He has these possibilities in the open
In an era when audiences have grown restless with uncomplicated virtue, actor Chay Suede steps into Globo's new telenovela 'Quem Ama Cuida' carrying a character built from shadow and contradiction. Gabriel, his protagonist, is neither villain nor savior in the traditional sense — he is something more unsettling: a man whose charm invites trust even as the narrative quietly withdraws it. The show, which premiered May 18, asks whether modern viewers can sustain affection for a hero they are not entirely permitted to believe in.
- Chay Suede arrives at the premiere of 'Quem Ama Cuida' having deliberately dismantled the romantic hero archetype audiences expect from him.
- A murder in episodes 13 and 14 detonates the story's premise, pulling Gabriel — and the viewer's loyalty — into genuinely uncertain territory.
- The tension is not just dramatic but psychological: every scene Suede plays after that revelation must carry the weight of possible guilt.
- Suede himself admits he is still discovering the character, suggesting the ambiguity is not a pose but a sustained creative commitment.
- Globo is betting that contemporary audiences will follow a protagonist they are encouraged to doubt, reflecting a wider shift in how telenovelas construct moral stakes.
Chay Suede made one thing clear before 'Quem Ama Cuida' even aired: Gabriel would not be the hero viewers think they know. Speaking ahead of the May 18 premiere on Globo, the actor described a character designed to resist easy reading — charming on the surface, but seeded with questions the show refuses to answer quickly.
Written by Walcyr Carrasco and Claudia Souto, the telenovela follows Adriana, a physical therapist played by Letícia Colin, who is rebuilding her life after a catastrophic flood. Her path into the orbit of the powerful Brandão family brings Gabriel into the story — initially warm and seemingly trustworthy, but carrying a shadow the narrative keeps just out of reach.
The drama's real rupture comes in episodes 13 and 14, when a murder occurs and Gabriel is directly implicated. Suede described the moment plainly: from that point forward, every interaction, every gesture, every choice the character makes is filtered through the possibility of guilt. He remains the protagonist — the audience is still meant to follow him — but he is no longer safe to admire without reservation.
Suede spoke of the role as an ongoing discovery, a search for layers that diverge from the conventional romantic lead. That willingness to hold contradiction — to be both the figure audiences root for and the one they might reasonably fear — places 'Quem Ama Cuida' within a broader movement in telenovela storytelling toward morally gray protagonists. Globo, it seems, is not asking viewers to trust Gabriel. It is asking them to notice how much they want to.
Chay Suede is not interested in playing the hero the way audiences expect. In an interview ahead of the premiere of Globo's new telenovela Quem Ama Cuida, which debuted on May 18, the actor made clear that his character, Gabriel, would arrive without the usual shine of moral certainty. The show, written by Walcyr Carrasco and Claudia Souto, centers on Adriana, a physical therapist played by Letícia Colin who is rebuilding her life after losing everything in a devastating flood. When she crosses paths with the powerful Brandão family, Gabriel enters the story—initially charming and seemingly trustworthy, but carrying questions about his true motives that the narrative will not answer quickly.
Suede described the central challenge of the role as finding depth beyond the conventional romantic lead. "I'm still discovering the character," he said, "but I think the biggest challenge was finding layers and possibilities that differ from what you expect from a traditional hero." The script itself, he noted, plants seeds of doubt. The telenovela raises possibilities about this protagonist that viewers won't anticipate, creating a deliberate tension between what Gabriel appears to be and what he might actually be doing.
The turning point arrives in episodes 13 and 14, when a murder occurs and Gabriel becomes directly implicated. "There's a murder that happens in chapter 13, 14 of the story, and this hero is somehow connected to it," Suede revealed. From that moment forward, every scene he plays, every interaction, every choice reverberates with new meaning. The character remains a protagonist—the audience is still meant to follow him, to want things for him—but he is no longer simple. He exists in shadow.
This approach reflects a broader shift in telenovela storytelling. Gray characters, morally complicated figures who resist easy judgment, have gained ground in the genre. Suede seems willing to lean into that fully, transforming Gabriel into a hero whose trustworthiness remains perpetually in question. The actor acknowledged that the role requires holding contradictions: Gabriel is a romantic lead, yes, but he is also someone the audience might reasonably fear or doubt.
The question the show poses to viewers is whether they will trust him to the end. Globo appears to want them to hesitate before answering. By the time Quem Ama Cuida premiered, the network had already planted doubt in the minds of those paying attention—not through heavy-handed promotion, but through Suede's own careful description of a character designed to unsettle even as he attracts.
Citações Notáveis
The biggest challenge was finding layers and possibilities that differ from what you expect from a traditional hero— Chay Suede
The story itself raises possibilities about the protagonist that viewers won't anticipate— Chay Suede
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does Suede think audiences are ready for a protagonist who might be guilty of something serious?
I think he's not assuming they are. He's betting that the uncertainty itself is what makes Gabriel worth watching. The murder in episodes 13 and 14 isn't a twist that redeems him or condemns him—it's a rupture that forces the audience to reconsider everything they've already seen.
But isn't that risky? Don't telenovela audiences want to know who to root for?
They do, but maybe not in the way they used to. Suede talks about finding "layers"—he's not playing a villain pretending to be good. He's playing someone genuinely complex, where the audience can root for him and still wonder if he's capable of terrible things.
So Gabriel isn't redeemed by the end?
We don't know yet. That's the point. Suede says the character has "possibilities in the open." The murder doesn't close the book on who Gabriel is; it opens it wider.
What does this say about telenovelas as a form?
That they're growing up, maybe. Gray characters used to be villains. Now they're allowed to be protagonists. The audience gets to sit with moral ambiguity instead of being told who to trust.
Is Suede comfortable with that ambiguity?
He seems to be. He's not trying to convince us Gabriel is good. He's trying to make us understand him, which is different. That's harder work.