It’s clear from our quick sit down that Maris understands her character isn’t the one who deserves any sort of empathy here. But she also understands her role as an actor, admitting that she never judges the characters she portrays. “Sineparate ko talaga yung real sa fiction, yung sa script (I separated what was real from fiction, from the script),” she explains. 

Putting aside what she might have read or heard in real life, Maris took to building her character based off the script that was provided to her. An artist through and through, she says: “I based my imaginations there, my feelings, kung paano si Beanie, paano ko siya na-create (how Beanie is, how I would create her).”

It’s true that Marupok AF provides Beanie with more of a backstory that could explain (but not substantiate) her actions. But the fact that Maris is able to fully separate herself from the character and can still call out Beanie’s faults—even pointing our attention to the real issue at hand—just goes to show how much she’s grown in her decade-long career.