Why Roderick Paulate rejected other gay roles

You may have seen the award-winning actor Roderick Paulate successfully portray gay roles in movies and television over the years. However, he revealed that he did not accept all the gay roles that were offered to him.

- ROBERT REQUINTINA

"Marami yun. Marami akong tinanggihan na gay roles. Kung tutuusin kailangan ko rin naman ng pera. Sana nag-00 na lang ako lahat dun. (That's a lot. I've turned down a lot of gay roles. After all, I need money too. I wish I had said yes to all of them)," said Roderick when asked if he had turned down gay roles, during a recent press conference for his upcoming movie 'Mudrasta' under CreaZion Studio held in Quezon City recently.

Roderick shared that for a time, he regretted saying no to them. He believes that while money has its place, true fulfillment comes from the meaningful choices we make in life.

"Sayang talaga yung talent fee. Makakatulong din yun sa marami. Pero kasi hindi kailangan na tatanggapin mo yun tapos sisirain mo lang yung pinaghirapan mong journey sa showbiz. Kung kaya mo pa naman magtiis, magtiis na lang muna. (I felt disappointed in not accepting the talent fee. It can also help many people. But you don't have to take it and then ruin your hard-earned journey in showbiz. If you can still endure it, endure it for now.)

“Hindi naman tayo pababayaan ng Diyos eh. Pero dahil lang sa project na yun, pipilitin mong gawin ang isang role kahit labag sa'yo," the actor said. "Puwede rin namang pikit mata na lang ang lahat dahil sa pera at tanggapin yung role. Kaso hindi dapat ganun. (God will never abandon us. But just because of that project, you will be forced to do a role even if it is against your will," the actor said. "You could just turn a blind eye to everything because of the money and accept the role. But that shouldn't be the case.)"

On why he turned them down, Roderick answered, "Feeling ko wala akong mai-ko-contribute sa pelikula na yun kaya hindi ko na rin tinanggap. (I felt like I had nothing to contribute to that film, so I didn't accept it.)"

Roderick also said that when accepting comedy projects, he encouraged writers to come up with a good storyline before injecting humor into it.