Actor Fumiya Takahashi appeared on Tetsuko Kuroyanagi's long-running talk show "Tetsuko's Room" (TV Asahi) on August 6th. He talked about his frustrating experiences leading up to his debut in "Kamen Rider Zero-One" in 2019, as well as cherished memories of children watching him with sparkling eyes.
Takahashi auditioned for various roles, including stage plays and dramas, and landed a part in "Kamen Rider Zero-One." Takahashi reveals, "I failed every single other audition." He reflects on the string of rejections, saying, "It's not something you experience often in life, and even though I was only 18, I felt a great deal of frustration from being hit with all of them at once."
When "Kamen Rider Zero-One" began airing, it received a great response. Takahashi said that there were many moments when he felt that the gossip in town and the comments on social media were "what makes acting a worthwhile profession." When he went to the supermarket to buy food, a mother of a young child noticed him. When he showed the child his transformation poses, the child's eyes lit up as they watched. Takahashi said that he realized he could make a child's face like that, and that it was one of his most cherished memories, which solidified his resolve to pursue acting as a career.
Last year, he appeared in the NHK Asadora drama series "Anpan" as Kentaro Karashima, the best friend of the heroine's husband. Until then, he wasn't often recognized on the street, but when he went to filming locations in rural areas and stopped at restaurants to eat, he started getting recognized more often, with people saying, "Hey, aren't you the boy who played Ken-chan?" He said, "I felt like my fan base had expanded all of a sudden. Some of my co-stars had also watched the Asadora. I really felt the power of the Asadora."
Regarding her future dreams, she said, "I've lived this far without setting any long-term goals, and thankfully I've been given a lot of work, but I want to live a life so hectic that I won't have time to look back on it."
