SA loob ng limang araw ng pagpapalabas sa I Love You, Hater nina Kris Aquino, Joshua Garcia, at Julia Barretto, ay tumabo na raw ito ng P40 million as of last Sunday, July 15, 2018.

The announcement from Star Cinema came hours after Kris admitted she was initially “disappointed” by the box-office performance of I Love You, Hater. In this film, Joshua and Julia bring life to two young professionals: Joko Macaraeg and Zoey Rivera, respectively.

They are fighting for the same high-paying job, with Joko wanting to help his family out of their financial troubles, while Zoey aims to prove herself to her father.

Sa panayam kay Direk Giselle Andres, sinabi niyang there was really an attempt from ABS-CBN’s film production and distribution unit’s team to deviate from what the JoshLia love team has already delivered on screen, including the drama film Love You to the Stars and Back.

“When we were coming up with a concept, we had a hard time because they were already established. We challenged ourselves to come up with a concept that will show a different side of them,” ani Direk Giselle.

I Love You, Hater marks the big-screen comeback of Kris who is cast as online media mogul Sasha Imperial. She pits the characters of Joshua and Julia against each other and tests which assistant is really the best for her.

Sinabi ni Direk Giselle na bagamat nais ng creative team ng kakaibang material para sa JoshLia, they only had one actress in mind for the role of the lady boss.

Si Direk Andres ay dating assistant director ni Direk Olivia Lamasan sa mga pelikula nito for the past eight years.

“When we were coming up with a concept, we needed a major character to set the arena for JoshLia and we couldn’t think of anyone else but Kris Aquino. “Initially, I thought she may not accept the project but when she agreed, I became so nervous because she is Kris Aquino. To my pleasant surprise, I didn’t have any problems at all,” sabi ni Direk Giselle.

-Ador V. Saluta