Akari Takaishi , who will star in the NHK Asadora drama "Bakebake " in the second half of 2025, attended a location report meeting held at Shiroyama Inari Shrine (Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture) on May 23rd. Takaishi, who plays the heroine Toki Matsuno, said about her role-making, "When I read the script, I realized that Toki and I are just so similar to each other. There was no sense of incongruity at all, and I was able to get into it right away, and she felt the same way and put it into words." She continued, "It was a strange feeling I'd never felt before, and I felt like I wasn't creating a role, so I was able to play the role as I am, just as I am."
Tommy Bastow, who plays her husband, also attended the location briefing. This was the first time Takaishi and Bastow had visited Matsue since filming began in April. They have been on location since the 21st. They had just taken visual photos that day, and Takaishi appeared in her character's costume, wearing a pink kimono and Bastow in a suit with a white contact lens in his left eye.
Takaishi expressed her joy, saying, "I am very happy to be able to return to Matsue as Toki and as (my husband) Heaven."
Regarding the location shoot, she smiled and said, "I have been here privately before, but I filmed there yesterday and the day before, and the atmosphere was completely different when I was in costume.Local people participated as extras and we were able to talk as we filmed, so I was really glad to have been given such a luxurious opportunity."
It had been raining until yesterday, but this day was a clear day. "I'm an unlucky rain girl, so I'm glad we had good weather. The content we were shooting was so comedic that the staff were constantly laughing on set. I'm very grateful to everyone who helped create that kind of atmosphere. I hope the film will arrive soon," she said.
"Bakebake " is the story of a couple who love "ghost stories" together with their foreign husband, and who shed light on and speak for the "nameless people" who had been forgotten in Meiji Japan as Westernization progressed. Takaishi plays the heroine Toki Matsuno , the daughter of a fallen samurai from Matsue, modeled after Lafcadio Hearn 's wife Setsu. The script is written by Fujiki Mitsuhiko, who has worked on NHK's "Asagaya Sisters' Relaxed Life Together" and WOWOW's "Tokyu Series."
