MANILA — Filipino actor Nico Antonio will be seen in the Philippines-set South Korean series “Big Bet,” which is scheduled to premiere on Disney+ on December 21.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Nico Antonio (@welovetolayts)

Antonio will portray a CIDG agent who investigates a case involving a “casino king” in the Philippines, Cha Mu-sik, who is played by Choi Min-sik. He will also star alongside the likes of Son Seok-koo and Lee Dong-hwi, among others.

Recalling his audition for the role of Mark Flores, Antonio narrated: Pina-memorize po ako ng line tapos after memorizing the line, I was asked to do an acting piece. I was not informed that I needed an acting piece, so I ask for a few seconds to prepare.”

He opted for reenactments of his scenes in the films “Big Night” with John Arcilla, and then “Tandem” with JM de Guzman. Those proved more than enough to convince the casting team to have him on board.

“I had a call back and a week after that gusto nang makipagkita sa akin ng direktor and then the rest is history,” he said, as quoted by PUSH.

Watch more News on iWantTFC

Asked to recount the moment he got the good news, Antonio shared: “Hindi po ako makapaniwala, kasi alam niyo ‘yung pakiramdam na nakuha ka pero there’s a chance na baka masilat pa rin sa ‘yo?

“I mean, nangyayari ‘yan sa industriya natin so yung utak ko nakuha ako pero ayoko pa siyang kapitan kasi baka ma-disappoint ako.”

That doubt only finally went away when he actually started filming his scenes in “Big Bet,” which includes a real casino in Parañaque, as seen in the trailer.

Antonio described working in a Korean production as “challenging yet fulfilling.”

“You have to be on your toes always. Yung mga aktor na katrabaho ko lahat sila ready pagdating sa set. Modesty aside, hindi naman tayo napahiya. Naitayo naman natin ang bandera ng Pilipinas,” he said.