Meet the Cast of ABS-CBN's Maria Mercedes Remake

Thalia became a household name in the Philippines back  in the 90s for starring in various hit Mexican telenovelas such as “Maria Mercedes,” “Marimar,” “Maria la del Barrio,” and “Rosalinda.”

Of all Thalia's telenovelas, one of my favorites is the rags-to-riches story of Maria Mercedes. That being said, I'm quite excited to watch the remake of Maria Mercedes that will be aired locally in ABS-CBN soon.

OMG! Awards Breakthrough Actress of the Year nominee and one of the country’s most in-demand endorser, model and actress, Jessy Mendiola, plays the role of Maria Mercedes that was made popular by Mexican superstar Thalia. 

After starring in two ABS-CBN hit series "Sabel" in 2010, the hit series “Budoy” and the afternoon soap “Precious Hearts Romances Presents Paraiso,” and her first movie, “The Reunion,” Jessy Mendiola is back on primetime. 

Jessy is the 4th Filipina actress to portray a Thalia role. Helmed by Direk Chito Roño, ABS-CBN's remake of Maria Mercedes has a few changes that will cater the Filipino audience in an even more exciting ways.

"Maria Mercedes is really one of my dream roles. I grew up watching 'Maria Mercedes' and I still can't believe that I will actually become the Pinay version of this character loved by many Filipinos,” Jessy said.

Playing Jorge Luis and Maria's leading man in the series  is hunk actor Jake Cuenca. In a recent bloggers conference, Jake revealed that he's never afraid to bare some skin and he felt comfortable working with Jessy. When asked if there is a chance that he might court Jessy, he just smiled and said that Jessy Mendiola is indeed a real-life Maria Mercedes. Also, sparks might fly between him and Jessy because we found out that he's sending "paella" for Jessy as well. After all, the way to a man's (or woman's ) heart is through his (or her) stomach.

One of Jessy's leading men in Maria Mercedes is Jason Abalos who will be playing as Clavio, a character that would parallel the lives of the street children. The photo above shows a sexier and bolder Jessy Mendiola, and a much hotter half-naked leading men, Jake Cuenca and Jason Abalos. Are you ready for this, people?

Playing Mystica is the lovely actress, host and singer, Nikki Gil. She said she is not the usual kontrabida in this telenovela as she will be a different kind of kontrabida this time being more sophisticated, chic, and intimidating. When asked if she's worried to be typecast as kontrabida, she said she really doesn't mind it at all and she enjoys playing as kontrabida.

Below is the official teaser video of the upcoming Maria Mercedes Philippine remake, as well as  the video clips of an interview with the Maria Mercedes cast from the recent bloggers conference held at ABS-CBN: 

Like the Official Facebook page here and follow on twitter: @MercedesMariaPH

So what do you think of Jessy Mendiola as Maria Mercedes? Hot or not? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.