Ruru Madrid shuns double, does death-defying 'Lolong' stunts by himself

Kapuso hunk Ruru Madrid knows full well the dangers of the death-defying stunts required in the production of the much-awaited action-adventure series Lolong. Nonetheless, he faces the risks head on and dares to do things himself.

In a recent virtual interview, Ruru said that he really intends to push himself to the limits of the action genre because it has always been his dream.

“Kaya 'ko nag-artista because pangarap ko maging action star ever since. Mahilig ako manood ng mga movies na action. Kila Mr. Fernando Poe Jr., Robin Padilla, Cesar Montano, Bong Revilla, 'yan pinapanood ko po talaga 'yan. So ngayon na nabigyan ako ng action na teleserye sobra ko siya ni-love to the point na sabihin sakin na 'Ruru magpa-double ka dito kasi delikado 'tong gagawin natin dito lagi ko po kinakausap 'yung direktor na gusto ko po ako gagawa nito kasi iba 'yung satisfaction na nabibigay niya sa 'kin anytime na napapanood ko 'yung sarili ko sa TV na ako 'yung gumawa nung stunt na 'to,” he said.

Accordingly, it was in his fight scenes in the now-defunct Kapuso fantaserye Encantadia, where he further developed the drive to see how far he can go.

As with Lolong, Ruru shared that he and series director Zig Dulay have both agreed that indeed, the stunts would be menacing. This is because the team wants to showcase that local production can likewise come to par with Hollywood greats. That is why Ruru submitted himself to rigorous physical trainings to better equip his body to endure the risky demands of his character.

Without spilling too much, the 24-year-old actor spilled away some snippets of his action scenes. He recalled one particular scene that lasted for 12 hours.

“For example, itong scene na kinunan namin 'yung teaser we started na i-shoot 'yung scene ng 6 a.m. natapos 'yung buong fight scene ng 6 p.m. tapos nung time na 'yun ayokong kumain kasi pagka kumain ako mabubusog ako mararamdaman ko 'yung pagod so hindi ako kumain mula 6 a.m. hanggang gabi,” he shared.

Another scene showed how he did a stunt better than his double.

“Then there's this scene naman na from sa 5th floor nakita ko kasi na delikado sabi sa'kin nu'ng direktor na 'ipagawa mo sa double 'yan,” he added.

“So ginawa ng double, pagtalon ng double hindi na naging maganda 'yung landing sabi ko 'direk sige try lang, ako gagawa kasi safe naman may kutson naman na babagsakan and then ginawa ko so alam mo 'yung feeling na meron kang isang bagay na gustong-gusto mong gawin at napagbigyan ka,” he continued.

In another stunt, Ruru and fellow Lolong cast Kapuso actor Mikoy Morales had to climb up towering coconut trees to do a scene. Little did the latter know that they both had to climb back down from the tree manually. Ruru, however, said that not having fear for heights immensely helped him in scenes like this.

Aside from Ruru and Mikoy, other cast members include Christopher de Leon, Jean Garcia, Bembol Roco, Malou de Guzman, Rochelle Pangilinan, Ian de Leon, Shaira Diaz, Arra San Agustin, Paul Salas, DJ Durano, Marco Alcaraz, Priscilla Almeda, Maui Taylor, among others.

Take sneak peek inside the production of Lolong in this gallery: