Guilherme Weber confesses to being a fan of 7pm soap operas since childhood: 'They were my thing'

Guilherme Weber (52) joined the cast of Volta por Cima , on TV Globo, in November last year and since then he has been gaining more and more prominence in Claudia Souto 's plot. After his last work on the network, when he played the character Jonathan in Cara e Coragem (2022), by the same author, he returns with everything to play the bookmaker Marco. During the opening of the recordings of the soap opera, at Estúdios Globo, in Rio de Janeiro, with the presence of CARAS Brasil , the actor speaks fondly about the new opportunity and confesses to being a fan of seven o'clock soap operas since childhood. "They were my thing", he reveals.

The artist is not intimidated when he says that it is "a little strange" to enter a soap opera after its debut, and with the plots already very well developed. "Entering the soap opera while it is still underway is not that it is easier or more difficult, it is a little strange because people have already developed a connection, there is already a whole community of friends created, there is already their own slang that you have to run after a little to be part of the clan. But having friends in the soap opera helped a lot, because my core is made up of friends from many years ago" , he says.

"I've done a lot of theater with Bel Teixeira, many plays; I've known Kiki for millennia, from watching plays, from designing bar stuff, from traveling; Drica; Rodrigo Fagundes (...) This is my third soap opera with him - we did the three Claudia ones -, and he's also my theater partner, we did plays together. I fell into a group of friends; and there's this thing that a dressing room is forever. When you share a dressing room with an actor, it's forever, it becomes family. So, this dressing room was like coming home a little. And also the joy of meeting veterans that I've admired for millennia, who are Zé de Abreu and Betty Faria" , he adds.

For Guilherme, the 7pm soap opera has a special place in his heart. "It's the time slot I've done the most; the one I've done the most is the 7pm soap opera and I love it, because it has a bit of farce, a bit of comedy, a bit of parody, the tones can be more intense, more surreal. A writer once said that the only realism possible for Latin America is surrealism. So, I think the 7pm soap opera fulfills this role of embracing many subgenres within itself and having a popular dialogue, a very vibrant pop dialogue", he analyzes.

"And I remember when I was a kid, I was an avid soap opera viewer, and I liked watching the seven o'clock soap operas. It was Hipertensão, Transas & Caretas, Que Rei Sou Eu?, Vereda Tropical, Top Model (...) These were the soap operas that were on my mind" , he adds.

PARTNERSHIP WITH ISABEL TEIXEIRA

Believing he has a clear path to court Violeta ( Isabel Teixeira ), Marco goes to the racketeer's house to propose a business and even marriage alliance. In a short conversation, he invests heavily and manages to steal a kiss from her, which she returns. The scene aired on the 20th. Asked about the atmosphere behind the scenes of Volta por Cima with the iconic actress who plays Maria Bruaca, in the remake of Pantanal (2022), Guilherme celebrates: "We have fun because we have a lot of repertoire in common."

And she continues: "For example, Bel is like me, a great admirer of the history of theater, television and cinema in Brazil. So, we have a lot of inside jokes, and talk about Tônia Carrero, José Lewgoy, Cacilda Becker and Cleide Yáconis. So, we laugh too, we kind of embody, imitate these characters for each other, a little bit of that atmosphere behind the scenes of the soap opera."

COME BACK IN LIFE

Guilherme Weber also talks about his comeback in life. "Brazilians comeback at least twice a year, right? When I decided to live off culture in this country - and I was 17 when I told my parents that I wanted to do theater, to be an actor - I think it was a comeback. A comeback from my own destiny, from what my parents had planned for me, from the fear they went through, from the insecurity", he emphasizes.

"So, I think that when you choose to work with culture in this country, you are already turning things around. Turning things around from the future that is not prepared to receive your project, your dream. We turn things around to keep our dreams alive. And we turn things around to be able to live and build a reality that is minimally fair for everyone - and we are still far from that. So, we are turning things around every day" , adds the actor.

SUCCESS OF CLAUDIA SOUTO'S PLOT

Volta por Cima, starring Jéssica Ellen (32) and Fabrício Boliveira (42), has a popular plot, with the suburbs of Rio de Janeiro and a bus company as the backdrop to address the daily lives and dilemmas of Brazilians from lower social classes. The soap opera won over the public for presenting a mix of lightness, humor and tension.

"The soap opera has this vocation for everyday life, for domestic life. You change, you face your year, you go through your achievements, and the soap opera follows along. So, those characters become companions on the journey. And Claudia does this domestic relationship between real life and fictional life very well", Guilherme points out.

"When it's Christmas, it's Christmas in the soap opera. So, you go out to buy your turkey and the characters are doing the same thing. New Year's, Carnival (...) And that's so touching! I think that's such a part of the viewer-soap opera relationship. These are the reasons why the soap opera is a success, because it's extremely affectionate, it talks about overcoming, it talks about the heart, about family. So, it really exudes a comeback, exudes the possibility that life offers - to quote our golden girl Fernanda Torres (laughs)" , he continues.

CARNIVAL 2025

There are only a few days left until Carnival - the most popular festival in Brazil. It is celebrated in different ways in each region of the country, involving electric trios, street blocks and samba school parades, celebrations that Guilherme Weber loves! "I love Carnival, pure and simple. And Rio is one of the best places to live if you love Carnival. And I like all types of carnivals" , he emphasizes.

"I'm going to Sapucaí to watch, I parade, I go to street blocks, to electronic Carnival parties; whatever Carnival has in those four days, or six, or eight, a month (...) I'm not really into pre-Carnival, I like Carnival, that little week of Carnival. But I love it, I'm really into Carnival. This year, I'm not going to parade, I'm just going to watch - watch Viviane (Araújo), watch Mangueira, Beija-Flor, who are my golden trio" , concludes the artist.

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