Alden Richards earns praise from co-stars Katherine McNamara, Byron Mann in upcoming int'l film

Alden Richards received praise from his co-stars Katherine McNamara and Byron Mann for his performance in his upcoming first international film, "Big Tiger," in which he takes on the role of a villain. 

In Athena Imperial's report on "24 Oras," Monday, Katherine lauded the Asia Multimedia Star's acting skills, sharing that she did not know that this was his first time playing a villain. 

"I had no idea that you've never played an antagonist until today because he's so fantastic in the film,"  she said of Alden. "I'm begging to do a film with him where we don't have to hate each other." 

For Byron, Alden sure played the role of a villain convincingly.

"I just met him for the first time on set, kind of, right, and he was supposed to be the big villain in the movie and I just assumed he was a bad man in real life," he quipped. 

Sparkle actress Max Collins also stars in the movie, and she had this to say about Alden's switch from leading man to bad boy. 

"We love Alden, he's always so sweet, but just to see him as a total bad boy was amazing and sexy, it's a sexy thing about Alden. Guys, he should do it more, that would be great," she shared. 

Per Imperial's report, it was not difficult for Alden to play an antagonist role despite only playing the "bida" for more than a decade in his career. 

"You know the hunger for learning as an actor has always been there, so I really wanted to venture on something that I've never done before. There's a lot of stunt preps, so I think it really contributed on how I was able to make John Lynch full circle," he said. 

Alden is also the executive producer of "Big Tiger." It is set to premiere abroad and in the Philippines in 2026. 

The Kapuso actor is fresh from his successful fan meet dubbed “ARXV: Moving ForwARd” in celebration of his 15 years in the show business.

—CDC, GMA Integrated News