Ihara Tsuyoshi to star in TV Tokyo Summer 2016 drama "Yassan ~ Tsukiji Hatsu! Oishii Jikenbo ~"

Ihara Tsuyoshi will be starring in the upcoming TV Tokyo Summer 2016 drama "Yassan ~ Tsukiji Hatsu! Oishii Jikenbo ~" (Yassan - the delicious case files from Tsukiji) which will be shown from July in the Fridays 8pm timeslot. This will be the last drama series to be shot on location at the 80-year-old Tsukiji Market before it moves to Toyosu in November and is Ihara's first primetime drama where he has a leading role.

Ihara plays the role of a mysterious man known as Yassan who has no money and a place to live in. However, he has a lot of knowledge about food and is discerning about food. Yassan's talents are deeply appreciated by many people at Tsukiji Market including the brokers and chefs at high-class restaurants in hotels and he ends up helping the people at the market solve various problems related to food with his buddy Takao who is also homeless like him. There will also be a "Madonna" appearing in each episode as Yassan's potential love interest.

Ihara commented that he found the drama's proposal very interesting and likens it to "Kodoku no Gurume" which also has a food theme and is very excited about being offered this role. As he owns a restaurant in real life and is good at cooking, he can identify with the storyline and its developments. In order to prepare for his role, Ihara started running and weight training to reduce his weight from 84.5kg to 76kg. He also tried to sleep in a sleeping bag on the floor for three nights to experience what it felt like to be homeless.

Source: Sanspo / Yomiuri Hochi / Oricon