Fumiya Takahashi will be appearing in the NHK morning drama " Anpan " (General Asadora , Monday to Saturday 8:00 a.m. and others), starring Mio Imada This is his first appearance in a Asadora , and he plays Karashima Kentaro, a classmate of Takashi Yanai(Takumi Kitamura), who is modeled after Kentaro Karashima , the manga Takashi Yanase and picture book writer who created "Anpanman." Takahashi is known for playing the main character in " Kamen Rider Zero-One" (2019-20), but we would like to look back on his five years from the end of the TV series to "Anpan," and also introduce what producer Arai Junko said about his breakout drama series "Saiai" (TBS, 2021).
◇ After "Kamen Rider Zero-One" became the foundation of his acting career, he continued to appear in a flurry of roles
Takahashi was born on March 12, 2001. He is 24 years old and hails from Saitama Prefecture. In "Kamen Rider Zero-One," his first drama appearance and first leading role, he played the main character Kamen Rider Zero-One/Hiden Aruto for about a year. Takahashi previously reflected on that period, saying, "It was a truly valuable year, as I was able to experience both dramas and movies," and described it as "the foundation of my acting career."
After "Zero One", Takahashi has appeared in almost every drama season, starting with "The Equation to Erase the Teacher" (TV Asahi) in October 2020, and ending with "Waru: Who Said Working Is Uncool?" (Nippon TV) in April 2022. Among his appearances is the aforementioned "Saiai", establishing him as a promising young actor.
His success continues, and after a break from "Waru," he played the main role in the drama "Kimi no Hana ni Naru" airing in October 2022, where he released songs and performed live as the center of the seven-member boy band "8LOOM." At the same time, Takahashi was also selected as the "Face of Next Year" by the monthly information magazine "Nikkei Trendy" (Nikkei BP).
Looking ahead to 2023 and beyond, the pace of her work has slowed down somewhat, but in January she made her first appearance in a Monday night drama in "The Classroom of Themis: Legal Youth White Paper" (Fuji TV). In Getsuku she starred in her first romance film, "Exchange Lies Diary," and in October she starred in her first primetime drama series, "Fermat no Ryori" (TBS).
In 2024, he joined the popular segment "Gourmet Chicken Race Gochi ni Narimasu! (Gochi Battle)" of the variety show "Guru Guru Ninety-Nine" (Nippon TV). Since then, he has continued to entertain viewers as a regular on the show while continuing to work as an actor, as busy as ever.
◇ What "Saiai" P felt when they first met: "You smell good"
In the currently airing Asadora"Anpan," Takahashi is bringing a new wind to the show as "Ken-chan," who is brazen but somehow lovable, and combines cuteness, brightness, and friendliness. Producer Arai, who previously worked on "Saiai," revealed that his first impression of Takahashi was that "he had a 'smell that would sell,'" but what exactly was that "smell that would sell"?
To briefly explain "Saiai" (The Most Loved One) it is a love suspense story centered around Rio Sanada (Yuriko Yoshitaka), a businessman who becomes a key witness in a murder case, her first love, detective Daiki Miyazaki (Kohei Matsushita), who is pursuing the truth behind the case, and lawyer Kenichiro Kase (Arata Iura), who tries to protect Rio by any means possible. Takahashi plays Yu Asamiya, Rio's younger brother, who has memory loss due to an accident in his childhood and loses part of his memory when excited.
Producer Arai said of Takahashi when they first met, "She has a sense of transparency. When we met, I was like, 'She smells good.' It's like 'the air smells good,' or 'the smell of something that will sell,' and there it was." It's a bit abstract, but there's no doubt that his nose as a drama producer who brought works such as "For N" and "Unnatural" to the world before that, and later "Diamonds Sleeping in the Sea," was at work, and in a sense, it can be said that Takahashi has continued to sell well up to this point, just as he said.
Ken-chan from "Anpan" will likely become involved with the heroine Nobu (played by Imada) and the Asada family, so Takahashi's appearances will likely increase. As the story moves towards war, Takahashi's cheerful character and smile will surely be a refreshing break from time to time.
