go to the doctor sometimes. Or I use sunblock in the morning because I work a lot and I stand in front of many kinds of lights every day and they are bad for my skin. They make my skin dry.”

How is your love life?

“Very happy. I am happy with my girlfriend.”

Doesn’t your girlfriend get jealous of your female fans?

“No, she doesn’t. She’s happy that I make many people happy.”

How’s your nightlife?

“Some of my friends like to go out at night. They go to the bars but not to the disco. I don’t go out with them. I like to stay home and listen to music.”

What is sexy to you?

“When a girl is wearing a swimsuit.”

Do you consider yourself sexy?

“No! I don’t think I look sexy. I’m a very funny-looking boy. I always cut my hair very short. My brother and I like hip-hop and we don’t grow our hair very long.”

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