Jan Angelo Batongbakal

EXCLUSIVE: Francine Diaz responds to 'maldita' blind items: 'I am very, very confused'

Article (news)

Push Team

<div>Francine Diaz has been aware of the blind items making the rounds about her, including the ones that paint her as snobbish, hard to approach, and even maldita. This time, the actress is setting the record straight.</div>Speaking exclusively to <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/celebrities" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">PUSH ABS-CBN</a> on the sidelines of the photoshoot for the upcoming iWant microdrama series A Cake To Remember, which premieres on August 28, Francine first opened up about the challenges of shooting a vertical series.&quot;Challenging in a way kasi vertical &#x27;yung camera, so nakakapanibago sa paligid, sa mata na nakapatay &#x27;yung cam. But the treatment is the same. Siyempre, hindi naman porket it&#x27;s a microseries, kailangan parang hindi mo na i-effortan &#x27;yung same effort na binibigay mo kapag regular teleserye,&quot; she shared.&quot;Second, siguro little movements &#x27;yung magagawa mo kasi medyo closed &#x27;yung space,&quot; she added.Despite the adjustments, Francine described the project as a fantasy fulfilled, admitting that she herself is a fan of microdramas.&quot;Nakakatuwa siya kasi lagi ako nakakapanood ng mga microdrama &#x27;pag nag-scroll ako. Isa &#x27;to sa mga fantasy ko na na-achieve ko,&quot; she said.In the same interview, Francine addressed a label that has followed her for quite some time now: that she is maldita, suplada, or simply too quiet to be friendly. According to her, people often mistake her exhaustion for attitude.&quot;Siguro hanggang ngayon &#x27;yun pa rin kasi lagi akong nami-misinterpret for being quiet, na maldita, na hindi ako nakiki-mingle, especially when I&#x27;m exhausted from siguro the pressure and doing too much work,&quot; she said.These days, the actress said she is still trying to find her footing – how much to speak, how much to hold back, and when to simply be present.&quot;Pero hanggang ngayon, I&#x27;m trying to find the balance between pagiging tahimik and &#x27;yung ingay o &#x27;yung kulit. Parang I&#x27;m finding &#x27;yung silver lining, kung saan ba &#x27;yung tamang timpla,&quot; she said.&quot;Ayoko rin naman na parang maiilang sila when kasama nila ako kasi ganyan din &#x27;yung nafi-feel ko. So, I think mas ganon. Kasi ayoko rin naman na ma-misinterpret nila ako and at the same time, I want to be present naman with everyone na I&#x27;m surrounded with,&quot; she added.Asked why she chose to speak up now, Francine pointed to the volume of talk that has been directed her way.&quot;I mean, I get a lot of blind items lately,&quot; she said.The actress admitted the rumors about her attitude on set have left her puzzled, especially since she says she keeps to herself most of the time.&quot;I&#x27;m just saying kasi laging name-mention &#x27;yung name ko and I am very, very confused because most of the time, tahimik lang talaga ako,&quot; she said.&quot;So I don&#x27;t know saan nakukuha &#x27;yun. Kasi &#x27;pag tahimik, may masasabi. Kapag you&#x27;re being loud, meron pa rin. So parang that&#x27;s where I&#x27;m finding where the balance is,&quot; she added.Francine also shared that she is slowly teaching herself not to be weighed down by how others see her. Instead of taking in everything she hears, she said she has become more selective – keeping the comments that can actually help her improve as a professional, and letting go of the rest.&quot;Parang I&#x27;m trying to teach myself na &#x27;wag i-pressure &#x27;yung sarili ko sa perception ng mga tao. May mga criticisms na professional nilang sabihin na minsan papaisip ako na, &#x27;Oo nga no. Siguro I should be more like this and like that.&#x27; Or &#x27;pag bumati ako, baka pwede kong maidagdag or bawasan,&quot; she said.&quot;Pero now, I&#x27;m teaching myself din to find the difference between constructive criticism and &#x27;yung bashing,&quot; she added.—By Paolo Lim

Francine Diaz finally speaks up on the blind items calling her maldita, saying her quiet nature and exhaustion from work are often misinterpreted.

Francine Diaz finally speaks up on the blind items calling her maldita, saying her quiet nature and exhaustion from work are often misinterpreted.