After spending an entire year in strict physical discipline for the provocative stage play Walong Libong Piso, Paolo Gumabao admits he finally gave himself permission to relax — especially when it came to food.

“All year round, I was doing Walong Libong Piso. I was really thin. I barely ate, and I even had anxiety whenever I stepped on the weighing scale,” Paolo shared.

“After that, I really let loose. I told myself, ‘I will eat everything.’ Double burgers, chicken nuggets, fries — everything.”

The indulgence quickly added up. “I gained around six to seven kilos,” he said with a laugh. “All the pandesal and monay were gone.”

Beyond fast food cravings, the holidays also became deeply personal. Paolo traveled to Taiwan with his family to visit his grandfather, who is currently undergoing chemotherapy. “We visited my lolo. He has colon cancer,” he revealed. “His chemo is ongoing and hopefully he’s getting better.”

Despite the added weight, Paolo remains confident about getting back in shape. His goals for the new year are straightforward — and disciplined.

“My New Year’s resolution is to get my body back,” he said. “Basketball, gym every other day, and diet. Diet is 70 percent of your fitness journey. Even if you work out hard, if your eating habits aren’t right, nothing will happen.”

Family continues to be a grounding force for the actor, particularly his relationship with his father, Dennis Roldan. Paolo admitted he wasn’t able to visit him over the holidays due to back-to-back work commitments and travel. “I wasn’t able to visit this Christmas,” he said. “But I’ll make it up to him this month. We’re still fighting. We’re not giving up as a family.”

According to Paolo, his father remains his quiet supporter and toughest mentor. “He advises me to find a way not to just stick to villain roles,” Paolo recalled. “He tells me to try something different.”

Although access to films is limited, his father still manages to watch Paolo whenever possible. “It’s hard for him to watch my movies,” he shared. “Not all of them are shown on TV. What he really watches is FPJ’s Batang Quiapo. There’s a TV inside, so that’s what he sees.”

That advice — to expand his range — has come full circle in Paolo’s latest film, Spring in Prague, where he takes on his first full-fledged romantic lead role.

“The challenge was working my way around being a leading man,” Paolo admitted. “I’m not used to smiling on screen. I’m used to scowling, seducing, being angry. That’s what I’ve done before.”

He explained that the role forced him to rethink his acting style. “Since this time I’m the lead, I really studied how to be cinematic,” he said. “Yes, acting should be natural, but there’s also a cinematic way of acting naturally. That was my challenge — how to be both cinematic and natural while being a lover boy.”

The film, shot in Oriental Mindoro and the Czech Republic, also required navigating cultural contrasts between the two lead characters. “One of the challenges was showing the differences in culture,” Paolo said. “Filipinos mix ketchup and soy sauce, right? Those little habits matter. We had to find specific traits for each character.”

He added, “Despite all those differences in culture and habits, the characters still come together and connect.”

Reflecting on his career, Paolo acknowledged how far removed this role is from his past projects. “All my projects before this were either sexy or villain roles,” he said. “If I wasn’t a kontrabida (antagonist), my character was planning something bad.”

“This is the first time I played someone who’s genuinely kind,” he continued. “A true lover boy, with no hidden agenda.”

Looking ahead, Paolo also shared plans to spend several months in the United States. “I’m planning to go to the US this March,” he said. “My sibling works there, in California. I’ll probably stay for five or six months.”

For now, he describes the trip as exploratory rather than permanent. “I just want to try and see what’s going on there,” he said. “I want to see what opportunities exist — if there are things I can do there that I can’t do here.”

Asked whether he might audition abroad, Paolo kept his answer open-ended. “If there’s an audition looking for a Latino guy, maybe,” he said. “When I was last in the US, people thought I was Mexican. I don’t want to tell unfinished stories. I’ll just stay there for a while and see.”

As for personal growth, Paolo admits he is still a work in progress. “I’m trying to cut out some habits,” he shared. “I’m not a perfect person. We all have parts of ourselves we want to correct or remove.”

He smiled before adding, “That one’s my secret.”

With Spring in Prague premiering on 19 January and opening nationwide on 4 February, Paolo steps into 2026 embracing change — physically, emotionally and artistically — ready to be seen not just as a familiar face, but as an actor redefining himself.