It has been revealed that actor Kawaguchi Haruna will star in the drama series "Ensemble," which will be broadcast on Nippon Television's "Dodora 10" slot (Saturdays at 10 p.m.) from January 2025, and that Matsumura Hokuto of the popular group "SixTONES" will also appear. Kawaguchi plays Koyama Sena, a realistic lawyer who deals with many love troubles, and Matsumura plays Madohara Yu, an idealistic rookie lawyer. We asked Kawaguchi and Matsumura about their enthusiasm for the work and what to look forward to. (Part 1 of a two-part series)
◇Did Matsumura Hokuto erase his aura in the classroom?
--Please tell us how you felt when you heard the offer to appear.
Kawaguchi: This work is full of connections with many different people, including love, the profession of a lawyer who solves troubles every time, and family stories. I thought it was a story that was never limited to the legal framework, but was about looking back at yourself and growing as you think, "I want to solve something for this person."
Matsumura: I play a lawyer, but the story is a little removed from the typical "lawyer" genre, and is centered around warmth and love in a very broad sense. When I received the proposal and read the script, I felt that it was a warm and gentle story, but also had some funny parts, and that it was a drama that was appropriate for 10pm on Saturdays, when people of all ages are at home and have the TV on. I was also happy to be able to appear in this role.
--Kawaguchi plays a realistic female lawyer, and Matsumura plays an idealistic rookie lawyer. Please tell us the highlights and charms of each role.
Kawaguchi: I think there is certainly an element of realism, but she is still a cool woman who works hard, and there is a gap between her work and her own view of love, so she is a character who wears armor and is rather cautious. She herself is a little troubled by love and her relationship with her mother, and she has questions about whether she should continue like this, so it will be interesting to see how this develops as the episodes go on.
Matsumura: One is that he is a character who values love in a broad sense. He is also idealistic, so I think he is a character that many people admire. I think he is the kind of person who makes you think, "That guy is great," or "I want to be a person who can think like that," and he was a character that I admired a little, so I think that is what makes him so appealing as a character, making you want to watch him for an hour every week. His character is the complete opposite of Kawaguchi's character, but I think the appeal of both my role and Kawaguchi's role is that they don't blame each other for being complete opposites, and they spend a lot of time together.
--This is the first time you two have acted together, so please tell us your impressions of each other, and your impressions before you met.
Matsumura: I'm planning to say this in various places, but I was Kawaguchi's junior in high school. I was a little unique, and even though we were in different grades, we were only together in homeroom, and we talked a lot (laughs). Today, I came thinking, "This is scary, I might get swallowed up by him," but... In terms of the strength of that momentum, if I were to characterize him, I would imagine him as an anaconda... Of course, his appearance is completely different and beautiful!
Kawaguchi: Stop it, you're definitely going to write that! (laughs)
Matsumura: He's a big guy with a strong handle (laughs). When we met and talked, he was scary in his own way, but he was easy to talk to and scary.
Kawaguchi: I thought it was our first time meeting, but when he said, "We were in the same class," I was really shocked. I think he must have been hiding his aura. But normally, as an actor, and even when he's with a group, he's a very glamorous person, so I was surprised by the gap. I've personally seen him in various works and he's one of my favorite actors, so I was genuinely happy to be able to work with him this time, and I have the impression that he really shows completely different expressions depending on the work, so I was really looking forward to this time as well.
Matsumura: I was just kidding, I was really looking forward to it too! (Continued in the second part)
