Can’t Buy Me Love’s Anthony Jennings and Maris Racal are a powerhouse tandem in the rom-com genre.
We love a great piece of entertainment, and we especially love it when they make us kilig and laugh. Anthony Jennings’ Snoop and Maris Racal’s Irene in Can’t Buy Me Love are the latest pair of stars in Philippine television that give us just that. Coupled with exceptional leads Donny Pangilinan and Belle Mariano and a plot that keeps us at the edge of our seats, the show gives us delightful scenes from the ‘SnoRene’ ship. Rom-coms don’t survive without great chemistry, and Anthony and Maris make it seem like they’re the easiest people to have chemistry with. Here’s three reasons why there’s plenty to love about the pair on-screen.
RELATED: Maris Racal and Anthony Jennings Star in Their First Official Music Video Together
1. They’re a joy to watch.
Rom-coms require organic talent, and Maris and Anthony prove that they can pull it off with the reception of their pairing from Filipino viewers. The stars make their perfect balance of bantering fused with romantic chemistry seem effortless because of their shared sense of humor. This ease, and the natural friendship built among them, allows them to knit adlibs seamlessly into their scenes.
Romantic comedies are all about happiness—it’s a joy to watch two quirky individuals somehow forge a human connection with each other even if it’s fictional. It’s a genre about delivering joy to the audience, and SnoRene does an excellent job at giving us smiles on our faces and butterflies in our stomachs.
2. The characters—and the actors—have undeniable charisma.
SnoRene is so loved by Can’t Buy Me Love fans because their scenes are heavily dependent on the charisma they bring as actors and as characters. It’s different from chemistry, which the pair have already demonstrated they have, but the romantic duo should ideally possess a tricky balance of relatable and aspirational qualities that make it possible to engage with their characters and root for them. With the right characters (the kind-hearted and comical Snoop, and the ‘maarte’ but complex Irene) played by the right actors, you become invested in them and by extension their journey. And while the script is the foundation for that, the people who bring those characters to life on-screen contributes to the sucess of their pairing. Maris and Anthony make scenes such as an imaginary look-into-the-future family so entertaining and insufficient in the best way.
3. They’re perfect for their characters, and their characters are perfect for them.
In the name of professionalism and stellar acting, the stars make their scenes so enduring and refreshing because you see how much they love and care for their characters—and make them their own. What makes this so vital is that Maris and Anthony can perfectly portray Irene and Snoop that they have no trouble deviating from the script. In a snippet of an unreleased episode of Ang Walang Kwentang Podcast by filmmakers JP Habac and Antoinette Jadaone, Maris reveals that the viral ‘Mama mo!’ and the ‘It’s Google!’ scenes were improvised. The actress-singer said, “Kami ni Anthony, bigyan n’yo lang kami ng kahit anong scenario, we’ll just be our characters. May mabubuo na.”
The pair is certainly a rising romantic and comedy force in the industry, and we’re hoping to see them put together on set once more.
Photos: NETFLIX PHILIPPINES and KAPAMILYA ONLINE CHANNEL (Via Instagram and X)
Featured Image: MARIS RACAL (Via X)
