Arzen Rose Dulzura

EXCLUSIVE: Josh Ford gets real about his connection with Kira Balinger: ‘Off-cam is where the real magic happens’

Article (news)

Jemuel Tandoc

Push Team

<p>Josh Ford has come a long way since playing young James Reid in <em>On the Wings of Love</em> and is now slowly building a name for himself as a new gen leading man.</p><p>In an exclusive interview with <strong>PUSH ABS-CBN</strong>, Josh got candid about his love-hate dynamic with Kira Balinger in <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/the-secrets-of-hotel-88"><em><strong>The Secrets of Hotel 88</strong></em></a>, sharing how they’re very different from their characters in the series.</p><div><br/></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1778979713683NEW THUMB - 2026-05-17T090359.324.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div><div><br/></div><p>“Siyempre off-cam, I&#x27;m not Justin Almazan. Justin&#x27;s a very different character na ginampanan ko. You know, I enjoyed doing him, but off-set, siyempre, I&#x27;m still myself. Kasi off-set is where the real magic happens, the real connection happens,” he clarified.</p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-2" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DWlyIBbgcY5/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=768&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A2%2C%22os%22%3A1960531.200000003%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="865" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-2" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><p>Josh went on to explain that at the end of the day, it’s all part of their acting: “On-screen, siyempre, you have to act out who you are and be them in front of the camera,” he explained.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:500px;display:block" width="500"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1778979559183SnapInsta.to_689476792_18579659545037602_4905842708872591882_n.jpg" style="width:500px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="500"/><span class="fr-inner">kira_balinger / Instagram</span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>Meanwhile, Josh also shared how much he appreciated the support he received from Kira, despite being on opposing teams at the Bida sa Arena.</p><p>“Ako nga, siyempre na happy ako nandito si Kira. Pero nakakainis kasi kalaban siya, you know? She&#x27;s wearing red and I&#x27;m representing blue. So, nakakatawa lang na nakita ko siya. But, I&#x27;m so happy that she&#x27;s a part of this game,” Josh admitted.</p><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-4" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DX9Em6GkUB0/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=768&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A4%2C%22os%22%3A2162736.100000009%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="865" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-4" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><p>He also revealed that he almost became part of Team Th3rd Floor: “I received a text from someone and supposedly dapat with, I think Th3rd Floor ako, pero naging mix so I had to go with Sparkle.”</p><blockquote cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@andersongeraldjr3/video/7638116801976618248" class="tiktok-embed" data-video-id="7638116801976618248" id="v60118666822159816" style="max-width:605px;min-width:325px"><iframe name="__tt_embed__v60118666822159816" sandbox="allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-scripts allow-top-navigation allow-same-origin" src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7638116801976618248?lang=en-US&amp;referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com%2F%23%2Fworkspace%2Fmonitoring%3Fitem%3Durn%3Anewsml%3Aod2-workbench-api.abs-cbn.com%3A2026-05-14T19%3A46%3A41.477238%3A9b83cd20-8609-4b2c-bb55-1cfb10a8c962%26action%3Dedit" style="width:100%;height:758px;display:block;visibility:unset"></iframe></blockquote><script async="" src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed.js"></script><p>In a lighter moment, Josh amused netizens in a vlog teaser where he jokingly laid out “rules” for Team Th3rd Floor captain Gerald Anderson, and playfully pretended to set boundaries involving Kira.</p><p>“Kailangan ko sabihin kay Kuya Ge ha, bawal tingnan si Kira, bawal kausapin si Kira. Pag nandyan si Kira, bawal sila sa same room, tatalikod. Sasabihin ko kay Kuya Ge, bawal sila… for respect lang,” he said.</p><p>He added with humor, “Basta pag nasa less than 2-meter radius na siya, may alarm ako niyan eh, may tutunog.”</p><p>Despite the jokes, Josh made it clear how much he looks up to Gerald and shared what it was like going head-to-head with him.</p><p>“I look up to Kuya Ge. He’s a role model for all of us actually, sa Th3rd Floor Team kaya nakatuwa siyang makita and he&#x27;s a true captain,” he expressed.</p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-0" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DUFvA0WkuH6/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=768&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A1819378.900000006%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="865" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-0" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><p>He also took a moment to tease his upcoming appearances, encouraging fans to stay tuned for more updates. “For my future events, just look it up. Search me online, just search Josh Ford. I&#x27;ll see you guys all there.”</p>

<p>Josh Ford gets candid about his off-cam connection with Kira Balinger amid their love-hate dynamic in 'The Secrets of Hotel 88' and being on opposing teams during a recent all-star basketball event.</p>

Josh Ford gets candid about his off-cam connection with Kira Balinger amid their love-hate dynamic in 'The Secrets of Hotel 88' and being on opposing teams during a recent all-star basketball event.