For years, Asia’s Multimedia Star Alden Richards has embodied the ideal leading man profile — the bedimpled boy-next-door look and an inexplicable charm that made him the perennial bida on TV and movies. But reinvention, he believes, should be part of everyday life.
As Alden himself put it during a media launch for his newest international venture, “We know that it’s hard going into something new but reinvention should be very much in our everyday lives. So we can create something new and create a new thing for us, especially for people to be interested in what we do.”
With Big Tiger, that belief takes concrete form. Alden doesn’t just step into darker territory on screen, he claims new ground behind the camera, too.
THE GOOD GUY GOES DARK!
In the upcoming international action film, Alden plays a villain for the first time in his career, a move that feels almost radical given a filmography built on heroic arcs and redemptive love stories. Yet this isn’t a simple turn to the dark side. Alden frames the challenge with clarity and conviction. He said, “Playing any role, whether it’s a protagonist or a villain, has different sets of challenges. It’s a matter of how you handle and approach it. Being an actor, it’s my responsibility.”
Playing any role, whether it’s a protagonist or a villain, has different sets of challenges. It’s a matter of how you handle and approach it. Being an actor, it’s my responsibility.
Alden admitted that the decision itself was never fraught, “It was never a hard decision for me because for almost a decade, I’ve been playing the bida for the longest time,” he said, referencing years of being cast as the good guy who ultimately wins.
Playing an antagonist, however, came with an unfamiliar emotional weight. “‘Yung pagiging kontrabida, mas marami kang pwedeng laruin. The characterization of a villain is quite eccentric, and so you can play with a lot of things that you can do,” Alden explained. The experience, he added, was disquieting but revealing. He continued, “It’s a bit disturbing because I’m not used to the feeling of being an antagonist, but at the end of the day, I realized that I think I can like this job.”
For an actor driven by growth, the role sharpened his instincts. “The hunger to learn as an actor has always been there. There are similarities and so many differences, and it just reminds you of having to always be on your toes as an actor. We are always on our toes because we want to learn as much as we can and absorb what we are learning from our foreign counterparts.”
The hunger to learn as an actor has always been there. There are similarities and so many differences, and it just reminds you of having to always be on your toes as an actor. We are always on our toes because we want to learn as much as we can and absorb what we are learning from our foreign counterparts.
What makes Big Tiger even more significant is that Alden isn’t only acting in it, he’s helping bring it to life as a producer through Myriad Studios, the production company he co-founded just three years ago. The film is a collaboration with Voltage Studios, Lux Angeles Studios, and Birns & Sawyer, marking Myriad’s boldest step yet onto the global stage.
Alden sees the project as a beginning rather than a culmination. “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. So I think this is a great first step for Myriad. We’re just a starting company. We’ve been in the business for three years pa lang po,” he shared. He credits the collaboration to meeting the right people at the right time, “We’re just so blessed to have met these people, especially Matt, Miss Mari, Keoni, and the rest of the crew, and the rest of the gang.”
Moving forward, Alden is clear about his ambition, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step for the company. We’re just starting, but we’re so invested in these people. It’s straightforward, nothing personal, it’s just business. Hopefully, after this, Myriad can go global.”
Set within a notorious prison center, Big Tiger explores a world where lines between good and evil blur. Director Keoni Waxman described it as a moral puzzle, “It’s an origin story of all these people from the underworld. The good guys can still be bad guys.” He added, “So the idea is that you’re questioning what’s good and what’s not.” The premise mirrors Alden’s own position in the film, as both bida and kontrabida, actor and producer.
The path to this collaboration was paved through side trips to the United States, where Myriad sought meaningful partnerships rather than quick deals. That vision now extends beyond a single film. Alden’s co-producers, Matthew and Mari, have announced plans to bring a slate of nine to ten films into production beginning in 2026, positioning the Philippines as a creative hub. Mari shared, “This is to showcase our talent behind and in front of the camera. They’re just very impressed with the talents here.” Matthew echoed the sentiment, saying they “couldn’t stop talking about the Filipino aspect and how the warmth and the culture made us instantly want to keep coming back.”
For Alden, choosing an action film was both strategic and personal. “It challenges me actually po. Ang dami nating naririnig na we have to help the industry, we have to give back. Kailangan kasi may kaakibat siya na roadmap and plano,” he said, “We’d like to really highlight the Philippines para mapunta tayo doon sa goal for it to be a filming hub.”
Starring Max Collins, Katherine McNamara, Luke Goss, and Byron Mann, Big Tiger carries the scale of an international production. Yet at its core, it marks a personal evolution. After more than a decade of playing the good guy who always wins, Alden embraces the discomfort of transformation. In doing so, he doesn’t abandon the leading man audiences fell in love with — he is out to surprise them.
