La Vida Lena has been a wild ride with all the twists and revelations unveiled every episode. Now that it’s entering its final week a.k.a. “The Final Rampa,” audiences are at the edges of their seats to find out how the revenge drama will come to a close.

Before it’s revealed if Lena (Erich Gonzales) will prevail against the plots of his worst enemy and biological father Lucas (Raymond Bagatsing), who is apparently still alive, the stars of the topbilled teleserye gathered together for a virtual media conference on January 31. 

Facilitated by MJ Felipe, cast stars Kit Thompson, JC de Vera, Agot Isidro, Janice de Belen, and Erich Gonzales welcomed curious questions from the press about their experience working on La Vida Lena and with their fellow co-stars.

For all of them, the lock-in taping experience was memorable. After all, it was the first teleserye where such protocols were implemented. Janice even shared that she felt nervous at first, but eventually became fond of it because of how they bonded with each other after filming scenes.

With regards to the reception their series, the whole cast was overwhelmed with the support it received. Agot was amazed by their dedicated fans, “Natuwa ‘yung mga tao kahit 10 pm nilang napapanood. It’s kinda late, but then a lot of people were watching it, and a lot of people were tagging us and the show and they’re saying nag-eenjoy sila. Very satisfying. ‘Yung satisfaction namin mataas.”

“Worth it po lahat ng pagod naming lahat dahil nga po kahit magtatapos na tayo, talagang consistent number one po ang ating La Vida Lena sa iWantTFC,” Erich shared.

As Erich plays a multifaceted Lena, the press were intrigued with how much Erich relates to her character. For her, she is like Lena with the way she loves earnestly. She also wants to embody Lena’s kind-heartedness and selflessness. However, she knows that she could never be as vengeful as Lena to a point that she would hurt the people she loves.

JC and Kit, who both play complex leading men on the show, also reflected on similarities with their characters. JC admires Adrian’s strong faith and loyalty and can see himself being the same to his loved ones. However, he also claims that's the only similarity he could think of because Adrian is very far from who JC is in real life. As an actor, he did enjoy portraying Adrian because it was outside of his comfort zone, which challenged him to sharpen his acting skills.

On the other hand, Kit can say that the determination of his character Miguel is what resonates with him the most. Although his character is sly and manipulative, Kit can find a connection with Miguel’s passion to do everything just to get what he wants. With regards to playing an heinous character like Miguel, Kit shared how viewers throw hate at his character’s wrongdoings, “Naiinis sa akin ‘yung viewers, naiinis sila kay Miguel.” He deeply appreciates such reactions because it’s a testament to his acting performance.

There are many scenes and off-cam moments in La Vida Lena that the stars would never forget. For Kit, he really liked the way they executed the scene where he caught Rachel (Sofia Andres) cheating. JC couldn’t choose a single scene that made a mark for him so he enumerated three. One was when his character Adrian declared his love for Lena after finding out she was pregnant and was ready to fight for her against his own family. Another was when he lost control at Lena because it brought out a different edge to his character. Lastly was his character’s last scene on the show, which he described as “unforgettable and remarkable at the same time.”

Janice and Agot, who are Ramona and Vanessa respectively on the teleserye, are known for their iconic “tarayan” scenes. The press asked if they ever had memorable or funny behind-the-scenes moments during those events. Agot immediately remembered the scene when Janice threw red wine at her. She could recall how Janice tried to avoid Agot’s face so that they wouldn’t make too much of a mess, but their director Jojo Saguin advised Janice, “Sabuyan mo talaga!” Agot and Janice laughed while reminiscing that moment Janice gave it her all and threw wine, which was really grape juice, all over Agot’s face. Janice also enjoyed the confrontation scenes with Agot because they were so comfortable with each other that they can unleash adlibs that flow naturally into the scene.

La Vida Lena’s story deals with topics such as women’s body image, revenge, and forgiveness so this was one of the discussions during the media conference.

“Protect your space, your energy, your peace. When it comes to insecurities, nobody in this world naman is perfect ‘di ba? And that’s what makes us human. So siguro po self-acceptance. Embrace your flaws lang, your imperfections,” Erich advised women who deal with insecurities, much like Lena’s struggle.

Agot agreed and added that they should take care of themselves to improve their overall well-being. Agot, herself, has changed her diet and started eating plant-based meals. Janice also offered additional advice on working on one’s inner beauty. She said “a woman’s best kept beauty secret is her disposition” because one’s mindset and attitude reflects who they are on the outside.

The three actresses also gave their take on dealing with the “kontrabida” in their own lives. Agot simply assesses and chooses her battles while Erich believes that, sometimes, you don’t have to stress about things you don’t have control over. Janice, on the other hand, looks at the “villains” of her life as the situations she puts herself in. For her, at the end of the day, you had a hand at putting yourself in that situation. That said, she resolves such issues by looking at the situations objectively and finds ways to face them head on.

With the La Vida Lena chapter of their lives coming to a close, the stars feel sentimental. Agot looked back on their journey, “More than the work itself, I think ang namuo talaga was the friendship and the family that was La Vida Lena, for that short of the time we were working together. Tumatak sa aming lahat — not just for the veterans, but for everybody, even the crew, even the production.”

Erich also expressed how she feels with the end of the teleserye near, “Siguro lahat naman po ‘pag nag e-end, nandoon naman ‘yung lungkot. But siguro mas nangingibabaw ‘yung pagiging grateful po natin. Like what I said kanina po, simula nung nag-air ‘yung La Vida Lena, nandoon ‘yung suporta nila. Talagang sinubaybayan nila, pinanood nila kahit na medyo late na. Grateful po tayo. Thank you, thank you very much po sa mga viewers na nagtangkilik.”

“The Final Rampa” of La Vida Lena is packed with grand surprises that shouldn’t be missed. Catch the feisty final episodes on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, and A2Z.