From portraying a vicious priest in "Mallari," award-winning actor Piolo Pascual returns to the Metro Manila Festival (MMFF) this year as a policeman in "Manila's Finest," produced by Cignal TV and MQuest Ventures.

As Lt. Homer Magtibay, a principled officer of the Manila Police Department, Piolo will investigate a string of brutal murders in the city’s rapidly expanding slums, going on to uncover something huge, unexpected.

During the grand media conference held at New Frontier Theater in Cubao last Dec. 5, Piolo was asked what he fears the most.

"Siguro yung nangyayari sa paligid natin ngayon, yung political unrest," he answered. "If I may quote, when Quen [Enrique Gil] and I did an interview, we were shown different clippings from back in the '60s, how there was a lot of riot, and fast forward to now, it is still happening, and nagkakaroon pa ng mas malaking pag-aalsa yung mga tao. (Maybe, it's about what's happening around us now, the political unrest. If I may quote, when Quen [Enrique] and I did an interview, we were shown different clippings taken back in the '60s, how there was a lot of riot, and fast forward to now, it is still happening, and on a bigger scale.)"

Piolo noted that the situation is worsening and that people should be held accountable.

"It's getting worse na ngayon, and I think kailangan talaga magkaroon ng step not just among us but also sa goverment. Kasi, it's really about the system, yun lang naman ang kinakatakutan ko, na magkaroon ng walang accountability sa bansa natin, especially sa society natin. (It's getting worse now, and we really need to take steps, not just us, but also the government. Because it's really about the system, that's what I'm afraid of, there being no accountability in our country, especially in our society.)"

Marking his third year in MMFF, Piolo considers the film a challenge because of the research they had to do to portray their characters.

"We studied the lives of police officers in the 1960s to ground the story in truth. These characters may be fictional, but they reflect real people in the past who served with passion and heart," Piolo said.

Meanwhile, Piolo's co-star Enrique Gil feels grateful, as one of his Christmas wishes has come true: acting alongside Piolo.

"Ngayon lang po ulit ako gagawa ng drama ulit, but it was actually fairly easy kasi first working with Piolo and all of my co-stars here, it's so easy to fit in, and I felt comfortable on set, so it just felt like how we do it back in the day. So, I'm very thankful for them; they made it really easy for me," Enrique said.

Co-star Cedrick Juan talked about the friendship he built with Piolo after doing "Gomburza" and "The Kingdom."

"I think more than pressure, ang pinaka naging takeaway ko working again with him is yung friendship. Parang somehow nandun yung mga advices lalo na nung nagka-family ako, parang naging kuya siya on set. (More than the pressure, the biggest thing I took away from working with him again was the friendship. It felt like his guidance was always there—especially when I started my own family. He became like an older brother to me on set.)"

Directed by Raymond Red, "Manila's Finest'' is written by notable Filipino screenwriters Michiko Yamamoto, Moira Lang, and Sherad Anthony Sanchez.

Joining Piolo, Enrique and Cedrick in the film are Romnick Sarmenta, Joey Marquez, Soliman Cruz, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, Rico Blanco, Kiko Estrada, and Rica Peralejo-Bonifacio.

The film also stars Ashtine Olviga, Ethan David, Dylan Menor, Paulo Angeles, Inday Fatima, and Pearl Gonzales. Produced by MQuest Ventures and Cignal TV, "Manila’s Finest" opens in cinemas on Dec. 25.