Fujiki Naohito to star in TV Asahi drama SP "Eiko Kyouju no Jikenbo"

Fujiki Naohito will be starring in the upcoming TV Asahi drama SP "Eiko Kyouju no Jikenbo" (The Case File of Professor Eiko) which will be shown in May. The story is adapted from "Tokyo Teidai Eiko Kyouju", the historical mystery novel written by Kadoi Yoshinobu who was nominated for the 153th Naoki Award and features the lead character Unobe Eiko (Fujiki) who is a professor at a famous university and tries to solve a serial murder case which happened on campus. The concept of Eiko's character was based on Italian philosopher Umberto Eco. Although the time setting of the novel was during the Meiji era, the drama SP's setting will be in the current era. The story also features Tanaka Naoki who plays an useless police detective named Nanba Haruto that is serious about his work, has a strong sense of justice but keeps getting into trouble at work and has no luck with women.

For Fujiki who graduated from the science and engineering faculty of Waseda University, it will be a very different experience playing a professor working in the arts faculty who likes to check on past case studies and books to find the answers to his doubts. Despite Eiko's reputation as a learned man, he also comes across as someone who harps on things which other people do not care about and can be quite impolite at times so Fujiki will have to show the cool and comical sides of Eiko at the same time. He also commented that it was a challenge having to memorise so many lines and finds that his memory is failing me after he passed 40 years old to the extent that he can't remember what he ate the previous day. In addition, he finds it tough to remember names and facts about the arts when he comes from a science and engineering background.

Co-stars include Shirasu Jin who plays Eiko's assistance, Ukaji Takashi who plays a sub-section chief of Metropolitan Police Department's First Division and regards Eiko as a rival, Takeda Tetsuya who plays a section chief in the MPD's First Division and holds Eiko in high regard and Asano Yuko who plays the vice dean of Teito University where Eiko works at and treats him as an enemy.

Source: Oricon