Xian drops wholesome image in Sin Island
Xian Lim knows he need not be forever tied up with roles that project nothing but wholesomeness. At his age — he is turning 29 on July 12 — he can do whatever he deems benefical to his career and that includes getting cast in a movie like Sin Island that tackles marriage and the conflicts that come with it. Directed by Gino Santos for Star Cinema, Sin Island is a sexy romance that seeks to find out if a marriage could truly survive two infidelities.
In the movie, Xian plays David, the husband of Kanika (Coleen Garcia) whose marriage will be marred with betrayal when Kanika enters into an illicit affair just as David’s career begins to fall apart. His discovery of Kanika’s transgressions leads him to pack his bags and fly to Sinilaban Island where he meets Tasha (Nathalie Hart). Eventually, both David and Tasha are tempted to give in to their sexual desires. Despite their mistakes, David and Kanika patch things up to save their marriage but Tasha refuses to let go of David.
According to Xian, one of the reasons he took on the role of David is the goal of pushing his capabilities as an actor. That’s why, he has to temporarily shed off his wholesome image to show his willingness to explore characters that reflect maturity, and for others, bare his sexy side.
“It’s a sexy adult love story and definitely there are scenes that people haven’t seen yet, especially with me as the male character,” said Xian when asked how daring
Sin Island is. “I guess ‘yung bigat ng story that we have, ‘yung pagdadaanan ng mga characters ni David, Kanika and Tasha all the more make it a different type of story.” Since it is his first time to do a role that requires him to go sexy, Xian admitted to asking direk Gino and the rest of the creative team too many questions about making his portrayal as convincing and as effective as can be. “It’s very new for me coming from a whole different genre that is rom-com or love story so I felt nervous at first because there were scenes I’m not used to doing. But later on, knowing that everyone involved on the set is hands on, everything turned out easy, especially with the guidance of direk Gino.” Direk Gino, on the other hand, said they had a series of workshops prior to the start of the movie shoot to feel at ease with one another. “It’s my first time to work with Xian so I really have to know how he is as an actor and all of them as persons to find out their personalities for me to handle them well. I can say we had a very chill (working relationship) on the set, especially with the love scenes. I will just play some music and (have) a closed set to feel comfortable with each other. Lahat ng ginagawa nila tinatanong ko kung komportable silang gawin.”
Asked if Xian had a hard time explaining to his fans about his new role, the Viva talent said that they support his desire to tackle as many roles as possible “and I know that they are very understanding with what I’ve been wanting to achieve as an actor. In terms of how people see me, like having a good boy image, I mean it’s always gonna change kasi iba’t-ibang characters naman yung
nagagawa ko and in the future hopefully, so I think there is no misunderstanding; they’re very supportive.”
Equally supportive is his perennial onscreen partner Kim Chiu who remains by his side even after his transfer to Viva Artist Agency. Xian shared they don’t meddle in each other’s work.
“In every project that we do, we’re hands off when it
comes to deciding which ones to accept or not. We are happy when we get to express ourselves every time we have work to do. I think it adds fuel to our passion each time we’re doing something different. Or how else can we reinvent ourselves when handling a new role.”
Although Sin Island is said to be peppered with passionate scenes and confrontational moments, writer Jancy Nicolas stressed that no matter how daring the story Star Cinema creates, it never fails to echo some core values to live by. He is certain that the importance of saving the marriage and keeping the family intact are well reflected in the movie.
“The trailer itself shows how one fights for love. It really talks about redeeming love, redeeming a marriage,” said Jancy.
With Xian’s convincing portrayal of David, is he ready to do more mature roles?
“For me, if it’s gonna make me grow as an actor or if it’s gonna open more opportunities and make me a better person then I’ll go for it. I am an actor and I want to be able to do as many roles as possible.”
(Sin Island is now showing in theaters nationwide. It also stars TJ Trinidad, Lito Pimentel, Ricardo Cepeda, Marina Benipayo, Bernard Palanca, Joyce Burton, Dominic Ochoa, Thou Reyes, Charlie Dizon, McCoy de Leon, Desiree del valle and Nikki Valdez.)