A press conference for the July drama "Shiawase na Kekkon（Happy Marriage）" (Thursdays 9pm) was held on February 26th at TV Asahi (Minato Ward, Tokyo), where it was announced that Shizuka Oishi would be the scriptwriter and Sadao Abe would star. This will be Oishi's first drama script since last year's NHK Taiga drama "Dear Radiance (Hikaru Kimi e)," and Abe's first lead role in a drama series for the same network.
Abe plays Harada Kotaro, a popular lawyer who has been acquitted in many cases that have attracted public attention, and who also appears on various TV shows every day, winning overwhelming support from the viewing public. One day, Kotaro, who is also a bachelor, has a "fateful encounter" and gets married suddenly, but his beloved wife is hiding a big secret, and Kotaro's fate takes an unexpected turn... This is the story. It will be a "marriage suspense" that questions the love between husband and wife.
The two have teamed up for the first time since "Mothers in Love" (TBS, 2020). Oishi said, "Right now, I think Abe and Yasunori Danta are the best in Japan. I wondered what I should do to work with Abe, and I thought I'd like to try doing a home drama. I'll add a TV Asahi flavor to it. I want to make it an unusual home drama where the highlight is his interaction with his wife at home."
Regarding adding suspense elements to the home drama, he said, "When I first thought of it, I was thinking of a peaceful story where the day ends with the disappearance of a slipper, but after talking with the producer, I felt that an element of suspense was necessary to appeal to TV Asahi's Thursday 9 pm audience. That's what I added to the story." He added enthusiastically, "I want to portray a sexier and more wonderful Abe than the "Futehodo" version."
Abe said, "I heard that (the character I play) Kotaro is a man who works as a commentator. I don't think I'll ever do that in my life, so I'm looking forward to playing the role. From what I've read in the (early) part of the script, there's no time travel so far, and there are a lot of mysteries that make it interesting. There's a lot to look forward to."
