He also told us that Telemundo did not fire him, But he only put an ultimatum on him, because they have one contract signed for three years with him as they consider him still a profitable actor and can save of the bad rating streak they go through.
Here are the details:
-We were surprised by the departure of Fernando Colunga of the Malverde series …
“Yes, after a year ago they announced with great fanfare his incorporation into Telemundo with this controversial character, his attitude did not help him at all and always already it will not be “Malverde”.
-What do you mean? What didn’t come out of a creative company decision?
“No, the truth is that they took him out of the series because no one could stand it. Fernando has always been an extremely difficult person, he is very arrogant and you have to take in his minutes of good humor, because if not, poor you. By the time he was away from TV as he had already calmed down, but in the last few months’ it was totally unbearable! “
-Tell us, what happened?
“Look, at first, Fernando he was very committed to his character, he did the characterization processes and even lost weight, but the project started with the left foot, as the recordings would start in April last year and just then the COVID pandemic broke out, so they had to postpone filming and wait. Eventually, they would resume, but when they returned, he did not want to come to Mexico”.
-Because?
“The truth is that the earth to entrust itself to COVID“He knows the situation in our country with so many deaths every day, and he refused to come back to start the recordings.”
-It has been said that her mother is ill and that he did not want to leave her alone …
“There was also a little bit of that, Mrs. Margarita has had some health problems, I do not know which ones, because Fernando is extremely reserved, but he did not want to come to Mexico to record and leave her alone in the United States because if he got serious, he wanted to be with her and not repeat what happened with his father, who died of cancer last year and was unable to stand by the pandemic. ”
-But he finally agreed to come and record …
“So they managed to convince and he reluctantly agreedBut from his return, his attitude changed, he became even more complicated, arrogant and rude … it was already hell to deal with him! “
-Because?
“Because suddenly already he disagreed with nothing, He put ‘buts’ on everything, who didn’t like the wardrobe; the characterization that had already been approved since last year, which now no longer convinced him, and he got into all the decisions, even to the point of wanting to choose the cast. “
-As you think! …
“Yes, at the beginning of the year they had already chosen Ariadne Diaz as his protagonist and Fernando refused, he rejected her, he said I wouldn’t work with an actress that he was not at his interpretive level; Imagine, totally gorgeous! “.
-What else happened?
“He became so rude to the whole production team, that they went to complain to Telemundo executives.”
-What if they caught your eye?
“Of course, because no one wanted to endure these abuses anymore; then, they took letters on the matter, but ‘it turned out much worse! ”
So what happened?
“In an effort to reassure him, the company’s executives asked Argentine producer Sebastián Ortega, who was in charge of Malverde’s supervision, to talk to Fernando and stop him, but here ‘ they both came across the shape of his shoe! “
-Why do you say that?
“Because Sebastian is a guy who also has an extremely strong character, he’s very strict and doesn’t walk with funnels. He is very talented and it’s not just any producer, as in August 2020 he was appointed Director of Development at Telemundo Global Studios. ”
-And what happened when you talked to him?
“Sebastian asked Fernando to show greater collaboration with the team, but, as they say, they joined the hunger with the desire to eat and you must already imagine how Fernando got someone to come and put a high”.
-How did Fernando react?
“It simply came to our notice then. Fernando put on a divo attitude, He told him that he was a star and that he got along with Marcos Santana, president of Telemundo, and not with his subordinates “.
-And what did Sebastian tell him?
“I get angry, because as I tell you, he has a major position on TV, and he told you that here he was not on Televisa“Where I could handle the producers.”
-They both hit the ego! …
“That’s right, they started talking so much that they almost hit, but those who were around heard the lawsuit and separated them so that the situation would not get worse. “
-Then what happened?
“Faced with this situation, Telemundo decided to take him out of the series.”
-Did they run it from the company?
“Although it would seem obvious after having disrespectful to a manager“They didn’t fire him, they just fired an ultimatum.”
-For real?! …
“Yes, they know that Fernando can still be profitable and they’re currently going through a bad streak of rating in their soap operas, so they want to keep it. “
-Dinos, what was the ultimatum?
“They warned him that one more and they would terminate his contract, which is for three projects in three years, with a very good pay in total, around 40 million pesos “.
-Is that more or less what they paid Televisa?
“Uff, much less; Televisa, for its exclusivity, earned two million pesos a month, that is, in three years it pocketed 72 million pesos.”
-What a big difference! …
“Sure, but hey, there they were already four years old that did not require it, Because his latest soap opera, Passion and Power, was a failure and they realized that while he is still the most popular gallant, it was no guarantee of rating, which is a shame, as he was on this TV for almost 30 years and was one of the pampered actors. “
-And how is Fernando after it has happened?
“On the one hand, I’m glad he won’t have to come to Mexico to record anymore, which was what he wanted, but yes his fight was very embarrassing and they have reiterated to him that please collaborate more, as they are paying him very well, even if it is less than what he earned at Televisa. They have also reminded him of his age and his latest failure on television, which hits him even harder on the ego. “
-Telemundo spoke well of him when he confirmed his departure from Malverde …
“Obviously, because if they were going to keep working with him, they weren’t going to let him down and much less were they going to show that there was a fight between an executive and him. According to them, they’re happy to be part of the company; obviously they will deny all this“But the reality is that they are targeting him.”
-And you already have a new project on your doorstep?
“They’re already seeing what other projects he’ll do this year because he’s already revenge what they’ll pay him.”
-Do you know who will replace him?
“Until Friday, February 12, they were negotiating with Pedro Fernández and apparently it will be him, but it has not yet been confirmed due to contract issues. Anyway, they were already seeing other options like Rafael Amaya, David Zepeda, David Chocarro or Juan Manuel Bernal. Let’s see what happens, “he concluded.