The movie version of the serial drama "Trillion Game" that aired on TBS in July 2023, "Trillion Game: The Movie" (directed by Murao Yoshiaki), will be released on February 14th. Continuing from the serial drama, the role of the talented news producer Kunugi Kazuyoshi will be played by Kenjiro Tsuda, who is active as a voice actor and actor. Tsuda also plays Kunugi in the TV anime version of the series that began in October 2024, and says, "It's a truly luxurious experience." This year marks the 30th anniversary of Tsuda's debut as a voice actor, and we asked him about his current position and ambitions as an actor.
◇ A passionate and down-to-earth approach
"Trillion Game" is a manga written by Riichiro Inagaki and illustrated by Ryoichi Ikegami, which has been serialized in "Big Comic Superior" (Shogakukan) since December 2020. The story is about two opposites, Haru (Tennoji Yo), a quick-witted people-pleaser, and Gaku (Taira Manabu), a timid computer nerd who is not good at talking to people, who team up to start a company, earn a trillion dollars, and grow into a businessman who makes it onto the rich list. In the serial drama and movie that aired on TBS in July 2023, popular group "Snow Man"'s Meguro Ren plays Haru and Sano Hayato plays Gaku.
Tsuda plays Kunai, a news producer for Trillion TV, an online TV service run by Trillion Games, a company founded by Haru and Gaku. He was originally a star producer at a major TV station, but moved to a production company with the belief that "not reporting the truth is worthy of the death of journalism," and was later invited by Haru to team up with Trillion TV.
Tsuda describes Kuninori as "a very passionate, down-to-earth person."
"At the beginning of the drama, he seems to reject Haru and the others, and is a bit like, 'Don't mess with me,' but then he goes along with them. He's a very different character, and what he says is different from what he actually thinks. He says, 'Numbers are important,' and 'Viewer ratings are everything,' but more than that, he says he enjoys working with Haru and Gaku, and there is a kind of elation and happiness there, which is what he really feels. I think there's an interesting, slightly twisted quality to him."
He also felt that "Kuno is someone who has always fought within limitations," and he could empathize with him to some extent.
"I think that how much freedom he can have within limitations is where he really shines. In that sense, we obviously don't have complete freedom either. For example, in animation there is lip-syncing, and sometimes schedules mean 'we have to do this quickly.' We perform to the best of our ability within those limitations. There are times when limitations themselves can really create power, so we try to be positive about that."
He also discovered that he had never played a down-to-earth role before. "There was something interesting about playing Kunai, and I wanted to have that down-to-earth side in the movie version, too," he said. In the movie, Haru and Gaku, who lead Trillion Games, one of Japan's top corporations, take on the challenge of developing Japan's first casino resort.
"The company itself has grown in power, the number of employees has increased dramatically, and the office has become bigger. However, everyone at Trillion Games, including Kunai, still has a certain down-to-earth quality. I wanted to be able to bring out that Kunai-ness in the limited scenes I had."
◇ On the 30th anniversary of her debut as a voice actress, she is "returning to her roots" and is also greedy
After playing Kunai in the live-action version of "Trillion Game," Tsuda will be playing the same role in the TV anime. "I think this is the first time I've played the same role in both the live-action and anime versions." While he says that his approach to the role of Kunai "isn't that different" between the anime and live-action versions, he adds, "It's a real luxury to be given this role."
Tsuda-san has been active in many popular works as both a voice actor and an actor, and continues to play a hybrid role. This year marks the 30th anniversary of his debut as a voice actor. We asked him about his future ambitions.
"I hope to continue working as a voice actor, as well as in live-action dramas and movies. Also, I've always said that I want to make a feature film, and I think it's about time I really made a go of it. I guess that's one of my ambitions," he says enthusiastically.
He also said that over the past few years he has become more conscious of "returning to his roots" as an actor.
"I feel like I'm starting over in various ways of approaching things. 'What is acting?' 'Acting is really difficult after all,' I think, 'But it's interesting and deep after all.' I periodically re-examine things, and now that I'm in my 50s, I've started to feel like I want to try to delve deeper into acting once more. I think I should try approaches I've never tried before, and it's boring if things become stagnant. I want to throw away everything I don't need and destroy what needs to be destroyed, and do it properly."
Isn't there any fear of throwing away everything you've built up so far?
"I don't really know what I've accomplished... (laughs). I don't like the feeling that I've somehow managed to do it. I've been doing it for so long that it makes me think, 'Maybe I haven't really accomplished it yet?' It feels like I'm starting over from the beginner's level of acting. Naturally it makes me more scared, but I think it's interesting."
He also began to pay renewed attention to his position as the "leading actor."
"Watching various works from the outside, I've come to realise that playing a leading role is a huge responsibility. I've always preferred doing supporting roles and making big splashes, but I've become interested in leading roles too. Of course, it's all a matter of meeting someone, so I'd only do it if the opportunity arose, but I guess I'm greedy (laughs)," she says with a smile.
Despite his ambitions, Tsuda maintains a sincere attitude, saying, "I want to do a lot of different things, both as an actor and as a creator, but I want to do each one carefully and precisely." It looks like we'll be keeping our eyes on Tsuda in the future.
