Takahata Mitsuki & Sakaguchi Kentaro deny dating rumours

Takahata Mitsuki and Sakaguchi Kentaro are rumoured to be dating as reported on 29 November. The two of them worked together in two dramas this year i.e. NHK's morning drama "Toto Nee-chan" and FujiTV Winter 2016's "Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau" and were said to have started dating at least six months ago.

When asked about the news, Takahata's agency denied that they are an item and said that they are merely friends. Sakaguchi's agency also echoed the same and stated that she is just one of his close friends.

Sources: Nikkansports 1 / Nikkansports 2 / Oricon

Winners of the Tokyo Drama Awards 2016

Drama Series Category
Grand Prix: Asa ga Kita (NHK)
Excellence Awards:
1) Yutori desu ga nani ka (NTV)
2) Tamiou (TV Asahi)
3) Shitamachi Rocket (TBS)
4) Tsuri baka nisshi (TV Tokyo)
5) Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau (FujiTV)
6) Shizumanu Taiyo (WOWOW)

Drama SP Category
Grand Prix: Aka Medaka (TBS)
Excellence Awards:
1) Keiseisaimin no Otoko Series (NHK)
2) Kono machi no inochi ni (WOWOW)

Local dramas Category
Mitsu no Tsuki (CBC)
Indigo no Koibito (NHK Okayama)

Individual Awards Category
Best Leading Actor: Abe Hiroshi (Shitamachi Rocket)
Best Leading Actress: Haru (Asa ga kita)
Best Supporting Actor: Dean Fujioka (Asa ga kita)
Best Supporting Actress: Kimura Yoshino (Boku no Yabai Tsuma)
Best Script: Nogi Akiko (Juuhan Shuttai!)
Best Producer: Iyoda Hidenori (Shitamachi Rocket)
Best Director: Doi Nobuhiro (Juuhan Shuttai! & Kounotori) / Ishii Yuuya (Okashi no Ie)
Best Theme Song: Teshima Aoi (Itsuka kono koi wo omoidashite kitto naite shimau)

Source: Oricon

The 88th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2016) - Best Theme Song

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) 365 Nichi no Kami Hikouki - AKB48 (Asa ga kita)
2) Ashita e no Tegami - Teshima Aoi (Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau)
3) Motto - aiko (Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai)

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) UNLOCK - KAT-TUN (Kaitou Yamaneko)
2) 365 Nichi no Kami Hikouki - AKB48 (Asa ga kita)
3) Ashita e no Tegami - Teshima Aoi (Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau)
4) Gravity - Kis-My-Ft2 (MARS ~ Tada, kimi wo aishiteru ~)
5) Motto - aiko (Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai)

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Ashita e no Tegami - Teshima Aoi (Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau)
2) 365 Nichi no Kami Hikouki - AKB48 (Asa ga kita)
3) Motto - aiko (Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai)
4) No more - EXILE ATSUSHI + AI (Naomi to Kanako)
5) UNLOCK - KAT-TUN (Kaitou Yamaneko) / I want u to love me - Alexandros (Onna Kudoki Meshi Season 2)

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) 365 Nichi no Kami Hikouki - AKB48 (Asa ga kita)
2) Ashita e no Tegami - Teshima Aoi (Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau)
3) Koigokoro - MACO (Tokyo Sentimental)
4) Motto - aiko (Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai)
5) UNLOCK - KAT-TUN (Kaitou Yamaneko) / No more - EXILE ATSUSHI + AI (Naomi to Kanako) / Kokoro no mama ni - Shimatani Hitomi (Itooshikute) / Friends - Rebecca (MARS ~ Tada, kimi wo aishiteru ~) / Kimi ga ii - Softly (Onna kudoki meshi Season 2)

Source: The Televison

The 88th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2016) - Best Supporting Actress

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Takahata Atsuko - Naomi to Kanako
2) Miyazaki Aoi - Asa ga kita
3) Ueno Juri - Kazoku no Katachi

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Ueno Juri - Kazoku no Katachi
2) Hirose Suzu - Kaitou Yamaneko
3) Takahata Mitsuki - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
4) Minami Kaho - Specialist
5) Miyazaki Aoi - Asa ga kita

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Takahata Atsuko - Naomi to Kanako
2) Miyazaki Aoi - Asa ga kita
3) Takahata Mitsuki - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
4) Yoshida Yo - Naomi to Kanako
5) Uchida Yuki - Naomi to Kanako / Matsui Reina - Niche-sensei

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Takahata Atsuko - Naomi to Kanako
2) Naka Riisa - Nigeru Onna
3) Takahata Mitsuki - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
4) Yoshida Yo - Naomi to Kanako
5) Miyazaki Aoi - Asa ga kita / Uchida Yuki - Naomi to Kanako

Source: The Televison

The 88th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2016) - Best Supporting Actor

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Tamaki Hiroshi - Asa ga kita
2) Dean Fujioka - Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai
3) Dean Fujioka - Asa ga kita

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Kubota Masataka - Rinshou Hanzai Gakusha Himura Hideo no Suiri
2) Narimiya Hiroki - Kaitou Yamaneko
3) Tamaki Hiroshi - Asa ga kita
4) Nishijima Takahiro - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
5) Nishida Toshiyuki - Kazoku no Katachi

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Tamaki Hiroshi - Asa ga kita
2) Dean Fujioka - Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai
3) Dean Fujioka - Asa ga kita
4) Takahashi Issei - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
5) Kubota Masataka - Rinshou Hanzai Gakusha Himura Hideo no Suiri / Sakaguchi Kentaro - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau / Yamazaki Ikusaburo - Otousan to yobasete

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Tamaki Hiroshi - Asa ga kita
2) Dean Fujioka - Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai
3) Dean Fujioka - Asa ga kita
4) Kondo Masaomi - Asa ga kita
5) Emoto Tasuku - Asa ga kita

Source: The Televison

The 88th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2016) - Best Leading Actress

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Haru - Asa ga kita
2) Fukada Kyoko - Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai
3) Hirosue Ryoko - Naomi to Kanako

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Haru - Asa ga kita
2) Fukada Kyoko - Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai
3) Hirosue Ryoko - Naomi to Kanako
4) Horikita Maki - Higanbana ~ Keishicho Sousa Nanaka
5) Ayase Haruka - Watashi wo hanasanai de

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Haru - Asa ga kita
2) Fukada Kyoko - Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai
3) Arimura Kasumi - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
4) Hirosue Ryoko - Naomi to Kanako
5) Ayase Haruka - Watashi wo hanasanai de

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Haru - Asa ga kita
2) Hirosue Ryoko - Naomi to Kanako
3) Fukada Kyoko - Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai
4) Arimura Kasumi - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
5) Kiritani Mirei - Sumi ka Sumire

Source: The Televison

The 88th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2016) - Best Leading Actor

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Koura Kengo - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
2) Kamenashi Kazuya - Kaitou Yamaneko
3) Katori Shingo - Kazoku no Katachi

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Kamenashi Kazuya - Kaitou Yamaneko
2) Katori Shingo - Kazoku no Katachi
3) Kusanagi Tsuyoshi - Specialist
4) Kubota Masataka - MARS ~ Tada, Kimi wo aishiteru ~
5) Fujigaya Taisuke - MARS ~ Tada, Kimi wo aishiteru ~

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Koura Kengo - Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau
2) Kamenashi Kazuya - Kaitou Yamaneko
3) Kusanagi Tsuyoshi - Specialist
4) Nagase Tomoya - Fragile
5) Endo Kenichi - Otousan to yobasete

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Nagase Tomoya - Fragile
2) Yoshida Kotaro - Tokyo Sentimental
3) Watabe Atsuro - Otousan to yobasete
4) Katori Shingo - Kazoku no Katachi / Kusanagi Tsuyoshi - Specialist / Endo Kenichi - Otousan to yobasete

Source: The Televison

The 88th Drama Academy Awards (Winter 2016) - Best Drama

Overall Ranking Top 3
1) Asa ga kita (NHK)
2) Naomi to Kanako (FujiTV)
3) Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau (FujiTV)

Voters Ranking Top 5
1) Kazoku no Katachi (TBS)
2) Kaitou Yamaneko (NTV)
3) Rinshou Hanzai Gakusha Himura Hideo no Suiri (NTV)
4) MARS ~ Tada, Kimi wo aishiteru ~ (NTV)
5) Specialist (TV Asahi)

TV Reporters Ranking Top 5
1) Asa ga kita (NHK)
2) Naomi to Kanako (FujiTV)
3) Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau (FujiTV)
4) Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai (TBS)
5) Specialist (TV Asahi)

Judges Ranking Top 5
1) Asa ga kita (NHK)
2) Naomi to Kanako (FujiTV)
3) Tokyo Sentimental (TV Tokyo)
4) Chikaemon (NHK)
5) Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau (FujiTV) / Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai (TBS)

Source: The Television

The 3rd Confidence Award for Dramas - Winter 2016

Best Drama: Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau (FujiTV)

Best Leading Actor: Nagase Tomoya (Fragile)

Best Leading Actress: N.A.
Apparently, the judges couldn't decide on who among the three actresses to choose as the winner so they decided to forgo this award. The three who remained in the final round of selection were Hirosue Ryoko (Naomi to Kanako), Kiritani Mirei (Sumi ka Sumire) and Fukada Kyoko (Dame na watashi ni koishite kudasai).

Best Supporting Actor: Sato Ryuta (Naomi to Kanako)

Best Supporting Actress: Naka Riisa (Nigeru Onna)

Best Script: Sakamoto Yuji (Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau)

Best Newcomer: Nishijima Takahiro (Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau)

Source: Confidence Award

Screening event of FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau"

The screening event of FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau" was held on 13 January which was attended by the cast Arimura Kasumi, Koura Kengo, Takahata Mitsuki, Nishijima Takahiro, Morikawa Aoi and Sakaguchi Kentaro. The drama which begins its run from 18 January in the Mondays 9pm timeslot, is a love story written by Sakamoto Yuji involving six young people as they fall in love and try to find hope in living.

As the filming already started from 13 November last year, the cast and crew are almost done with the 5th episode's filming at the time of the screening event. When asked about Sakamoto's unique lines in the script, Arimura revealed that while she was reading the fourth episode's script, she was so saddened by it that she cried so much and wanted to give up on the filming. As this is her first leading role in a private network drama, she is especially determined to do her best for this drama. Likewise for Koura who is also starring as the lead in a private network drama, he views the participation in a Gekku drama as a challenge for him and is very happy that the teamwork has been good so far and that acting as Ren has been a stimulating experience. Takahata who is taking on the role of a woman with a lot of sexy feminine charm, admitted that she has been worried since the filming started as her character is one who speaks opposite to what she thinks. She feels that her character this time will be very different from her other roles so far.

Teshima Aoi, the singer of the drama's theme song "Ashita e no Tegami" was also present at the event as a surprise guest to perform the song.

Source: Oricon

Most Anticipated Winter 2016 drama ranking (Confidence)

This survey was done via the Internet and involved 1,364 respondents nationwide. The total scores in brackets are tabulated based on anticipation levels in four areas i.e. ratings, the leads, the supporting cast and the story. Dramas with original novels/manga are indicated in blue. If you would like to see the breakdown of the scores, please visit here which are presented in the same order as I outlined above. There are two categories i.e. the primetime and late night dramas.

Interestingly, although "Watashi wo Hanasanai de" and "Specialist 4" are tied for 1st place in terms of total score, the latter scored lower for the ratings, leads and supporting cast aspects but got a better score for the story despite the fact that the former has a bestselling novel to back it up. Seems like the viewers are quite confident about the story in the "Specialist" series.

As for the late night dramas, Kiritani Mirei's "Sumi ka Sumire" got the top spot. It was mentioned in the article that this drama got a higher proportion of men looking forward to this drama compared to the others and cited the expectation of wanting to see if Kiritani can pull off the role of a woman who becomes 45 years younger than her actual age as a key factor.

Primetime dramas (from 8pm to before 11pm)
1) Watashi wo Hanasanai de - TBS / Specialist 4 - TV Asahi (65)
3) Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau - FujiTV (58)
4) Fragile - FujiTV (50)
5) Higanbana ~ Keishicho Sousa Nanaka ~ - NTV / Rinshou Hanzai Gakusha  Himura Hideo no Suiri - NTV (49)
7) Kazoku no Katachi - TBS / Otousan to yobasete - FujiTV / Naomi to Kanako - FujiTV (47)
10) Kaitou Yamaneko - NTV (46)
11) Keishicho Zero Kakari ~ Seikatsu Anzenka Nandemo Soudanshitsu ~ - TV Tokyo (36)
12) Dame na watashi ni  koishite kudasai - TBS (34)
13) Chikaemon - NHK (26)
14) Nigeru Onna - NHK (23)
15) Itooshikute - NHK (20)

Late night dramas (from 11pm onwards)
1) Sumi ka Sumire - TV Asahi (46)
2) Akutotachi wa Senri wo hashiru - TBS (39)
3) Tokyo Sentimental - TV Tokyo (34)
4) Kasa wo motanai aritachi - FujiTV (25)
5) Money no Tenshi - NTV (10)

Takahata Mitsuki & Takahashi Yu reportedly dating?

According to the latest issue of "FRIDAY", actress Takahata Mitsuki and singer-songwriter Takahashi Yu were caught on a date in Shibuya. The couple met up at a famous yakitori restaurant located in a corner of Shibuya filled with love hotels and adult sex toys shops and were seen sitting at the counter side by side. After having dinner and drinks for four hours, the couple left the place at 1am and walked towards the Shibuya station where they took a taxi together.

Takahata and Takahashi were said to have met when the latter sang the theme song for the NTV 2010 drama "Q10" which Takahata had acted in. In her blog, she also mentioned before that she is a fan of Takahashi, went to his concert to get his CD signed and strongly recommended the song to her fans.

Takahata will be seen in the upcoming FujiTV Winter 2016 Gekku "Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau" and take on the leading role in the next NHK morning drama "Toto Nee-chan". The movie "Shokubutsu Zukan" which features her as the heroine, will be shown in cinemas from June. This is her first romance rumour to date. On the other hand, Takahashi was scouted by an agency while performing in a livehouse when he was still an university student in Hokkaido. He was the second Japanese after Ono Yoko to be featured in a commercial on "New York Times: in 2011 and his latest song "Klaxon" will be the theme song for TBS Winter 2016 drama "Akutoutachi wa Senri wo Hashiru".

Source: FRIDAY /  Real Live

Preview of "Itsuka kono koi wo omoidashite kitto naite shimasu" - Winter 2016

Title: Itsuka kono koi wo omoidashite kitto naite shimau いつかこの恋を思い出してきっと泣いてしまう (Someday when I recall this love, I will surely cry)
Official website: here
Official Twitter: here
O.A. Start Date: 18 January 2016
Timeslot: Mondays 9pm
Broadcast by: FujiTV
Scriptwriter: Sakamoto Yuji
Theme Song: Ashita e no Tegami by Teshima Aoi
Cast: Arimura Kasumi, Koura Kengo, Takahata Mitsuki, Nishijima Takahiro, Morikawa Aoi, Sakaguchi Kentaro, Urai Kenji, Fukushi Seiji, Morioka Ryu, Nagano Mei, Sakurai Yuki, Ware Zendo, Hayashida Miyu, Yasuda Ken, Otani Naoko, Tanaka Min, Emoto Akira, Takahashi Issei, Matsuda Miyuki, Kohinata Fumio, Yachigusa Kaoru

Arimura Kasumi & Kora Kengo to star in FujiTV's Winter 2016 Gekku "Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau"

Arimura Kasumi and Kora Kengo will be starring in the upcoming FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Itsuka kono koi wo omoi dashite kitto naite shimau" (Someday, when I recall this love, I will surely cry) which will begin its run in January 2016 in the Mondays 9pm timeslot. The two actors will be working together for the first time and taking on the leading role in a private network for the first time through this drama. The scriptwriter will be Sakamoto Yuji who was responsible for previous Gekku hits such as his signature work "Tokyo Love Story" almost 25 years ago.

The drama features Arimura as Sugihara Oto who has been living with her adopted parents in Hokkaido after her mother passed away and is working at a laundry shop. Kora plays Soda Ren who was raised by his grandfather in Fukushima but lost his dream of being a farmer after his grandfather's land was acquired by other people and has been changing shops. The two of them happen to meet each other in Hokkaido while on their way to Tokyo so as to find a job which can help them realise their dreams. However, they end up being separated in the crowd and strive hard in their respective jobs while hoping that they can meet each other again.

As both Arimura and Kora had to move from their respective hometowns in Hyogo and Kumamoto when they became actors, they find it easy to identify with the feelings of their characters as they strive to make their mark in a big city like Tokyo. Kora who moved to Tokyo after graduating from senior high school, recounted that he didn't like Tokyo and blamed it for everything that didn't go well e.g. the poor air quality compared to back home. On the other hand, Arimura who moved when she was still in senior high school, said that it was a very lonely experience for her at first so she could understand how her character must have felt. As for the pressure of starring in a Gekku, Arimura admitted that she did feel the stress but she hoped to place less attention on this and work hard on the drama instead.

Source: Nikkansports / Sanspo