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Metro Talks: Kyle Echarri and Xyriel Manabat for "18th Rose"

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<div style="text-align:center"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1775813618131kyle echarri xyriel manabat for netflix 18th rose - metrostyle interview.png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/>Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri for 18th Rose</div><div> </div>Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri&#x27;s fun and heartwarming coming-of-age movie, 18th Rose, has arrived on Netflix, and it got us smiling, laughing, and crying (but whether they&#x27;re tears of joy is up to you to find out).In Netflix&#x27;s first original Filipino film of 2026, Xyriel stars as Rose, a bubbly, hardworking teen who dreams of having her own debut party. She meets a Fil-Am cutie, Jordan (played by Kyle), who, due to circumstances involving his family, moves to her hometown in Romblon and transfers to her school. With their opposite personalities, the two struggle to get along. But their petty quarrels later blossom into a genuine friendship as they work on a mission that inevitably brings them closer. Interestingly, Rose and Jordan&#x27;s bumpy start resembles Xyriel and Kyle&#x27;s first encounters. In an exclusive interview with Metro.Style, Xyriel and Kyle recalled their first impressions of each other in 2015 when he debuted in showbiz through the reality talent competition show The Voice Kids (season 2). Xyriel laughed at the memory, saying, &quot;Nasabi ko na &#x27;to kay Kyle dati. Ayaw ko talaga sa kanya. Kasi para siyang mayabang. &#x27;Tsaka, fan kasi ako ng The Voice. Mayroon akong niru-root [for] nu&#x27;ng mga panahon na &#x27;yun tapos tinalo niya... At alam niya &#x27;yun. Vocal ako sa kanya nu&#x27;n.&quot;<div> </div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1775822741863Netflix 18th Rose Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri A.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/>Photo courtesy of Netflix</div><div> </div>But even though they are part of the same industry and would see each other more often, following Kyle&#x27;s The Voice Kids stint, Xyriel joked with a hearty laugh, &quot;Ayoko pa rin siya! Kaya ganu&#x27;n &#x27;yung banter namin the whole friendship.&quot; At the time of this interview, even the first words that came to mind to describe each other are hilarious: he said &quot;tangkad,&quot; while she said &quot;yabang.&quot;Rose and Jordan fight like cats and dogs. So, the way Xyriel and Kyle tease each other, even off-cam as real-life friends, made their scenes in 18th Rose easier to pull off and more convincing and appealing to viewers. &quot;Yung character ni Rose na pambu-bully kay Kyle, medyo kahit off-cam, ganu&#x27;n kasi ako sa kanya. So sila Direk [Dolly Dulu] &#x27;yung, &#x27;Hoy!&#x27; &#x27;Hindi, alam na ni Kyle &#x27;yan!&quot;<div></div>Kyle is used to Xyriel teasing him and doesn&#x27;t mind the playful banter, especially since that kind of dynamic has become the foundation of their friendship. &quot;Ako, na-appreciate ko naman siya from the start,&quot; Kyle said of his first impression of Xyriel, hinting that there was something that had happened between them that allowed him to get to know her better. &quot;I knew she was a good friend talaga. Tapos naging paborito ko po siya nu&#x27;ng Senior High.&quot; Senior High is a mystery teen drama that starred the two of them alongside Andrea Brillantes, Juan Karlos, Elijah Canlas, Zaijian Jaranilla, and Daniela Stranner.There were certain improvisations that director and writer Dolly Dulu also welcomed and fleshed out with Kyle and Xyriel, because the spontaneity of it all looked and felt natural in the narrative. &quot;Paiba-iba siya [Xyriel] ng ad lib,&quot; Kyle revealed, laughing. &quot;Binabago-bago niya. Sabi ko, namemersonal ka na ah!&quot;But Xyriel interjected, saying, &quot;Nag-work! Tawid naman kina Jordan and Rose.&quot;Kyle agreed, &quot;Tawid naman! It worked. It was funny!&quot;<div> </div><div style="text-align:center"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1775826355806Netflix 18th Rose Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri C.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div><div style="text-align:center"></div><div style="text-align:center"> </div><div style="text-align:center"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1775826381305Netflix 18th Rose Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri D.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/>Photos courtesy of Netflix</div><div style="text-align:center"> </div>That they&#x27;re friends was part of the reason why they took on this Netflix movie. But apart from that, the fact that it was also a project with Netflix that would stream globally, and that it has this beautiful story about young love and dreams set in Romblon in the 2000s, made it an easy yes for the duo. 18th Rose was filmed in Romblon, a relatively untouched location that was perfect for the film&#x27;s nostalgic treatment. What did Kyle and Xyriel think of Romblon when they first set foot in the province? &quot;Para po siyang coral na talagang umangat na sa tubig. Sobrang ganda niya,&quot; Kyle described. Xyriel couldn&#x27;t agree more, as Romblon captured her heart in more ways than one. She told Metro.Style, &quot;Iba &#x27;yung Romblon. Pag-uwi ko, bukambibig ko siya sa lahat ng taong makakausap ko. Sabi ko talaga, &#x27;Paraiso &#x27;yun!&#x27; Kung mayroong paradise, tapos naging lugar, Romblon &#x27;yun!... Parang kahit &#x27;yung hangin nila dun, parang iba, parang ang lakas makakalma, hinga.&quot; And since 18th Rose&#x27;s timeline is a throwback to the early 2000s, the raw beauty of Romblon lent a visually stunning and textured backdrop for the heart-fluttering story of Jordan and Rose. &quot;So mystical... Ang ganda rin &#x27;yung drama niya. It&#x27;s so beautiful. You feel the mountains. You feel the breeze. All the green. Sobrang raw pa rin po kasi talaga. That was what brought us back to the 2000s kasi. And you didn&#x27;t have to build the set. Parang nasa 90s ka pa e, pagdating mo dun,&quot; Kyle said, adding that they also filmed in what is hailed as the cleanest freshwater river in the Philippines. <div> </div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1775824566238Netflix 18th Rose Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri B.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/>Photo courtesy of Netflix</div><div> </div>Clearly, Kyle and Xyriel brought home so many memories from filming 18th Rose in Romblon. But we were curious what the first things they wanted to bring home from the film&#x27;s stash of props. After all, credit also goes to the film&#x27;s art department for culling iconic items from yesteryears, such as the retro personal computers, the Walkman, vintage mobile phones, among others. &quot;Ako, lagi kong hinihingi sa wardrobe &#x27;yung pendant. Because I always have a pendant for most of my characters. I always ask for those small things,&quot; Kyle said, referring to the dog tag pendant he had on in the film&#x27;s poster. He also said that he has yet to convince the production team to give him the Walkman. Xyriel shared that she&#x27;s a sentimental person, so as much as possible, she wants to have a tangible remembrance for every project she works on. &quot;Mahilig akong mag-keep talaga. So, mayroon akong memory box. So, isa sa memory box ko, mayroon ako doong specific na drawer for Rose. Nandun lahat nu&#x27;ng accessories ni Rose. Tapos &#x27;yung suot ko nu&#x27;ng last day, umuwi ako nang suot-suot ko siya. Hindi ako nagbihis. Tapos kineep ko siya. After na-wash, talagang may sentimental siyang place doon. Pati &#x27;yung shoes ni Rose!&quot; She said she also wanted to bring home Rose&#x27;s bike, sharing, &quot;Kasi mayroon kaming bond nu&#x27;n e. Nag-bike ako sa dagat! Medyo mahirap &#x27;yun. Pero &#x27;yun, kung meron man. Pero, happy ako sa nauwi ko!&quot;<div> </div><div style="text-align:center"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177582552689118th rose poster.jpeg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/></div><div> </div>18th Rose marked many firsts for Xyriel and Kyle. The film marks not only Xyriel&#x27;s debut in a leading lady role (a &quot;de-boo&quot; for a &quot;dey-byu&quot;—if you know, you know), but also her first on-screen pairing with Kyle. It tells the story of a beautiful first love with vibrant memories to last a lifetime. What were the first lines they could think of that truly stood out to them in the movie? Xyriel, with Rose being this ray of sunshine, said, &quot;Kaya mo &#x27;yan!&quot; Kyle, on the other hand, whose character, Jordan, became such a special person and source of joy, hope, and strength for Rose, declared, &quot;You only turn 18 once, and I wouldn&#x27;t miss it for the world.&quot;Who knows, with this first project of Xyriel and Kyle setting hearts aflutter and tugging at the heartstrings, the first could only be the beginning of even greater things for them! Like what Rose said, as she talked about her dream debut, &quot;Gusto ko people will look forward to what’s next for me.&quot; We heard you, Rose—and, for sure, with the film now in the second spot of the top TV shows on Netflix Philippines, many are already looking forward to what&#x27;s next for your and Jordan&#x27;s real-life alter egos, Xyriel and Kyle.18th Rose is Netflix&#x27;s first original Filipino film for 2026, <a href="https://metro.style/people/2026/2/9/what-s-next-on-netflix-philippines-here-are-the-films-series-and-actors-in-its-2026-lineup-2200" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a milestone year that will bring to Filipino viewers world-class titles</a> like Buy Bust: The Undesirables; Balaraw; Ganito, Ganyan, Ganoon; The Master Cutter; Someone, Someday; and Paskong Pinoy.<div> </div><div>Visit Metro.Style again for more content from our exclusive interview with Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri.</div><div> </div>Photos courtesy of Netflix

From first impressions of each other to their thoughts when they first set foot in Romblon, the filming location of "18th Rose," Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri fondly recall funny and memorable firsts.

From first impressions of each other to their thoughts when they first set foot in Romblon, the filming location of "18th Rose," Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri fondly recall funny and memorable firsts.

Netflix's '18th Rose' Stars Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri Talk About Firsts

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Netflix's '18th Rose' Stars Xyriel Manabat and Kyle Echarri Talk About Firsts

Grace Libero

Published April 10, 2026 10:10 PM PHT

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