‘Misibis Bay’ star Ritz Azul debuts high on FHM’s 100 Sexiest Women list

Not too many people were surprised to see Marian Rivera regain the top spot in FHM Philippines’ 100 Sexiest Women poll.

That doesn’t mean there are no pleasant surprises in this year’s list. There are. One of them is the debut of TV5 primetime princess Ritz Azul, who debuted at a very impressive No. 28 overall in the final tally.

“That is pretty high for a new entry,” FHM Editor-In-Chief Allan Madrilejos told InterAksyon.

Madrilejos added that Ritz garnered a total of 549,696 votes out of over 16 millions votes—online, SMS, and print ballots—that were amassed during the 65-day polling period. Majority of the votes garnered by all the 100 winners came from online votes. FHM.com.ph was visited by 1.7 million unique users, generating 62 million page views for the duration of the campaign that ran from April 1 to June 5.

As new entries go, Ritz, who was on the cover of FHM’s November 2012 issue, is also the second highest-ranked newcomer in the list after April 2013 cover girl Empress Shuck (No. 10).

What makes Ritz’s achievement even more remarkable is that she is actually ranked ahead of more established names and fellow lead young actresses like Bianca King (No. 33), Erich Gonzales (No. 34), Carla Abellana (No. 35), KC Concepcion (No. 40), Shaina Magdayao (No. 44), Bea Alonzo (No. 48), Andi Eigenmann (No. 49), Toni Gonzaga (No. 53) and Julia Montes (No. 57).

Now dubbed as TV5’s virgin bombshell in reference to her famous declaration that she hasn’t had a boyfriend since birth, Ritz is expected to show more skin as the lead star of TV5’s sexy drama mini-series, “Misibis Bay”.

Ritz said she is now ready to show her sexier, bolder, and mature side as she plays the role of Maita Ramirez, an ambitious and driven woman who hopes to provide a comfortable life for her ailing grandmother even as she one day dreams of avenging her parents’ murder.

One of the show’s early highlights shows Ritz performing a lap dance for Christopher de Leon, who plays the tycoon who falls for her.

Aside from Ritz, fellow “Misibis Bay” cast member and former Viva Hot Babe Andrea del Rosario also made FHM’s Most Sexiest List (No. 63). Other Kapatid stars in the list are Niña Jose (No. 70), Danielle Castaño (No. 72), Erika Padilla (No. 87) and Arci Muñoz (No. 99).

Meg Imperial, who started her career with TV5, is also a newcomer in the list at No. 37 while Rufa Mae Quinto, who was one of the leads of the fantaserye “Enchanted Garden”, remains a staple at No. 74.

The complete list will be showcased in a supplement of the magazine’s July 2013 issue, due out this weekend.

Ritz, along with everyone else featured in the poll, is expected to grace the FHM 100 Sexiest Women in the World 2013 Victory Party scheduled this coming July 10 at the World Trade Center where Marian Rivera will be officially crowned as the Philippines’ Finest.

source: interaksyon.com

TV5 princess Ritz Azul is FHM’s November cover girl

The latest cover girl of FHM Philippines is no other than TV5 primetime princess Ritz Azul, whose voluptuous figure adorns the magazine’s November 2012 issue.

In the cover image shot by Roy Macam, the 18-year-old actress is shown wearing a body-hugging and translucent white leotard while sitting cross-legged on the hood of a luxury car.

Before the big reveal on Monday, the guessing game on the magazine’s website over the weekend gave three clues: (1) neither a Kapuso nor a Kapamilya; (2) played the role of a sexy dancer in her primetime show; and (3) resembles Mariel Rodriguez, Isabel Oli and Rhea Santos, but a “future crush ng bayan” in her own right.

Ritz, of course, is a homegrown Kapatid talent and a product of the “Star Factor” talent search,  the precursor to “Artista Academy”.

Last year, she made heads turn with her daring portrayal of a showbiz aspirant in “Mga Nagbabagang Bulaklak”, which won for her the Outstanding Breakthrough Performance by an Actress from the ENPRESS Golden Screen TV Awards and the Amazing Female Newcomer from Yahoo! Philippines OMG Awards.

A mainstay of the sketch-comedy show “Lokomoko” and the comedy fantasy series “Kapitan Awesome, Ritz will soon play Derek Ramsay’s love interest in TV5′s upcoming superhero series “Kidlat.”

This FHM pictorial is the first sexy shoot for the actress, who happens to be the Sangguniang Kabataan chairperson in her village in her hometown in Pampanga.

source: interaksyon.com

Martin Escudero bares feelings for Ritz Azul, says not threatened by Derek Ramsay

Martin Escudero has proudly admitted that he has romantic feelings for his “Kapitan Awesome” leading lady Ritz Azul.

Needless to say, the attraction developed on the set of the TV5 fantasy-comedy series, where Martin and Ritz have gotten along famously. The actor said he’s just waiting for the perfect time to woo the voluptuous Kapatid princess formally.

“Imposible naman na hindi tayo magkagusto dun. Tamang timing lang,” Martin remarked, laughing nervously.

Martin said he is encouraged by the strong bond he has formed with Ritz’s father, who always accompanies her on the set of “Kapitan Awesome”.

“Marami kaming napagkakasunduan at pareho kaming Bicolano,” he explained. The actor believes this bond with her father should work to his advantage in his quest to win Ritz’s heart.

He admitted, however, that he seems to be closer to the father than to Ritz herself. “Mas close kami ni daddy kesa kay Ritz. Mas marami kaming napag-uusapan…Para wala nang kalaban.” He laughed. “Joke lang,” he added.

That must be the reason why Martin does not feel threatened now that Ritz has a new highly anticipated superhero series, “Kidlat”, where her leading man is no less than Kapatid hunk Derek Ramsay.

“Hindi naman ako nagseselos kasi malinaw na naman sa amin ni Ritz,” he quipped before breaking into laughter again and adding, “Hindi, joke lang.”

source: interaksyon.com

Ritz Azul stars opposite her dream leading man Derek Ramsay in ‘Kidlat’

All Ritz Azul knew last Monday was that she was going to a story conference. When she later found out that she was going to star in “Kidlat,” TV5’s new superhero fantaserye as one of two love interests of Derek Ramsey, she almost broke into tears.

“Dito ko lang talaga naman kung ano ang gagawin ko,” the elated TV5 Princess told Interaksyon after the story conference. “Pagkarinig ko ng story kay Direk Mike Tuviera, halos mangiyak-ngiyak ako sa tuwa.”

Ritz has plenty of reasons to be happy with her new project. Although the 18-year-old “Star Factor” alumna from Pampanga remains visible a presence on the Kapatid network as she is also a mainstay of the weekly sitcom “Kapitan Awesome” and the Sunday noontime game show “Game N’ Go” as part of the new Game N’ Go Gang, she’s been hoping to get a new teleserye after last year’s “Glamorosa.”

“Tama ‘yung paniniwala ko na naghihintay lang ang TV5 ng right time para bigyan ako ng bagong teleserye, and I’m glad it’s ‘Kidlat’ kasi even before ‘Glamorosa’ pa, madalas akong tanungin kung sino ang gusto kong maging leading man. Ang lagi kong sagot, Derek Ramsay. So this is a dream come true na rin for me kasi parang may nakarinig nung dasal ko,” she exclaimed.

In “Kidlat,” Ritz is also looking forward to working with director Mike Tuviera, a veteran fantasy director who puts a premium on the performances of his actors.

“I’m all about performance and I will only allow the best version of yourselves to be used on TV,” Direk Mike told his cast. Come on time, come prepared, know your lines, treat this seriously, and I promise you, you will all look good here.”

“Bigla akong na-pressure sa mga requirements ni Direk Mike,” Ritz admitted. “Pero tama naman sya, kailangan naman lahat namin yun, especially the discipline. I’m excited to meet all the challenges of this project.”

Ritz is not sure if she’ll be doing action scenes in the series since her character is a mortal with no superpowers but added that she’s prepared to do such scenes if her role calls for them.

“I’ve tried drama and I’ve also done comedy so okay din naman kung may konting action. Pero based on the story conference, mukhang it’s more drama ulit for me here,” she added.





Since becoming one of TV5’s primetime princesses along with Alex Gonzaga, Danita Paner, Eula Caballero, Arci Muñoz and Jasmine Curtis-Smith, Ritz’s efforts at working on her craft has not gone unnoticed.

Her unforgettable turn as Daisy Flores in last year’s “Mga Nagbabagang Bulaklak” won for her two awards, Outstanding Breakthrough Performance by an Actress from the Golden Screen TV Awards and the Amazing Female Newcomer from Yahoo! Philippines OMG Awards.

When asked if there is such a thing as “sibling rivalry” between her and her fellow Kapatid stars, Ritz laughed and quickly retorted.

“Ah, wala, kaya nga sa TV5, mga Kapatid kami kasi para talaga kaming magkakapatid,” she shot back.

On being a part of the recentt “Dolphy Alay Tawa” concert scheduled to air on the three major networks this Sunday, Ritz said she feels so blessed to be given a chance to be a part of such a momentous moment.

“I also got the chance to interact with the other networks talents like Enzo Pineda, Wynwyn Marquez, Aljur Abrenica, Rocco Nacino and Miss Pauleen Luna. Mababait naman silang lahat and very supportive,” she revealed.

With the way her career is going, Ritz said she could not ask for anything more right now. As for the prospects of having a love team, she leaves it up to TV5 to decide on what’s best for her career.

When told that her dream leading man, Derek Ramsay, is currently single, Ritz just smiled and said, “Oo nga, balita ko din, single nga siya.”

source: interaksyon.com