Matsumura Sayuri:Starring in a heart-warming romantic comedy based on a manga, co-starring with Komakine Akita in the April TV Tokyo late-night drama "Yabusaka de gozaimasen"

It was revealed on February 3rd that Matsumura Sayuri, a former member of the idol group "Nogizaka46", will star in the drama "Yabusaka de gozaimasen" which will air on TV Tokyo's "Drama NEXT" slot (Wednesdays at 12:30am) starting on April 2nd. This will be Matsumura's first lead role in a drama for the station. She will co-star with actor Komakine Akita, and the heart-warming romantic comedy will be set in a silent cafe.

The original work is a manga of the same name by Marita, which was serialized in the limited label "Gene LINE" of "LINE Manga". It debuted at No. 1 on the LINE Manga Daily Ranking. The protagonist, Mysterious Mai, who works at the silent cafe "Morning Glory", and her colleague at the cafe, Kamishimo Ryo, a younger man who is close to people, one day enter into a relationship where they "observe" each other. As they work together, Mai becomes interested in Ryo, but it is not easy to deal with him because he has a trauma from his first love and is in a complicated relationship... Meanwhile, Ryo is also interested in Mai, and behind his cool expression, his feelings for Mai overflow. Will the two be able to open the door to each other's hearts? This is the story.

Matsumura, who plays the main character Mai Fushigi, has starred in "If My Favorite Idol Comes to Budokan, I Will Die" (ABC TV) and the movie version of the same work, and has also appeared in popular works such as "Taikan Yoho" (MBS), "Extreme Couple" (Kantele), and "Yakiteru Futari ~Dating 0 Days, Marriage Begins with Love~" (Yomiuri TV). She is active in many fields, including as a regular model for the fashion magazine "BAILA" (Shueisha).

Matsumura plays Fushigi Mai, a "work-hardened" girl who has acquired various qualifications and is perfect in everything except love. Although she dreams of a "reciprocal" love affair, she is traumatized by her first love and is in a complicated relationship. When she moves to a new place, she happens to visit the silent cafe "Morning Glory" and starts working there.

Matsumura said, "I am having fun playing the role of Mai, who is timid when it comes to love. When I read the original work, my heart was pounding without a trace, and even on the set, my heart was pounding thanks to Kamijo Ryo, whose sense of distance was off the charts! Please look forward to the broadcast of the series! It is full of the desire to be loved like this, so I am sure you will enjoy it."

Komakine, who plays Kamijo Ryo, has appeared in such shows as "25:00 in Akasaka" (TV Tokyo), "Tengu's Kitchen" and "Tengu's Kitchen Season 2" (BS-TBS), as well as "Legendary Head Sho", "I Will Blossom with You - A Record of Shinsengumi Youth" and "The Reason We Fall in Love" (all on TV Asahi), and is also a regular on Nippon Cultural Broadcasting's "Recomen!" on Mondays.

Komakine commented, "As this is my first time doing a romantic comedy, I am feeling more nervous than I have ever felt before while filming. Seeing how Jyojo-kun has such big love and is so honest, it reminds me of the importance of clearly expressing your feelings through words and actions. I hope you enjoy the pure love story of these two characters who, although clumsy, try their best to face the person they love."

Comments from the original author and producer are as follows:

◇Comment from Marita, the original author

When I heard about the live-action drama adaptation at the time the original work was completed, I shouted out loud for joy more than I had that year. I am honored to have been given such a precious opportunity. Thank you very much. I was writing while fantasizing about it being adapted into a movie on a daily basis, so I am very happy that my dream has become a reality. Manga has its own way of presenting itself, and drama has its own way of presenting itself. Even if a page that is said to be a famous scene in a manga is reproduced perfectly faithfully, it may feel unsatisfying, and sometimes an unexpected character may look attractive by showing a completely different perspective from the original. I'm sure that professionals will make the necessary efforts to make it a better work, so I think that people who have already read "Yabusaka de Gozenai" in manga will also enjoy it. Although I am the original author, I am looking forward to the broadcast not as the creator of the characters, but purely as a viewer.

◇ Comment from producer Rikako Suzuki (TV Tokyo Distribution Business Department Drama Division)

In these days when dramas about adultery and revenge are all the rage, we bring you a romantic comedy that is right in the middle of the day. Mai, a strange girl who is clumsy in love and longs for "mutual love," and Kamijo Ryo, who has a bug in his sense of distance, unfold a complicated love story set in a silent cafe. When I looked up the meaning of the title of the original work, "Yabusaka de gozaimasen," I found that it has a positive meaning of "willingly doing ○○" or "spending no effort to do ○○," and I was first attracted to the positive title. The story also carefully depicts the emotional movements of Mai and Ryo, and all the characters are cute and charming. I thought it was a wonderful work that warmed my heart, so I offered to make it into a drama. Matsumura Sayuri, who plays the main character Mai, has a comical and charming side that you can see on variety shows, and a soft impression with a touch of brilliance, so I thought that Matsumura was the only one who could play Mai! That's why I asked her to play the role. When he actually plays the role, he has a dignified and calm demeanor, and is the very character of Mai, as if she came out of a manga! As the leader, he soothes the filming site with his cute smile. I have the impression that Komakine Akita, who plays Ryo, has played many cool roles in the past, but I thought he would also fit in as a cute younger man, so I offered him the role. When he actually plays the role, Ryo, who is shy, honest, cute, and sometimes has out-of-control feelings of love, is exactly there. The atmosphere and balance of the two actors is very good, so please look forward to a wonderful combination that will make you smile and get your heart racing just by watching. I hope that this will be the best "reward drama for doting" for women around the world, where you can watch it safely and calmly as a [Reiwa romance drama], and enjoy the simulated experience of thinking, "I want to be loved like Mai!"