James Reid is ready to move out of his comfort zone in acting: ‘I know I get typecast a lot’

More than 15 years since he emerged as the Big Winner in Pinoy Big Brother: Teen Clash, James Reid admitted he is still continuously redefining himself as an artist in the industry. From reality show contestant to matinee idol to singer, the Fil-Australian heartthrob is back to acting this year in the series Someone, Someday as well as the upcoming Metro Manila Film Festival entry Haunted Carnival.

During his solo presscon for the film, James talked about which genre he finds more challenging when it comes to acting. 

“I can’t say one is easier than the other. [They’re] completely different things. With horror it’s kind of dropping your walls, your inhibitions, and just running for your life. It’s trying to reveal who you really are in that moment, in a live or die situation. In romance it’s different. It’s more of restricted. You don’t want to show too much and then you have to work a lot with your co-actor to create a chemistry that’s believable. So I can’t say one is easier than the other.

“I think they both demand a lot from the actor. I think the most fun part is the feeling that it’s a little bit dangerous. When you see the rides, you’re exploring the perya. I can do any ride, huwag lang yung pirate ship. That’s the only one I can’t do. I don’t know why I don’t like falling backwards,” he said. 

 While shooting the film with director Joey De Guzman, James was able to discover a different side to himself, which also opened him up to the possibility of stepping outside his comfort zone when it comes to acting.

“I think [I discovered I have] a slightly darker side. But also, a more hopeful side? I’m lucky enough to say I’ve never been in crazy situations like this before (laughs). But it makes you wonder right? If that was really you, how would you act? Would you stop for someone or would you run and just leave everyone?

“Now, it’s not necessarily [that I want to do more] horror but psychological thriller, just something along the lines of that kind of role. I think I would love to take, after doing something like this, I think it’s opened up a whole different kind of possibility when it comes to roles I can take. So I’m very thankful to Regal for having me. I know I get typecast a lot. That’s why I’m so excited to be part of this movie,” he shared. 

In the film, James plays the role of Lean, who goes out with his group of friends to the carnival for a fun night out.

“My character Lean is carrying a lot of guilt for something that happened in his past. I don’t want to spoil anything. But he’s hoping to somehow redeem himself. But the haunted carnival just keeps taking and taking so he has to face that. When you see the film, from the intro, I think it’s such a crazy ride that these characters have to go on and I think a lot of them are surviving just by luck alone. And I’m lucky so maybe I have a chance (laughs),” he added. 

Unlike his role as the ever dependable Jordan in Someone, Someday, James revealed that Lean is the total opposite of responsible.

“It’s totally different. I think that my character Jordan has a really strong moral compass. He’s loyal, he’s always does the right thing. He’s so reliable. I can’t say the same for Lean. His compass is like going crazy everywhere and he’s always dealing with guilt. He wants redemption but at the same time, this haunted carnival won’t give it to him. He keeps taking and taking and taking. So that’s what my character must face,” he explained.  

The Regal Entertainment project also let James experience working with a younger generation of stars that are part of the Haunted Carnival’s star-studded ensemble like Fyang Smith, Charlie Fleming, Joaquin Arce, and Esnyr Ranollo.

“They’re extremely talented. The whole cast, I think when they came in, I think everyone was very prepared coming into this project. You’ll be surprised at a lot of the reactions. Totoo talaga yung mga reactions, the screaming. To the point that some of the gas really had to take a step back to calm down because it got quite intense. I think they didn’t need guidance. I think I needed more guidance because this was my first time to do horror and it’s really work alongside some amazing, young faces,” he admitted.