Showbiz Chika

Albie Casiño expressed his gratitude to all the viewers who made Mara Clara the most watched drama in the country. “It’s overwhelming na ang lakas ng suporta ng mga tao sa Mara Clara ngayon, so now magtutuloy siya sa book two. Sana patuloy pa rin na panoorin ng mga tao.”

The original Mara Clara, which aired during the ‘90s, elevated then teenaged Judy Ann Santos and Gladys Reyes to star status. The remake, which is already in its second season, also created stars out of then relative unknowns Kathryn Bernardo and Julia Montes (who play Mara and Clara respectively), and their leading men Ablie and John Manalo.

Although in the teleserye, Albie is the leading man of Kathryn while John is paired with Julia, a rumor recently came out that there was a “partner swap” off camera. John already confessed that he had a crush on Kathryn, but immediately clarified that he is too young to pursue her. On the other hand, Albie is said to be acting sweet towards Julia every time they’re on the set.

“Hindi po. Close lang talaga kami kasi nakakasama ko siya sa set halos araw-araw,” Albie said. He also spoke about the time when he and Julia were spotted together in a restaurant within the ABS-CBN compound. “Pareho kasi ang RM (road manager) namin. Kasama namin ‘yung RM namin nun.”

The 17-year-old actor went to set the record straight. “Nothing is going on between me and Julia.” Albie added that he is just focused on the big break given to him by ABS-CBN and he doesn’t want to mess it up by thinking about girls. “Hindi ko pa pinagiisipan ‘yung mga ganyan. Bata pa po ako,” he explained.

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