The cast of the hit series, Can’t Buy Me Love, revealed the lengths to which the showrunners went to prevent spoilers and plot reveals from spreading among the cast and crew.
Can’t Buy Me Love starred Donny Pangilinan and Belle Mariano, fondly called DonBelle, who played the roles of onscreen lovers Bingo Mariano and Caroline Tiu.
Netizens were in awe with the romance series’ much-awaited last episode titled, “The Priceless Finale,” which aired on May 10, 2024.
Among the highlights of its last few episodes was the discovery of the real culprit behind the death of Caroline’s mother, Divine Almazan (Shaina Magdayao), who turned out to be Bettina Tiu (Kaila Estrada), Caroline’s stepsister.
The revelation was revealed through a climactic backstory revealing Bettina receiving the help of Gilbert “Ibe” Bautista (Cris Villanueva) to cover up the murder.
Clips from the trending episode made rounds across social media platforms, sparking discussions among netizens who praised the gripping scene that showcased Kaila’s acting prowess in portraying her character.
The series ended with Caroline finally receiving justice for her mother’s killing with Bettina and her accomplice, followed by her wedding with Bingo.
However, in a surprising revelation, it has come to light that the show filmed nine alternative endings, each featuring a different character as the potential killer.
The revelation was dropped exclusively on ABS-CBN’s SUPER KAPAMILYA membership community on YouTube where the video interview of the series’ cast and creators was uploaded.
According to the interview, the creators already knew the identity of the killer halfway through the show’s airing but they were faced with the dilemma of keeping it a secret among cast and staff members.
To ensure that the secrecy surrounding the finale remained intact, everyone involved in the production, including cast and crew, were required to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA).
According to the crew, the NDA included a hefty penalty of P500,000 for anyone found to have breached the confidentiality clause.
This decision was made to prevent spoilers and leaks about the true ending of the series.
The video also revealed never-before-seen clips showing alternative killers unveiled in the pivotal scene of Divine’s murder played by each cast member as the culprit.
Including Gilbert, the nine killers were played by the members of the Tiu family, including Wilson Tiu (Rowell Santiago), Cindy Tiu, young versions of siblings Bettina, Charleston (Albie Casino), and Irene Tiu (Maris Racal), her stepfamily, Gina (Ruffa Gutierrez) and Carlo Tan (Joao Constancia), and even Caroline herself was shown stabbing her mother.
The imprisoned killer was also revealed to be played by each character in six alternative scenes, to further conceal the true identity of the culprit from the cast and crew.
Even the wedding scene of Bingo and Caroline was made to appear as if Bettina was present during the occasion despite actually being imprisoned.
The cast members expressed their surprise and confusion at the creators’ decision to film different scenes with similar contexts.
In a separate interview with ABS-CBN News, Kaila reflected on her character as the unlikely killer and expressed her gratitude for the plot twist and impactful ending of the series.
“Nagulat din ako. It was quite an interesting experience since we did not know what would happen until a few days before we shot the ending. I did not know Bettina was the killer,” Estrada said.
Kaila also shared the innovative approach taken by the production team, which kept the killer’s identity from the cast.
“For the finale week, we did not have a copy of the final script. Ganun siya ka-secret. We would show up sa taping and ibibigay yung sequences that day at doon na rin namin babasahin,” the actress revealed.
“It was a completely different way of working, and I felt it added to the suspense. Naging sobrang raw din ng emotions ng lahat at high stress. I think it worked well,” she lauded the creators.
