We recently published an article tackling how viewers presumably perceive the dark and complex character of Bianca, portrayed by one of the country’s finest actresses Denise Laurel.
READ: Yes, we can learn life lessons from a vicious Bianca on The Better Half
However, in order for us to further understand what’s going on in the mind of Bianca, we interviewed two of the brilliant brains behind the spectacular afternoon suspense drama The Better Half.
Love. Acceptance. Nurturing.
These are the three things that lack in Bianca’s plight, according to Creative Director Mel Mendoza-del Rosario. Her being mentally imbalanced was worsened by the traumatic events and betrayals she experienced since childhood and there was no one she could hold on to.
“Even if anyone goes through the same scenario hindi ka naman magiging ganoon if you are strong emotionally, spiritually, kung meron kang kinakapitan. It just so happened na rito, wala siyang kinapitan, except maybe for the father,” she said.
Although she had a mother figure in Clarita (Maila Gumila), she wasn’t able to feel her compassion and acceptance. Thus, instead of love, hatred enveloped her, worsened by her indifference towards Juancho’s (Epy Quizon) heinous deed.
When Marco arrived in her life, she finally felt secured, accepted, and loved. With his “heroism”, Bianca inevitably assumed a special friendship with him, which she deemed as romantic in the world she created in her mind. Since her grip with him was terribly tight, she even followed him when he left her and snapped for the second time when she discovered that he’s in love with someone else.
Her imagined reality came to life when she had the opportunity to reunite with her ultimate savior and was able to introduce a new, “clean slate” to the amnesiac Marco, far from the people who knew him and from Camille (Shaina Magdayao).
As soon as he regained his memories and told her that it was Camille whom he truly loves, she lost her mind for the third time and her extreme vileness kicked off.
Mel also explained Bianca’s status as bida-kontrabida by remarking that they consider the four main characters as “ensemble.” But what made the iconic character a standout from other protagonists was her transformation from being a victim to a villian.
When it comes to developing the role of Bianca, Head Writer Mary Rose Colindres imparted how they were able to come up with the complexities of the character.
“Kasi approved na ‘yong basic story na merong lalaking nagkaroon ng amnesia, na nakalimutan ‘yong asawa niya tapos may babaeng papakasalan na iba. Inisip namin na anong klaseng babae ang makakaisip ng gano’n,” she started off.
Then she added, “kailangan meron siyang pinagdaanan na mabigat, na madilim para mabago ‘yong world view niya, magkaroon siya ng sariling mundo na hindi maiisip ng ordinaryong tao. Parang kung ako, kahit naman gaano ko kamahal ang isang tao, parang hindi ko kayang sabihin na ‘Ay ako ang asawa mo’. Magcre-create ka ng elaborate lies at sitwasyon para papaniwalain ‘yong tao na ‘ay tayo ‘yong mag-jowa’ at itago yung alam mong mahal na mahal niya to e.”
“Ang kailangan sa Bianca character, isang baliw na may pinagdaanan talaga para [maging gano’n] yung mindset niya. So kaya naman naisip ‘yon na siguro namolestiya siya no’ng bata siya and bakit si Marco ang kailangan niya ganonin. Kasi kailangan kumapit siya nang todo do’n sa character ni Marco. So ginawa namin na no’ng bata sila, mayroon siyang hero/savior complex na tingin kay Marco,” she disclosed.
Rose also shared how she felt while they were writing Bianca’s explosive and breathtaking scenes by commenting, “Masaya. Nawiwindang sila kapag nagbabasa kasi ‘yong darkness [ng character]. Pero kasi alam mo yung ibibigay ng artista, parang nae-excite ka.”
According to her, what thrilled them the most was on how to intensify the craziness of the well-loved bida-kontrabida, but at the same time, it’s challenging.
Although she didn’t have the say on the casting process, Rose said Denise is indeed the perfect choice for the role of Bianca and she’s delighted that it was given to her.
“Sa sobrang ganda ng character ni Bianca, sobra rin ‘yong binigay ni Denise. Inari niya talaga ‘yong character, na parang siya si Bianca. Walang ibang Bianca Buenaflor sa mundong ito kundi si Denise Laurel lang. Parang gano’n ‘yong nai-imagine ko sa kanya. Gano’n ako ka-happy,” she professed.
Will Bianca finally repent over her misdeeds and apologize to all the people she aggravated? Let’s watch out her next pretentious moves as The Better Half nears to its all-or-nothing finale.
Photo Credit: @d_laurel