Alden Richards hopes to penetrate the international scene with Big Tiger.
Alden Richards, 33, is filled with excitement as his film company Myriad Corporation co-produces his upcoming international film Big Tiger.
He partnered with two companies from Los Angeles: Lux Angeles Studios and Birns & Sawyer.
Lux Angeles Studios is a film company headed by Matthew Macur; Birns & Sawyer is a motion picture camera and production equipment rental company headed by Filipino businesswoman Mari Acevedo.
Voltage Pictures, a financing and distribution company, will be distributing the film in 2026.
At a presscon held on December 21, 2025, Alden introduced his partners as well as the lead stars of Big Tiger.
Joining the lead cast are Filipino actress Max Collins, American-Chinese actor Byron Mann (Wu Assasins, The Man With Iron Fists, Street Fighter), and American actress Katherine McNamara (Shadowhunters, Walker: Independence).
The film’s director Keoni Waxman (The Keeper, Deadly Crossing, The Ravine) was also present at the presscon.
Talking about how the project came about, Alden said his representatives for Myriad have been flying to Los Angeles for the past two years to look for collaborators.
And it was their negotiations with Matthew, Mari, and Nicolas that finally pushed through.
Alden elaborated: “A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. So I think this is a great first step for Myriad. We’re just a starting company. We’ve been in the business for three years pa lang po.
“We’re just so blessed to have met these people, especially Matt, Miss Mari, Keoni, and the rest of the crew, and the rest of the gang.
“They gave me a lot of opportunities. [They are] always fair. At the end of the day, it’s always about the right people getting into the right projects and collaborations for things to happen.
“And hopefully after this, Myriad can go global full on.”
ALDEN RICHARDS’ CO-PRODUCERS
Alden’s vision aligned with Matthew and Mari’s plan to set up a film studio in the Philippines.
“We’re actually announcing that in 2026 there’ll be a slate of nine to 10 films that we wanna bring production in the Philippines.
“This is to showcase our talent behind and in front of the camera. They’re just very impressed with the talents here,” said Mari.
Matthew elaborated: “With the changing movie market that we’re in right now, we have to find different ways to make movies and finding new ideas and being creative with the financing and all that.
“Coming down here was perfect timing. I know we’ve been talking about, ‘Hey, the international, the U.S.,’ this and that.
“But for us, it was about coming down here. And more about we couldn’t stop talking about the Filipino aspect.
“And how the warmth and the culture made us instantly want to keep coming back. So it’s been an amazing experience.”
Alden went on to say that he and his partners chose to do an action film since there’s a higher demand for action films in the international market.
“It challenges me actually po. Ang dami nating naririnig na we have to help the industry, we have to give back. Kailangan kasi may kaakibat siya na roadmap and plano.
“And with that vision and that purpose in mind, yung reinforcement coming from the international partners that we have are gonna be able to have pa in the future.
“Of course, Lux is just the beginning, Birns & Sawyer is just the beginning.
“We’d like to really highlight the Philippines para mapunta tayo doon sa goal for it to be a filming hub.”
plot of big tiger
Big Tiger‘s director Keoni Waxman went on to say that the film will revolve around a notorious prison center where all the main characters would meet.
“It’s an origin story of all these people from the underworld. And you know, not all of them are bad. They might be bad guys. But the bad guys are worse than the good guys, right? And the good guys can still be bad guys.
“So the idea is that you’re questioning what’s good and what’s not, but you’re within a world that you built.
“And again, going back to Manila and going back to the Philippines, we were able to look at it and go, ‘You know, this is a great place to tell some stories that people don’t know and to create a world.'”
Alden will be playing a bida-kontrabida in the film.
Talking about his role, the Kapuso actor said: “It’s all so new to me. I’ve been playing the protagonist for almost a decade in my career.
“I’ve been dreaming about playing this kind of role.
“In terms of prep, constant communication with our director-writer Keoni. A lot of questions on how he wants the character to be executed.
“And bringing back knowledge of different villains I’ve watched in the past. How to be different, how to make this new.
“There’s a lot of experiences in terms of emotions, body language… And since it’s an action film, there’s a lot of stunt preps.”
As for his dynamics with a foreign cast and crew, Alden said that everyone was just so easy to work with.
“Siyempre intimidated at first, nahiya. Siyempre, ubusan ng English!” Alden exclaimed with a laugh.
He added: “Para rin silang mga Pilipino in terms of being accommodating. Well, that’s based on my experience.
“I am so happy and at the same time ang daming kuwento at ang dami kong natutunan.
“Puwede pala yun na mag-collab talaga ang mga Pilipino with international partners and actors.”
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