On November 27th, it was revealed that British actor Tommy Bastow will play the role of Heaven, a character based on the Meiji era literary figure Lafcadio Hearn (Koizumi Yakumo), who becomes married to the heroine Toki Matsuno (Takaishi) in the NHK morning drama series Bakebake starring Akari Takaishi, which will be broadcast in the second half of 2025. Production manager Kuniomi Hashizume spoke about the reasons for selecting Bastow.
Bastow was born on August 26th, 1991, and is 33 years old and from the UK. He attracted attention by playing the role of one of the main cast, Priest Martin Alvid, in the drama Shogun, produced and starring Hiroyuki Sanada. Bastow heard about the audition for Bakebake from actor Moeka Hoshi, who co-starred with him in Shogun, and obtained Hashizume's email address through his agency. He sent me an email in Japanese asking if I could take the role. Hashizume recalled, "I was really surprised because I never thought I would receive an email directly from someone who was in the Hollywood drama 'SHOGUN'." 1,767 people applied for the role of Heaven, including actors with a long career from both Japan and abroad. After document screening, remote video screening, and interviews, the final camera test was held in Japan, and Bastow was selected in October.
An acting audition was also conducted against the female stand-in for the heroine, and Hashizume said of Bastow's performance, "I was really drawn in by the feeling that 'we don't communicate with each other properly, but we communicate with each other'. That is also the theme of the drama, and my biggest impression was that she is someone who can embody the image of mutual respect and understanding through acting." She also praised him, saying, "He has overwhelming power in terms of basic acting, and the aura he exudes the moment he enters the studio is different." She also gave him a thumbs up for his humanity, saying, "Everyone who comes into contact with him, from the makeup artists to the staff on set to the female stand-in for the heroine, falls head over heels in love with him. He has the power to make people fall in love with him, and the power to express that. He's a really nice guy in private, so I think he's popular. I think it will be a tough shoot, but I think I could get through it together with him for a year."
The model for the heroine of "Bakebake" is Setsu Koizumi, the daughter of a fallen samurai from Matsue and wife of Lafcadio Hearn. Together with her foreign husband, she loves "ghost stories," and the couple shed light on the "nameless people" who had been forgotten in Meiji Japan as Westernization progressed, and spun their stories as spokespeople for them. The script will be written by Fujiki Mitsuhiko, who has worked on NHK's "Asagaya Sisters' Relaxed Life Together" and WOWOW's "Shooting Break Series."
