2 new features on the blog

As you may have noticed, I have added two new features on the right side of the blog i.e. the Featured Post and Popular Posts sections.

The Featured Post is used to highlight important announcements made through the blog so you don't have to go through the archives to search for it. For now, I've put the post which mentions how to contact me via PM on the blog's Facebook fanpage so please refer to that if need be.

The other section "Popular Posts" features the top 10 most popular posts in the last 30 days (rather than top 10 most popular all time as set earlier since the ranking hardly changes due to the older posts having accumulated a huge headstart over the newer posts) and will automatically be changed when there are posts which have become more or less popular among the readers here. It might be a good starting point for new followers of this blog who are keen to read what were popular in the past. Even for existing followers, you can see what topics were popular with the audience here.

If you have any comments about these features, please feel free to leave them here or through the Facebook page!

First episode screening event of NHK Taiga "Sanadamaru"

The first episode screening event of NHK's 2016 Taiga "Sanadamaru" was held at its HQ on 14 Dec which was attended by its lead Sakai Masato. The drama which will begin its run from 10 January 2016 in the Sundays 8pm timeslot, will be written by Mitani Koki and narrated by NHK announcer Udo Yumiko who is the first in 25 years to do this.

Sakai commented during the event that with this screening event, he finally felt as if he is embarking on a journey out to sea and looks forward to bringing everyone along. When asked about the poor ratings of the recent Taiga dramas such as "Hana Moyu" and "Taira no Kiyomori" which are tied at the last place for the lowest average rating of 12.0% over their entire run, Sakai quoted a phrase which was said by his character Sanada Yukimura that "people who don't think about winning and losing are the scariest" and said that he is confident about the ratings going up. Although he, his co-stars and staff are determined to make something which will please the viewers, he also said that if they are too caught up with the ratings, they will just end up making something which will be boring. As such, they will focus their efforts on making something that they themselves also find interesting rather than worry about the numbers.

Source: Nikkansports / Sanspo

Press conference of new NHK drama "Haburashi / Onnatomodachi"

The press conference of new NHK drama "Haburashi / Onnatomodachi" was held on 15 December at NHK's HQ in Tokyo which was attended by the cast Uchida Yuki, Ikewaki Chizuru and Kaneko Nobuaki. The drama which is due to begin its run from 5 January 2016 in the Tuesdays 11.15pm timeslot, features Uchida as Suzune, a 37-year-old single writer who suddenly finds herself in a lot of trouble when her old friend Mizue suddenly shows up at her place with her son in tow and asks to stay at her place. Despite not meeting at all for the past 20 years, Suzune gives in reluctantly for the sake of Mizue's son.

When asked if she would do the same in real life, Uchida said that she would probably not do it unless it was the same situation in the drama when the friend brought the child along and they had been drenched in the rain. Ikewaki also said that she found it difficult to identify with her character and would pretend not to be at home if a friend did the same to her. Uchida also said that the drama would send shivers down the viewers' spines despite the lack of intense action scenes or a horrific developments and that it is best that something like this is experienced on screen rather than in real life.

Source: Nikkansports / Sanspo

Kamikawa Takaya to star in the WOWOW drama adaptation of "Shizumanu Taiyo"

Kamikawa Takaya will be starring in the drama adaptation of the late Yamasaki Toyoko's signature novel "Shizumanu Taiyo" (The Never Setting Sun) which will consist of 20 episodes in 2 parts and be broadcast as WOWOW's 25th anniversary production next spring. Filming is due to begin at the end of this month and includes overseas filming at locations such as Africa and the Middle East. The entire filming will be wrapped up by mid May next year.

"Shizumanu Taiyo" is a novel inspired by the JAL plane crash in 1985 and depicts the dark side of an airline company and how people stick to their beliefs despite the tough situation. It was made into a movie starring Watanabe Ken in 2009 but due to the length of the novel, it was deemed that this story would be too long for a drama adaptation. Kamikawa's first leading role in a drama was in the 1995 NHK production "Daichi no Ko" which was also based on Yamasaki's novel so he is thankful for the chance this time to take on such a role in the first year of him being in his fifties.

Kamikawa plays the lead role Onchi Hajime who defies orders in the airline he works in and gets transferred to various locations as punishment. His rival Gyoten Shiro who used to be his buddy will be played by Watabe Atsuro.

Source: Nikkansports / Sanspo

Renbutsu Misako & Narimiya Hiroki to join the cast of latest installment of "Ooku"

Narimiya Hiroki and Renbutsu Misako will be joining the cast of the latest two-part "Ooku" drama SPs starring Sawajiri Erika which will be shown on 22nd and 29th January next year. Narimiya takes on the role of the 11th shogun Tokugawa Ienari who had more than 10 concubines and over 50 children with them. He will be embroiled in the women's battles as he gets smitten with his evil concubine Omiyo in Part 1 and the kind concubine Ume in Part 2 who are both played by Sawajiri. In order to play Ienari from a young man to an older man, Narimiya reduced his weight by 7kg and paid special attention to the way and speed he spoke as well as his gestures so as to look the part.

As for Renbutsu, she will be appearing in Part 2 as Uta, the younger sister of Ume who is jealous of the latter being selected as a concubine despite both of them having met Ienari. While visiting her pregnant sister at Ooku, Uta makes use of the chance to get close to Ienari and gets permission to enter Ooku. Uta then schemes to bring her elder sister down in order to win Ienari's favour. Renbutsu who is making her first appearance in a period drama, expressed her wish to try this genre for a long time although it was rather beyond her comprehension why Uta would go to that extent to harm her elder sister. However, as she has siblings in real life, she can somewhat understand the jealousy of being compared to a perfect sibling so she hopes to be able to convey that kind of frustration felt by Uta.

Besides the two of them, other co-stars include Asano Yuko who will play the chief of Ooku and Mitsuura Yasuko from comedic duo Oasis who will play Ienari's first wife Tadako.

Source: Nikkansports / Sanspo

Kubozuka Yosuke announces his impending marriage on Twitter

Kubozuka Yosuke announced his impending marriage to his girlfriend PINKY through his Twitter in the early hours of 16 December. In his tweet, Kubozuka recounted that there had been many milestones for him this year such as his 20th anniversary in showbiz, making his debut in Hollywood and releasing his best hits album so he hopes to end the year with his marriage to his partner PINKY (real name Sugahara Yuka) who he has been dating for the past three years. With that, he hopes to make even greater progress in the coming new year. Besides his acting career, Kubozuka is also a reggae DJ performing under the name of 卍ＬＩＮＥ (manji line).

Kubozuka was said to have known PINKY in early 2012 and stated dating in autumn the same year. Their relationship was first reported in 2012 and they were caught kissing at Narita Airport in April the following year. Since then, they've been uploading their photos on their social network accounts and rather open about their relationship. Although the date of their marriage registration has not been fixed, it is expected to be within this year and there are no plans yet for a wedding. PINKY is said to be not pregnant at the moment.

Kubozuka was previously married to another dancer two years younger than him from 2003 to June 2012. Their son Airu was born in October 2003 and is now 12 years old. However, due to differences in parenting styles, they went their separate ways with Kubozuka holding the custody rights of Airu. The couple are living in Osaka now with PINKY helping him to take care of his son.

Source: Nikkansports / Sanspo

Koura Kengo & Itao Itsuji to join the cast of new movie "Fukigen na Kakko"

Koura Kengo and Itao Itsuji will be joining the cast of new movie "Fukigen na Kakko" starring Nikaido Fumi and Koizumi Kyoko which is due to be shown in the summer of 2016. Koura will be playing the role of Yasunori, a mysterious man who abducts Koizumi's character Mikiko while Itao will play Taichi, the good-for-nothing father of Nikaido's character Kako. Besides the two of them, Yamada Mochika who played Nikaido's younger self in the movie "Watashi no Otoko", Hyodo Kumi, Yamada Yuki, Kurokawa Mei, Umezawa Masayo, Otake Makoto and Saiki Shigeru will also be appearing in this movie.

Source: Eiga.com

Koide Keisuke & Kimura Fumino star in new movie "Juujika"

Koide Keisuke and Kimura Fumino will be starring in the new movie "Juujika" (The Cross) which will be shown in cinemas from 6 February 2016. The film which is based on Shigematsu Kiyoshi's novel that won the Yoshikawa Eiji Bungaku Award, features Koide as Yuu and Kimura as Sayu who has to bear the stigma of their former classmate's suicide for 20 years. During the autumn of their second year in junior high school, their classmate nicknamed Fujijun (full name Fujii Shunsuke) suffered intensive bullying in class and committed suicide after leaving a suicide note. In it, Yuu was named as his best friend while the day when Fujijun died happened to be Sayu's birthday. As a result, the two of them had to bear the stigma of being somewhat associated with Fujijun's death as they grew up to become adults. On the other hand, Fujijun's father (Nagase Masatoshi) still feels that his son's classmates were responsible for his death and is unable to forgive them while his mother (Tomita Yasuko) is clinging onto her son's memories in order to survive.

The director Igarashi Sho was touched by the novel after reading it and made preparations for the filming by spending six months with the cast, students at Chikusei Junior High School as well as students selected through auditions in Ibaraki Prefecture in an acting workshop. The crew also worked closely with the local authorities in order to produce this movie which talks about various social problems.

Source: Eiga.com

Preview of "Aka Medaka" (Drama SP)

Title: Aka Medaka 赤めだか (The red killifish)
Official website: here
O.A. Date: 28 December 2015, 9pm to 11.25pm
Broadcast by: TBS
Original novel by: Tatekawa Danshun
Cast: Ninomiya Kazunari, Beat Takeshi, Hamada Gaku, Miyakawa Daisuke, Seino Nana, Emoto Tokio, Arai Hirofumi, Sada Masashi, Yanagiya Kyotaro, Shunputei Shota, Shunputei Koasa, Nakamura Kankuro, Sanyutei Enraku, Sakai Maki, Shoji Utae, Terajima Susumu, Kishimoto Kayoko, LaSalle Ishii, Kitamura Yukiya, Kagawa Teruyuki, Lily Frankie, Yakushimaru Hiroko, Shofukutei Tsurube

Nishijima Hidetoshi stars in suspense thriller movie "Creepy"

Nishijima Hidetoshi and director Kurosawa Kiyoshi's fourth collaboration, the suspense thriller movie "Creepy" will be shown in cinemas from 18 June 2016 and the trailer was recently released to the public. The movie which is based on the novel by Maekawa Yutaka who had won the 15th Nihon Mystery Bungaku Taisho, features Nishijima as the lead character Takakura who is a former police officer and working as a criminologist now. While facing difficulties in the analysis of an unresolved case of a family's disappearance, Takakura and his wife Yasuko who is played by Takeuchi Yuko move to a new house. However, this does not mark the beginning of a happy life as Takakura faces immense pressure due to his neighbours i.e. the Nishino family who is behaving mysteriously and in a strange way. This eventually leads to his wife crumbling psychologically due to the stress and Takakura's fears are intensified when the daughter of the Nishino family Mio confesses to him that the man who is supposedly her father, is actually a total stranger. Kagawa Teruyuki plays the father in the Nishino family, Kawaguchi Haruna plays the sole survivor in the family whose disappearance is being investigated by Takakura and Higashide Masahiro plays the police officer Nogami.

Source: Eiga.com

Renbutsu Misako to be the heroine in new FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Otousan to yobasete"

Renbutsu Misako will be the heroine in the upcoming FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Otousan to yobasete" which will begin its run from 19 January 2016 in the Tuesdays 10pm timeslot. She will take on the role of a 23-year-old woman named Miran who works as a system engineer in a IT company and falls for Endo Kenichi's character who is a director at a mid-sized trading company, 28 years older than her and the same age as her father played by Watabe Atsuro. She is caught between her boyfriend who she wants to marry and her father who doesn't want to let them get married.

With regard to this story of a woman and a much older man getting married, Renbutsu commented that she thinks that people around the age of Endo and Watabe are very charming so she doesn't think that this is a far-fetched story since there are many such marriages happening in this time and age. She thinks that it will be fun to date someone like Endo while it's an amazing thing to have Watabe playing her father. As such, she is eagerly looking forward to working with both actors for the next three months.

Source: Sanspo

Preview of "Utenai Keikan" - WOWOW (Winter 2016)

Title: Utenai Keikan 撃てない警官 (The police officer who doesn't fire a shot)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 10 January 2016
Timeslot: Sundays 10pm
Broadcast by: WOWOW
Original novel by: Ando Yoshiaki
Cast: Tanabe Seiichi, Ishiguro Ken, Nakagoshi Noriko, Takahashi Kazuya, Kabe Amon, Hizuki Hana, Sugata Shun, Tomosaka Rie, Shimada Kyusaku, Yamamoto Gaku

Preview of "Arechi no Koi" - Winter 2016 (WOWOW)

Title: Arechi no Koi 荒地の恋 (Love of the wilderness)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 9 January 2016
Timeslot: Saturdays 10pm
Broadcast by: WOWOW
Original novel by: Nejime Shoichi
Cast: Toyokawa Etsushi, Suzuki Kyoka, Taguchi Tomoroo, Tomita Yasuko, Kawashima Umika, Murakawa Eri, Matsushige Yutaka

Nakatani Miki to star in new TBS Spring 2016 drama "Watashi kekkon dekinainjanakute, shinain desu"

Nakatani Miki will be starring in the new TBS Spring 2016 drama "Watashi kekkon dekinainjanakute, shinain desu" (It's not that I can't get married, I just don't do it) which will begin its run from April 2016 in the Fridays 10pm timeslot. The drama is based on the romance manual book "Sparta Kekkon Juku" (Sparta Marriage Cram School) published by Mizuno Keiya in 2014 and is targeted at women to teach them how to break their misconceptions about romance by addressing issues from a man's perspective. It was made into a manga and drama titled "LOVE Riron" (Love Theory) which was shown on TV Tokyo this year. The scriptwriter for this drama will be Kaneko Arisa.

Nakatani plays the role of a 39-year-old single dermatologist named Tachibana Miyabi who operates her own clinic in the upscale area of Aoyama. Despite being beautiful and rich (annual salary of 15 million yen), she is regarded as a "left-behind" item in the dating market even though she enjoys her single life. One day, Miyabi visits a Japanese kappou cuisine restaurant with her female friends and starts bragging that she can get married anytime she wants to. Upon hearing this, Miyabi gets criticised by the owner of the restaurant named Tokura Seiji for being a woman who can't get married because she's pretty, rich and about 40 years old. This is the first time when she is told the harsh truth by someone and she finds herself going to Tokura for advice on romance in order to reverse this situation. Seto Koji will play Hashimoto Ryotaro who works at an organic cafe's delivery staff and is well-liked by the staff at Miyabi's clinic. Omasa Aya plays Nomura Rika who tries very hard to find a marriage partner even though she is only in her mid 30s. Tokui Yoshimi from the comedy duo Tutorial will play Sakurai Yosuke, a salaryman who was Miyabi's classmate and first love during senior high school and becomes her target again when they reunite. Last but not least, Natsuki Mari will play Shoko, Miyabi's mother who loves her daughter much and always appears in a kimono.

Nakatani commented that when she read the original book and script, she thought that Miyabi and her were very similar because they both have the same thinking. However, she started to worry if she was overly confident and started to doubt whether she is someone who can't get married. Especially when she saw in the book that there were recommendations on what type of clothes to wear in order to attract the attention of men, Nakatani said that those were clothes she would never wear so she would have to try them for the sake of this drama. She also hopes that this drama with some strong and poisonous words as well as a little bit of eroticism, will bring some hope to women who have been trying too hard and give them the courage to carry on in their pursuit towards their goals.

Source: Oricon

Matsuyama Kenichi to star in new adaptation movie "Chinyuuki ~ Taro to Yukai na Nakamatachi"

Matsuyama Kenichi will be starring in the new adaptation movie for legendary manga "Chinyuuki ~ Taro to Yukai na Nakamatachi" which will be shown in cinemas from 27 February. The manga which was serialised by Man Gataro in Shukan Shonen Jump since 1990, accumulated sales of 4 million copies to date. Filming has been completed. Although news of the movie adaptation had been circulating online for some time, this is the first time that details for the movie have been announced. The original manga's author Man Gataro commented in jest that he had told the staff that he wanted the worst movie in film history to be made for his manga but they ended up making something which was interesting. As such, he joked that he should get the director of "XX no Kyojin" to remake the movie. The movie was directed by Yamaguchi Yudai while the script was written by Matsubara Shu.

Matsuyama plays the lead character Yamada Taro and will appear with his hair shaved off and wearing underwear only. With regard to this, he commented that he took on this movie since there was none so far which literally stripped him naked and he felt that this was a "good way" for him to take off his clothes. As Matsuyama had prior experience in playing characters from mangas which were widely praised e.g. Hiroshi from "Do Konjo Gaeru" and L from "Death Note", he was seen as the best person to take on the character of Yamada Taro although he didn't look too close to the image in the manga.

In order to stay true to the essence of the original manga, the movie version tried to replicate the same atmosphere and jokes Due to the fact that there were many vulgar lines which cannot be shown on TV due to censorship issues, it had been said that this was a work which couldn't be adapted into a real-life movie.

Details about the rest of the cast and story will be made known on a later date.

Source: Oricon

2015 Ranking of celebrities with the most CM deals (Nihon Monitor)

The number of CM deals held by each celebrity is presented within the brackets:

Top male celebrities with the most CM deals
1) Aiba Masaki - Arashi (12)

2) Sakurai Sho - Arashi / Ninomiya Kazunari - Arashi (11)

3) Ohno Satoshi - Arashi / Nishikori Kei / Nishijima Hidetoshi / Matsuoka Shuzo (10)

4) Okada Junichi - V6 / Matsumoto Jun - Arashi (9)

5) Shofukutei Tsurube / Tosaka Hiroomi - Sandaime J-Soul Brothers / Matsuzaka Tori / Murakami Shingo - Kanjani 8 (8)

6) Abe Hiroshi / Ariyoshi Hiroiki / Tsumabuki Satoshi / Honda Keisuke  / Matsushige Yutaka (7)

No.1 male artiste in the last 5 years
2010: Ishikawa Ryo (17)
2011: Ishikawa Ryo (17)
2012: Ishikawa Ryo (15)
2013: Ishikawa Ryo (12)
2014: Sakurai Sho - Arashi / Matsuoka Shuzo (11)

Top female celebrities with the most CM deals
1) Ueto Aya (13)

2) Arimura Kasumi / An / Hirose Suzu / Yamamoto Mizuki (12)

3) Rola (11)

4) Oshima Yuko / Kiritani Mirei / Sashihara Rino - AKB48 / Matsuko Deluxe (10)

5) Ayase Haruka / Kimura Fumino / Sasaki Nozomi / Takei Emi / Honda Tsubasa / Yoshida Yo (9)

6) Ishihara Satomi / Yonekura Ryoko / Kichise Michiko (8)

No.1 female celebrity in the last 5 years
2010: Ueto Aya (13)
2011: Oshima Yuko (19)
2012: Itano Tomomi / Shinoda Mariko (20)
2013: Takei Emi (17)
2014: Rola (14)

Source: Oricon

Matsushige Yutaka to be back in New Year's SP of "Kodoku no Gurume"

Matsushige Yutaka will be appearing in the New Year's SP of TV Tokyo's hit drama "Kodoku no Gurume" which will be shown on 1 January at 11.15pm. The drama SP titled "Kodoku no Gurume Oshogatsu SP ~ Fuyu no Hokkaido - The Asahikawa Business Trip", will feature the lead character Inogashira Goro eating various delicacies in the snowy Asahikawa such as seafood, meat and vegetables.

The current season of "Kodoku no Gurume" has two episodes to go before it ends its run this season i.e. 11 Dec and 18 Dec. Due to the response from viewers asking for a sequel, TV Tokyo decided to make a SP of 1 hour which is longer than an usual episode of 40 minutes.

Matsushige commented that he is very honoured to have a New Year's SP to his name but stressed that there was really nothing special about this SP since it will still feature his character going around eating delicious food. Nonetheless, he hopes that the viewers will still enjoy the SP on the first night of the new year. Although he has been to Hokkaido many times for filming, this is the first time he had been to Asahikawa so he would like to invite the viewers to join him on this journey to see what kind of dishes will be featured.

Source: Sponichi

Ways to contact me

Hi everyone, as noticed recently, some of you may wish to contact me on various issues and questions but there is no messaging function on the blog. As such, some of you have taken to using the comments section which is entirely fine with me. Nonetheless, the conversation may deviate from the topic of the post so here are my suggestions on the alternative ways which you can use to contact me:

1) The Facebook fan page
Simply "like" the page and use the message function on the right side of the page to send me a private message. Otherwise, you can create a post for the discussion topic on the page if it's something which everyone may like to read about.

2) The Twitter page
You can send a private message to me via the Twitter page's Messages function.

As it is not convenient to post my email address here, please make use of these methods to contact me as need be. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Preview of "Sanadamaru" 真田丸

Title: Sanadamaru 真田丸
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 10 January 2016
Broadcast by: NHK
Total number of episodes: 50
Scriptwriter: Mitani Koki
Cast: Sakai Masato, Oizumi Yo, Nagasawa Masami, Kusakari Masao, Takahata Atsuko, Kimura Yoshino, Kusabue Mitsuko, Kuroki Haru, Fujimoto Takahiro, Nakahara Takeo, Fujii Takashi, Uchino Seiyo, Kondo Masaomi, Saito Yuki, Fujioka Hiroshi, Yoshida Yo, Takashima Masanobu, Endo Kenichi, Nishimura Masahiko, Terajima Susumu, Danta Yasunori, Hira Takehiro,  Kohinata Fumio, Suzuki Kyoka, Katsura Bunshi, Kobayashi Takashi, Takeuchi Yuko, Yamamoto Koji, Kataoka Ainosuke, Niiro Shinya, Nakagawa Taishi etc.

Kamenashi Kazuya, Narimiya Hiroki & Hirose Suzu to team up in NTV Winter 2016 drama "Kaitou Yamaneko"

Kamenashi Kazuya, Narimiya Hiroki and Suzuki Suzu will be teaming up in the new NTV Winter 2016 drama "Kaitou Yamaneko" which begins its run from 16 January 2016 in the Saturdays 9pm timeslot. The drama which is based on the mystery novel series "Kaitou Tantei Yamaneko" by Kaminaga Manabu, features Kamenashi as an elusive thief nicknamed Yamaneko who steals from the evil and exposes their bad doings at the end. Narimiya will play a magazine reporter named Katsumura Hideo who has been investigating the cases committed by Yamaneko and ends up being drawn into his criminal trio when the latter orders him to write stories about his "heroic deeds". Hirose will play the role of Takasugi Mao, a genius hacker who uses her talent to help her father commit crimes.

Narimiya commented that he is usually the one being interviewed by reporters so he has learnt a trick or two from them which he can use in his role this time. He also expressed anticipation at sparks flying between him and Kamenashi who he described as very mysterious and serious about his work. As for Hirose, he praised her for being fully immersed in her acting and looks forward to the three of them working well together on set.

Hirose said that she had played many characters of young girls who are cheerful but this time, her role is someone who's an introvert that hardly fits the usual image of senior high school girls. As for the character setting of her being a hacker, Hirose admitted that she didn't even know what the word means until she checked it out on the Internet. With regard to working with Kamenashi and Narimiya, she expressed her admiration for them and looks forward to "stealing" their acting skills through this drama.

Co-stars also include Sasaki Kuranosuke and Nanao, the police officers who try to catch Yamaneko, Otsuka Nene who plays a mysterious woman helping Yamaneko and Kitamura Yukiya who is a news announcer.

Source: Sanspo

Preview of "Indigo no Koibito" インディゴの恋人

Title: Indigo no Koibito インディゴの恋人 (Indigo Lovers)
Official website: here
O.A. Date: 27 January 2016, 10pm
Broadcast by: NHK
Produced by: NHK Okayama
Scriptwriter: Arai Shuko
Theme Song: indigo by Nakashima Mika
Cast: Arai Hirofumi, Minami, Okada Yoshinori, Kataoka Tsurutaro, Aoyama Sota, Yamaguchi Mayu, Kubota Sayu

WaT announces their decision to disband next February

Music duo WaT's members Wentz Eiji and Koike Teppei announced during their concert "WaT 10th Anniversary Live 2015" held at Shinagawa Stellar Ball on 6 December that they will be disbanding and focus on their solo music careers from 11 February 2016. The concert was their first in 8 years and was attended by about 1,800 people. Despite the fact that fans were happy to see the duo again after such a long time, they were shocked to hear the news as Wentz wept when he made the announcement. The duo had suspended their group activities for as long as 5 years when they were focused on their acting careers. Wentz explained that during that time, they had both come to realise that their future goals and directions are different thus making it impossible for them to put in 100% for their activities under the name of WaT. Koike also stressed that this is a positive step for them as they try to do better than now thus they asked for the understanding and acceptance of this decision by their fans.

WaT began its musical activities from 2002 on the streets near Yoyogi Park and made their indies debut in November 2004. The following year, they released their single "Boku no Kimochi" which was their major debut work and achieved the record of being the No.1 fastest new artiste to make it to the Kouhaku since their debut. They made their solo music debut in 2007 and were focusing on their separate activities since then. It was only until 2010 that they released another single under WaT's name and they waited till February this year to announce that they were beginning to resume group activities again. The duo will release their best hits album titled "Sotsugyo BEST / WaT" on 10 February next year and follow up with a handshaking event at Tokyo's NEW PIER HALL to mark the finale of their group activities.

Source: Oricon

Shiina Kippei to star in new WOWOW drama "Megabank Saishu Kessen"

Shiina Kippei will be starring in the new WOWOW drama "Megabank Saishu Kessen" (Megabank The Last Battle) which will begin its run from 14 February 2016 in the Sundays 10pm timeslot. This is the first time Shiina is taking on the leading role in a WOWOW drama.

The drama which is based on legendary fund manager Hatano Sho's novel "Megabank Zetsumetsu Sensou", features Shiina as a securities dealer who works at a mega bank which is seriously in debt due to the crash of the Japanese government bonds and how he tries to rescue his bank from an internal plot and external forces which leads to a hostile takeover.

Shiina who celebrates his 30th anniversary as an actor next year, commented that although banks play an integral part in our lives, it is difficult to know what goes on within. However, with the script emphasizing on reality and trying to project an accurate picture of the internal situation, he hopes that the tough journey to survive in the corporation with bravery, passion and gentleness will attract viewers to stay tuned to this drama.

Kiritani Kenta will play Shiina's partner in helping to save the bank. Other co-stars include Ishibashi Ryo, Ogawa Tamaki and Otozuki Kei.

Source: Sanspo

Preview of "Asa ga kita" あさが来た

Title: Asa ga kita あさが来た (The Morning Comes)
Official website: here
Official blog: here
O.A. Start Date: 28 Sep 2015
Expected end date: 2 April 2016
Total number of episodes: 156
Broadcast by: NHK
Original novel: "Shosetsu Tosa Horikawa" by Furukawa Chieko
Theme Song: "365 nichi no kamihikouki" by AKB48
Cast: Haru, Tamaki Hiroshi, Miyazaki Aoi, Terajima Shinobu, Masu Takeshi, Hayashi Yoichi, Okitsu Shotaro, Tomochika, Kiyohara Kaya, Kondo Masaomi, Fubuki Jun, Kiuchi Yoshikazu, Kiriyama Akito, Koshiba Fuka, Yamauchi Takaya, Miyake Hiroki, Kusumi Kaoru, Emoto Tasuku, Manda Hisako, Tatsumi Takuro, Dean Fujioka, Nono Sumika, Nanjo Koki, Kyokudo Nanryo, Hayashiya Takemaru, Shofukutei Ginpei, Kimura Yoshino, Kajihara Zen, Yamazaki Ginnojo, Tomita Yasuko, Kitahara Masaki, Nakayama Yoshihiro, Nagatsuka Keishi, Kashiwabara Shuji, Yamamoto Koji, Shofukutei Tsurube, Takeda Tetsuya, Seto Koji, Tsujimoto Shigeo, Miyake Yuji

Winners of the 37th Yokohama Film Festival (2015)

The award ceremony will be held on 6 February 2016:

Best Movie: Umimachi diary

Best Director: Koreeda Hirokazu (Umimachi diary) / Hashiguchi Ryosuke (Koibitotachi)

Morita Yoshimitsu Memorial Best New Director: Matsunaga Daishi (Toire no Bieta)

Best Script: Adachi Shin (Hyakuen no Koi) / (Obon no Ototo)

Best Cinematography: Takimoto Mikiya (Umimachi diary)

Best Leading Actor: Nagase Masatoshi (An) / Shibukawa Kiyohiko (Obon no Ototo) & (Areno)

Best Leading Actress: Ayase Haruka (Umimachi diary)

Best Supporting Actor: Mitsuishi Ken (Obon no Ototo) / (Koibitotachi)

Best Supporting Actress: Kawai Aoba (Obon no Ototo) / (Sayonara Kabukicho)

Best Newcomer
Hirose Suzu (Umimachi diary)
Sugisaki Hana (Toire no Bieta) / (Ai wo tsutsumu koto)
Fujino Ryoko (Solomon no Gisho Zenpen Jiken) / (Solomon no Gisho Kohen Saiban)

Judges' Special Award: Bakuman

Special Award: Kiki Kirin

Source: Yokohama Film Festival

Preview of "Kari Kare" 仮カレ - Autumn 2015

Title: Kari Kare 仮カレ (Temporary Boyfriend)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 3 Nov 2015
Timeslot: Tuesdays 11.15pm
Broadcast by: NHK
Total number of episodes: 8
Theme Song: Pura-Mai (plus-minus) by aiko
Cast: Aibu Saki, Nakagoshi Noriko, Tsukamoto Takashi, Shirasu Jin, Furuhata Seika, Komiya Arisa, Wagatsuma Miwako, Tanaka Naoki, Kinami Haruka, Mashima Hidekazu, Akiyama Natsuko, Yoshida Uronta, Oshige Wataru

The 7th Most Desired Male Faces Ranking (Oricon)

Survey conducted by Oricon in November on 500 men from their teens to 50s via the Internet. Note that as Fukuyama Masaharu had won this title five years in a row, he earns the title of a Legend thus does not qualify for this poll anymore. 

1) Kimura Takuya

2) Fukushi Sota

3) Abe Hiroshi

4) Ichiro

5) Mukai Osamu

6) Okada Junichi

7) Nishijima Hidetoshi

8) Sakurai Sho

9) Takenouchi Yutaka

10) Sato Takeru

Source: Oricon

Kamiki Ryunosuke & Shida Mirai reportedly dating?

According to the latest issue of weekly magazine "FRIDAY" published on 4 Dec, Kamiki Ryunosuke and Shida Mirai are said to be dating. In the report accompanied by pictures, the two of them were seen having a meal together on 18 November in Shibuya and went to Kamiki's apartment after that. On that rainy night, Shida had finished her stage place performance at Parco Theatre and had got on her agency's car but alighted near Miyashita Park in order to meet Kamiki. Subsequently in the same week, Shida was also caught going to Kamiki's place on the 20th and 24th November. On the 20th, Shida also had a stage performance at the same venue but went home first before heading to Kamiki's place by taxi. On the 24th, Kamiki was seen dressed in a black parka with the hood over his head while Shida covered her face with a mask as they entered through the rear entrance of his apartment block.

Kamiki and Shida are of the same age and were schoolmates at Horikoshi Senior High School. As they have known each other for a long time and had worked together many times such as in the NTV drama "Tantei Gakuen Q" and the Studio Ghibli movie "Karigurashi no Arrietty", they were known to be on close terms and had been rumoured in the past on multiple occasions to be an item.

With regard to the latest article on them, Shida's agency commented that they have been friends since their child actor days but are not dating. Kamiki's agency also denied that they are dating and that they are merely former schoolmates and close friends.
　
Kamiki entered showbiz at the age of 2 because he had been ill as a baby thus his mother hoped to leave some memories for him by allowing him to appear in CMs. He acted in his first drama "Good News" at the age of 6 in 1999 and had taken part in three NHK Taiga dramas in 2000 (Aoi Tokugawa Sandai), 2005 (Yoshitsune) and 2012 (Taira no Kiyomori). His first leading role in a drama was "Tantei Gakuen Q" in 2007 alongside Shida. In recent years, Kamiki has earned a lot of praise for his work in productions such as the "SPEC" series and the movie "Kirishima, Bukatsu yamerutte yo". He can be seen in the ongoing TV Asahi Autumn 2015 drama "Samurai Sensei" and his new movies "Taiyo" and "TOO YOUNG TO DIE! Wakakushite Shinu" are to be shown next year.

On the other hand, Shida made her debut as a child actor in 1999 and became well-known after her performance in the 2005 NTV drama "Joou no Kyoushitsu" opposite Amami Yuki. Her first leading role in a drama was in 2006's NTV drama "14-sai no Haha" which attracted a lot of discussion over the issue of a teenager giving birth to a child. Her first leading role in a movie "Dare mo mamotte kurenai" in 2009 won her the newcomer awards in the 33rd Nippon Academy Awards and Erandoru Award. In recent years, she had been seen in dramas such as NTV's "ST Aka to Shiro no Sousa File" and TBS' "Masshiro". Her drama SP "Kenji no Shimei" is due to be shown this winter while she will also appear in the 2016 movie "Good Morning Show".

Source: FRIDAY / NTV News 24 / Modelpress

Perfume to sing the theme song for new movie "Chihayafuru"

Perfume who is celebrating their 15th anniversary since their debut, will be singing the theme song for the new 2-part movie "Chihayafuru" starring Hirose Suzu which is due to be shown from 19 March and 29 April next year. The song titled "FLASH" is written by Nakata Yasutaka which is a fast tempo number. Perfume's members commented that they have been fans of the original manga and anime thus they were thrilled to be able to sing the theme song for the movie.

Source: Yomiuri Hochi

Sawajiri Erika to act in the 2-part "Ooku" drama SPs next January

Sawajiri Erika will be acting in her first period drama when she appears in the 2-part "Ooku" drama SPs to be shown via FujiTV on 22nd and 29 January 2016 at 9pm. The two stories will feature her as concubines of Tokugawa Ienari where one is an evil woman while the other is regarded as a saint. Sawajiri commented that she finally understood why period dramas are interesting, thanks to her work this time.

The Ooku series began in 2003 and had three drama series by 2005 about the harlem of the Tokugawa generals to which access by men were banned. The drama SPs will be the first sequel to the series in 11 years. Sawajiri will be playing two concubines of Tokugawa Ienari, the 11th general of the Edo Bakufu who had more than 10 concubines and fathered more than 50 children with them.

In the first story to be shown on 22 January titled "Saikyo no Onna" (The Strongest Woman), Sawajiri will play Omiyo who was known as the most powerful concubine in history and seduced Ienari with her looks and intelligence which allowed her to rise to the top of the Ooku. In the second story showing on 29 January titled "Higeki no Shimai" (The Tragic Sisters), Sawajiri will play the fictitious character Ume who is a favourite of Ienari and must contend with jealousy from her younger sister Uta who is also a concubine.

For the filming of the drama SPs, Sawajiri had to stay in Kyoto between October and November this year and learn about how period dramas are made. In addition, the 30 Kyoto-made costumes she wore in the drama SPs cost a whooping JPY 40m. With regard to her first attempt in a period drama and taking on two characters at the same time, she commented that she was not used to the actions and indirect speech in those days so she felt that she might not have expressed herself as well as she wanted. Nonetheless, she said that she had tried her best in managing the two characters.

Source: Sanspo

Ayano Go to star in new movie "Nihon de Ichiban Warui Yatsura"

Ayano Go is starring in a new movie titled "Nihon de Ichiban Warui Yatsura" (The Worst Bad Guys in Japan) due to be shown in cinemas from 25 June net year. The movie directed by Shiraishi Kazuya is based on the "Inaba Case" which is regarded as the biggest blemish in the Japanese police history where Ayano will play a corrupt police inspector who strongly believes in upholding justice and yet falls to temptation from the evil. The story timeline will span a total of 26 years. During the filming of this movie, Ayano had to gain and then lose 10kg for his role.

The Inaba Case began in 2002 where a police inspector from the Hokkaido Prefectural Police named Inaba Yoshiaki was arrested for seemingly mild offences of drug consumption and possession as well as illegal possession of firearms. As his trial proceeded, it became clear that some police officers in the Hokkaido Prefectural Police were guilty of bogus investigations which made their performances look better than actual and the later discovery in 2013 of receiving criminal proceeds from the yakuza. Ayano's role will be modeled on Inaba who has since been released from prison in September 2011 after serving his 9-year sentence. Upon his release, Inaba wrote the book "Hajisarashi Hokkaidokei Akutoku Keiji no Kokuhaku" which was published in October the following year.

Despite being very busy this year with 5 movie releases and starring in the ongoing TBS Autumn 2015 drama "Kounodori", Ayano still decided to take on this role in just three days after being approached so as to work together with Shiraishi. The filming took place between June and July this year. At the beginning, Ayano put on 10kg in order to look like a built-up police inspector who used to be a judo club member during his university days. He also had to go through intense judo training as part of the preparations for the training. Towards the end of the filming, he went back to his original weight so as to look like his character who was facing immense pressure before he was due to be arrested. Post-production work for the movie is due to be completed by February next year.

Source: Sanspo / Cinema Today / Eiga.com

Mizuhara Kiko to appear in TBS Winter 2016 drama "Kazoku no Katachi"

Mizuhara Kiko will be acting in the upcoming TBS Winter 2016 drama "Kazoku no Katachi" which begins its run from January in the Sundays 9pm timeslot. The drama features Katori Shingo as Daisuke, a 39-year-old company employee who is not keen on marriage and enjoys his single life and Ueno Juri, a 32-year-old divorcee Hanako. Mizuhara's role will be Rina, a newbie OL who entered Hanako's company due to her connections as a rich man's daughter and is Hanako's junior at work. Rina has no passion towards her work and no intention and ambition to build a career. She constantly arrives late at work and will refuse to go to work at times for fear of being reprimanded. On the other hand, having been brought up overseas, Rina is not afraid to speak her mind in a pushy manner which is a huge contrast to Hanako who is very serious about her work. She later comes to know Daisuke during a go-kon and becomes interested in him. This will be Mizuhara's first appearance in a TBS drama. Mizuhara commented that it looks tough to play her character who is somewhat different from other people. Coupled with the fact that she herself also feels that her viewpoint and actions tend to be different from the people around her, Mizuhara said that she can understand Rina's thinking and actions to a certain extent.

Besides Mizuhara, new additions to the cast were also announced including Arakawa Yoshiyoshi, Chiba Yudai, Yanagihara Kanako, Nakamura An and Mizuno Miki.

Source: Sanspo / Sponichi

Preview of "Gonin no Junko" ５人のジュンコ (WOWOW) - Autumn 2015

Title: Gonin no Junko ５人のジュンコ (The 5 Junkos)
Official website: here
O.A. Start Date: 21 November 2015
Total number of episodes: 5
Broadcast by: WOWOW
Original novel by: Mari Yukiko
Cast: Matsuyuki Yasuko, Mimura, Nishida Naomi, Aso Yumi, Koike Eiko, Kobayashi Ryoko, Tsuda Kanji, Watanabe Makiko, Okuda Erika, Kayashima Narumi etc.

Oda Kazumasa to sing the theme song for the two-part movie of "64 - Rokuyon"

Oda Kazumasa will be singing the theme song for the two-part movie "64 - Rokuyon" where Part 1 will be screened from 7 May 2016 and Part 2 will be screened from 11 June 2016. The medium-tempo ballad titled "Kaze wa yanda" (The Wind Stopped) is Oda's first movie theme song in 5 years and was written after he read the original novel and script of the movie.

"64 - Rokuyon" is based on the police detective novel by Yokoyama Hideo about an unsolved kidnap and murder of a young girl in the last year of the Showa era i.e. Showa 64th year thus giving it the nickname of Rokuyon. 14 years later, another kidnap case arises which brings back memories of the Rokuyon that was regarded as a blemish in the police's history. The two-part movie features Sato Koichi as the lead character Mikami who used to be part of the investigation of the Rokuyon and is now a public relations officer. He commented that when he read the original novel, he already realised that it would be a tough job to act in this movie so he was mentally prepared for the challenge. As for the theme song, Sato commented that when Oda sings the theme song at the end of the movie, it gives the peaceful feeling that a long battle has finally ended and things have settled down. The director Zeze Takahisa also stressed that Oda's song is especially fitting as a sign of hope for people who still miss the days of the Showa era and lament the feeling of loss due to the end of that period in their lives.

Source: Yomiuri Hochi

Kato Shigeaki's short stories compilation to be made into drama by FujiTV; NEWS to sing the theme song

NEWS member Kato Shigeaki's fourth book "Kasa wo motanai ari tachi wa" (The ants which do not hold umbrellas) will be made into a 4-part drama series by FujiTV which will be shown from 9 Jan 2016 onwards in the Saturdays 11.40pm timeslot. The book is Kato's first short stories compilation which was published in June this year, consists of six stories of which three i.e. "Renai Shosetsu", "Intercept" and "Nibe mo naku, Yorube mo naku" will be featured in the drama series. Beside being the author for the original novel, Kato will also act in the drama while his group NEWS will be singing the theme song "Hikari no Shizuku" which is due to be released as NEWS' first single in 2016. The song will include the original novel's key concepts such as the rain, umbrellas and tears with an ending message of hope.

Cast members include Kiriyama Ren, Kato, Sakata Masanobu, Adachi Rika, Watanabe Mai, Takeda Rena, Minamisawa Nao and Ryu Raita.

Source: Oricon / Cinema Cafe

Endo Kenichi & Watabe Atsuro to be double leads in FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Otousan to yobasete"

Endo Kenichi and Watabe Atsuro will be double leads in the upcoming FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Otousan to yobasete" (Please allow me to call you father-in-law) which will begin its run from January in the Tuesdays 10pm timeslot. The drama is an original story written by scriptwriter Hayashi Koji who has worked on dramas such as "Iryu", "BOSS" and "Code Blue" in the past where a 51-year-old father is shocked when his daughter brings home her fiance who is of the same age as him.

Endo plays the role of Daidoji Tamotsu, a 51-year-old department manager in a mid-size trading company who is so immersed in work that he had no chance of getting married in the past. One day, he meets a 28-year-old woman and is so smitten by her that he finally makes up his mind to spend the rest of his life with her. On the other hand, Watabe plays Hanazawa Kiichiro, the 51-year-old father of Daidoji's girlfriend who works in a top-class trading company as the youngest director to date. He leads a happy life with his wife and 3 children and believes that he has the ideal family.  Tamotsu aspires to form a happy family with his girlfriend especially after witnessing how the Hanazawa family gets along well with one another but faces strong opposition from Kiichiro who cannot tolerate the notion of his son-in-law being the same age as him and bans Tamotsu from calling him "Otousan".

Endo commented that at his age, it is more likely that he would play a father role but he is very happy to be able to land this character who looks scary on the surface but is actually a kind and honest boyfriend. As the story's premise is very interesting, he is looking forward to playing Tamotsu in his first primetime drama as the lead. In addition, as he has worked with Watabe many times in the past, he is confident that they will be able to produce an entertaining comedy together with their co-stars and staff. On the other hand, Watabe commented that in this age where a lot of the dramas tend to be adaptations, he is happy to see an original story this time and hopes to make a good drama for viewers to enjoy.

Source: Oricon

Matsushita Nao to take on the role of Madonna in FujiTV drama SP "Botchan"

Matsushita Nao will be taking on the role of Madonna in the upcoming FujiTV drama SP "Botchan" starring Arashi's Ninomiya Kazunari which will be shown on 3 Jan 2016 at 9pm. Her character is nicknamed Madonna as she is is regarded as the most beautiful woman in the town. In the original novel by Natsume Soseki, Madonna is engaged to the English teacher Uranari played by Yamamoto Koji but in the drama SP, Aka Shatsu played by Oikawa Mitsuhiro will form a love triangle with them.

Matsushita worked together with Arashi in the 2010 NHK Kouhaku but this is the first time she is acting in a drama with Ninomiya.

Source: Yomiuri Hochi

Tamura Masakazu to star in TV Asahi drama SP "Chihoushi wo kau Onna ~ Sakka Sugimoto Ryuji no Suiri"

Tamura Masakazu will be starring in the new TV Asahi drama SP "Matsumoto Seicho Drama SP Chihoushi wo kau Onna ~ Sakka Sugimoto Ryuji no Suiri" (Matsumoto Seicho Drama SP The Woman who buys the local newspaper ~ Writer Sugimoto Ryuji's deduction) which will be shown next year. The drama SP which is based on the same-titled novel by Matsumoto and published in 1957, features Tamura as the writer Sugimoto Ryuji who tries to investigate a suspicious woman played by Hirosue Ryoko with the help of his assistant played by Mizukawa Asami. Both Hirosue and Mizukawa had played Tamura's daughters respectively in 2002's TBS drama "Otousan" and 2001's FujiTV drama "Sayonara Ozu-sensei" so he is extremely heartened to see their growth as actresses over the years while feeling his own "deterioration" and jokingly refers to himself as the old actor who is trying to see when he should quit. Co-stars include Katase Nana and Sano Shiro.

Sugimoto Ryuji (Tamura) moves from Tokyo to Kanazawa as his new novel is being serialised in a local newspaper published in Ishikawa Prefecture. Although his novel is enjoying a lot of popularity, Sugimoto's suspicion is aroused when Shiota Yoshiko (Hirosue), a mamasan working at a nightclub writes a letter to the newspaper publisher and asks to subscribe to the newspaper for the sake of reading the novel. However, in just a few days, Yoshiko sends another letter asking to terminate her subscription and complains that the novel is boring. While scouring the newspaper with his assistant Tasaka Fujiko (Mizukawa) on that day to find the reason for Yoshiko's change in attitude, Sugimoto becomes convinced that Yoshiko was actually not interested in his novel but just wanted to reach about the double suicide case involving a couple and decides to pay a visit to Yoshiko in Tokyo.

The filming of the drama SP started in the beginning of this month at Wajima on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture.

Source: Sanspo

Abe Hiroshi & Amami Yuki to play a married couple in new movie "Koisaika Miyamoto"

Abe Hiroshi and Amami Yuki will be teaming up in the new movie "Koisaika Miyamoto" (Miyamoto - the man who loves his wife) which will be directed and written by scriptwriter Yukawa Kazuhiko who is making his directorial debut through this movie. The movie which is based on writer Shigematsu Kiyoshi's novel "FamiResu" (Family Restaurant), features Abe and Amami as a married couple who is faced with the issue of how to live with each other after 25 years of marriage and the departure of their child from the family home after he gets married.

Abe plays the role of Miyamoto Yohei, a junior high school teacher who got to know his wife Miyoko through a go-kon and got married hastily soon after due to her pregnancy. After being married for 25 years, the couple find themselves having to contend with the notion of living with each other only on the day their son and his wife move to Fukushima for his work. On that very night, Miyoko gets herself drunk as she is filled with apprehension about the days ahead while Yohei is aghast to see a divorce application hidden by her which was already filled up. As she struggles to cope with the frustrations of living with her husband who is retiring, Miyoko suddenly leaves home which leaves Yohei scrambling to salvage his marriage.

Yukawa revealed that he got the offer to write the script for this movie in January last year despite the fact that he does not write scripts for adaptations and prefers to write his original stories. However, he found the theme of a couple's struggles to live with each other after retirement fascinating thus agreed to write the script on the condition that he could still inject his personal touch into the story. Initially, there were a few candidates for the director's post but the producer Fukuyama Ryo told Yukawa in April this year that he should be the best candidate for the job since he knows the story inside out. Thus, this was what led to Yukawa taking on the challenge of being a director for the first time.

Abe who is acting in a Yukawa work for the first time, commented that he is eagerly looking forward to how Yukawa will present Shigematsu's story in his own unique manner. As for Amami, she has prior experience working with Yukawa in dramas such as "Joou no Kyoushitsu" and "Gisou no Fuufu" so she anticipates that this will be another tough project for her but one which will make the audience laugh and cry at the same time.

Filming begins in January next year and the movie is due to be shown in cinemas in 2017.

Source: Nikkansports / Yomiuri Hochi

Production press conference of new movie "Kaizoku to yobareta otoko"

The production press conference of new movie "Kaizoku to yobareta otoko" starring V6's Okada Junichi was held on 28 November in Tokyo. The movie which is based on Hyakuta Naoki's bestselling novel and directed by Yamazaki Takashi, is set in the Meiji, Taisho and Showa eras and features an entrepreneur Kunioka Tetsuzo (Okada) who gives courage and hope to post-war Japan through his oil business.

During the press conference, it was also announced that Kunioka's wife Yuki will be played by Ayase Haruka who was the lead for 2013 Taiga "Yae no Sakura" while Okada was the lead for the following year's Taiga "Gunshi Kanbee". Other co-stars include Yoshioka Hidetaka, Sometani Shota and Suzuki Ryohei. Among them, Yoshioka had appeared in another Yamazaki film i.e. "ALWAYS Sanchome no Yuhi" which achieved box office sales of 11.64 billion yen while Sometani was the lead in "Kiseijuu" which was also directed by Yamazaki that got 3.52 billion yen. Okada's film "Eien no Zero" directed by Yamazaki was the No.1 movie in 2014 which got 8.7 billion yen in the box office.

Filming began in the middle of October and is expected to wrap up in January. Ayase who is appearing in a Yamazaki production for the first time started her filming only just one week ago. Even though she is the only actress on the set, her impression of the atmosphere on the set is that everyone gets along well and she hopes that this film will turn out well with a lot of masculine charm. As for Suzuki, he also pledged to work hard for this movie.

"Kaizoku to yobareta otoko" will be screened in cinemas in winter next year.

Source: Sanspo / Yomiuri Hochi

Taiga drama handover ceremony for "Hana Moyu" and "Sanadamaru"

The Taiga drama handover ceremony from "Hana Moyu" to "Sanadamaru" was held on 25 November where the leads of both dramas i.e. Inoue Mao and Sakai Masato gathered at NHK's HQ at Shibuya. Inoue reflected on the 14 months she spent on the filming of "Hana Moyu" and commented that she felt satisfied by the time the filming was wrapped up as it felt like she had accomplished the biggest task in her life so far. Despite the difficulties experienced during the filming, she felt that she had also learnt about many things in the process and as a result, changed her views in many ways. When asked about what advice she would give to Sakai, Inoue remarked that due to the long filming period, the best thing would be to take good care of his health.

Sakai complimented Inoue for her hard work because in most editions of the Taiga dramas, if the lead character is a man, he would be expected to take on a leadership role. On the other hand, in Inoue's case, her character was more like a supporter to the people around her so it would have been more difficult for her to play the lead. Sakai also commented that he still doesn't know for sure what it means to be the lead of a Taiga drama and would find out from Inoue what kind of snacks to buy for the cast and crew since "Sanadamaru" would also be filmed in Gunma Prefecture where "Hana Moyu" was shot at.

The last episode of "Hana Moyu" will be shown on 13 December while "Sanadamaru" will begin its run from 10 January 2016.

Source: Oricon

New FujiTV 3-part drama SP "Josei Sakka Mysteries Utsukushiki Mitsu no Uso" to be shown in January 2016

FujiTV will be showing a 3-part drama SP titled "Josei Sakka Mysteries Utsukushiki Mitsu no Uso" (Mysteries of Female Writers - Three Beautiful Lies) on 4 Jan 2016 at 9pm.

The first part titled "Moonstone" is based on the novel by Minato Kanae and will be directed by Fukagawa Yoshihiro who was responsible for movies such as "Twilight Sasarasaya" and "Kamisama no Karte". The cast includes Nagasaku Hiromi, Dan Rei, Murakami Junichi, Takito Kenichi and Emoto Akira.

As for the second part titled "Honoo" (Flame), it is based on the novel by Miura Shion and will be directed by Hiroki Ryuichi who has works such as "Vibrator" and "Strobe Edge" under his belt. The cast will feature Tsuchiya Tao and Kadowaki Mugi who last worked together in the NHK morning drama "Mare" and acted as classmates. The actresses expressed excitement about reuniting in such a short time after the end of "Mare" and are happy about playing different characters this time. Tsuchiya plays the lead character Kagawa Arisa who is in love with Tachigi Shogo (Murakami Nijiro), her senior in the tennis club. However, when Tachigi is found at the tennis court in an apparent suicide by burning himself alive, Arisa tries to find out the truth behind his death with Tachigi's ex-girlfriend Narazaki Hatsune who is played by Kadowaki. Arisa's form teacher Kinoshita will be played by Emoto Tasuku.

As for the third story "Heibon" (Ordinary), it is based on Kakuta Mitsuyo's novel and is directed by Zeze Takahisa who is responsible for the upcoming movie versions of "64 - Rokuyon". Cast members include Suzuki Kyoka, Terajima Shinobu, Sometani Shota and Terawaki Yasufumi.

Last but not least, Miura Tomokazu will play a police detective who will appear in all three stories.

Source: Oricon

The 9th Most Desired Female Faces Ranking (Oricon)

A survey involving 500 female respondents from their teens to 50s was conducted in November to find out which celebrity's face they desire to have. Kitagawa won the No.1 spot for three years in a row:

1) Kitagawa Keiko

2) Ishihara Satomi

3) Aragaki Yui

4) Ayase Haruka

5) Shinohara Ryoko

6) Amami Yuki

7) Amuro Namie / Kichise Michiko

9) Horikita Maki / Arimura Kasumi

Source: Oricon

Oguri Shun to star in the real-life movie adaptation movie of "Museum"

Oguri Shun will be starring in the real-life movie adaptation movie of popular psycho-thriller manga "Museum" by Tomoe Ryosuke which is to be directed by Otomo Keishi who is known for his "Rurouni Kenshin" series. The movie which will be shown in cinemas next year, is based on the same-titled manga serialised in "Young Magazine" from 2013. Oguri plays the lead character Sawamura Hisashi who is a police detective in the 1st division of the Metropolitan Police Department investigating a series of murders committed by a person who calls himself the Kaeru Otoko (Frog Man) and wears a frog mask whenever he kills people.

Oguri who has read the manga, revealed that he was filled with digust at the nature of the cases described in the story. However, in this time and era, there are more and more weird cases which are getting more difficult to understand thus the story described in the manga doesn't seem so far-fetched now. As such, he hopes to deliver a performance which will set viewers thinking about the motive behind the cases as he tries his best to work hard for this movie.

Filming began on 8 November.

Source: Oricon

Sato Ryuta, Yoshida Yo and Takahata Atsuko to act in FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Naomi to Kanako"

Sato Ryuta, Yoshida Yo and Takahata Atsuko will be acting in the upcoming FujiTV Winter 2016 drama "Naomi to Kanako" which features Hirosue Ryoko and Uchida Yuki as its leads. The drama which is due to begin its run from January in the Thursdays 10pm timeslot, is a suspense drama where Hirosue's character Naomi works together with her best friend Kanako (Uchida) to hatch a plan to kill the latter's abusive husband Tatsuro (Sato) who works as a bank employee after Naomi happens to meet a Chinese illegal immigrant also played by Sato. After Tatsuro's disappearance, his elder sister Yoko (Yoshida) is suspicious of Naomi and Kanako being responsible thus sets out to investigate the case. Takahata plays the role of a Chinese woman who is the president of a company but steals a branded watch from the departmental store where Naomi works at. As a result of this theft, it leads to Naomi seeing the Chinese illegal immigrant who looks exactly like Tatsuro.

With regard to playing an abusive husband for the first time, Sato who has been known for his passionate and good-guy roles so far and is a father of two daughters in real liffe, commented that this will be a new challenge for him but he feels slightly apprehensive about having to "beat" Uchida on screen. Nonetheless, he will put in his best effort to put on a convincing performance and also relishes his first attempt in 8 years to play two characters in one drama. As for Yoshida, she said that her character has a strong sense of justice but is someone who may not be popular with the viewers so this will be a difficult role for her. However, she is excited about being in the psychological battle with Hirosue and Uchida's characters. Takahta commented that she thinks that the drama's premise is rather interesting and is secretly supportive of the lead characters even though they are attempting to commit a perfect crime.

Filming begins in the middle of next month.

Source: Sanspo 1 / Sanspo 2

Completion screening event of new movie "Haha to kuraseba"

The completion screening event of new movie "Haha to kuraseba" was held at Marunouchi Picadilly 1 on 22 November which was attended by the director Yamada Yoji and cast members including Yoshinaga Sayuri, Ninomiya Kazunari, Kuroki Haru, Asano Tadanobu, Kato Kenichi and Hondo Miyu. The fantasy movie which will be shown in cinemas from 12 December to mark Shochiku's 120th anniversary, is set in the post-war era at Nagasaki where a mother (Yoshinaga) finds her dead son's spirit (Ninomiya) appearing in front of her despite having died 3 years ago due to the nuclear bombing.

During the event, Yoshinaga praised Ninomiya for being a great actor who could do whatever the director wanted and said that he seemed like a fairy to her. In response, Ninomiya jokingly commented that he will become known as Fairy Kazunari from now on which led the audience to laugh.

Source: Sponichi

Kitamura Kazuki and Hamada Gaku team up again in BS Sky Perfect drama "Kera"

Kitamura Kazuki and Hamada Gaku will be working together again in the BS Sky Perfect drama "Kera" (Mole Cricket) which begins its run from 19 February 2016 on Fridays at 9pm. The drama which is based on Naoki Award-winning writer Kurokawa Hiroyuki, features Kitamura as Kuwahara, a former yakuza member expelled by his gang while Hamada plays Ninomiya, a construction consultant. The two of them work together to fight against the masterminds behind a scandal involving a religious organisation as they sense that this is a money opportunity for them. The drama which will be largely in the Osaka dialect, will also be full of violence scenes which can only be seen on dramas shown on satellite networks.

The actors last worked together in the drama "Hamon" which was also shown on BS Sky Perfect from January this year.

Source: Yomiuri Hochi