Social media is abuzz with speculation about the identity of the "important character" played by Snow Man's Ren Meguro Ren in the TBS Sunday Theatre drama "The Royal Family" (Sundays at 9 PM), starring Satoshi Tsumabuki . Speculation is rife among viewers and fans, with some suggesting he could be the grown-up version of Nozaki Kanako's ( Wakana Matsumoto) son Shohei (Miura Kira), the "son who died nine years ago" of Hayashida Junji's (Koichi Sato) Hayashida Ranch, the son of protagonist Kurisu (Tsumabuki), or the grandson or illegitimate child of Sanno Kozo (Sato Koichi).
◇The following contains spoilers
The story is based on the novel of the same name by Kazuma Hayami. Eiji Kurisu admired his father, who was a tax accountant, and followed in his footsteps, but he experienced setbacks and lost hope. However, his life takes a major turn when he meets Kozo Sanno, a horse owner.
The character played by Meguro does not appear to be smiling. However, in the preview video for the first episode (October 12th), a scene is shown of a black-haired, glasses-wearing Meguro interacting with a horse and smiling with a gentle gaze.
In the first episode, Meguro served as the narrator, but his face only appeared in the final photo. Towards the end, after a large caption reading "2030," Meguro's narration continued, "August 7, 2011. He later spoke about this day: 'Before I knew it, I was running. I couldn't help but run. If I reached out, I was sure I could reach a brand new dream. That's what I felt. At that time...'" Immediately afterwards, a photo of the character played by Meguro with Kanako, Kurisu, and a racehorse was shown on screen.
As of October 17th, five days after the broadcast, the official website still lists Meguro's character name as "???" and has not yet been revealed.
Meanwhile, on social media, people are excited, with comments such as, "I wonder if Kanako's son will be Ren Meguro when he grows up?", "I wonder if Ren Meguro Ren will be Kanako's son when he grows up and become a jockey?", "Will he play Omi's son?", "The son born to Kurisu and Kanako in the future? Maybe?", "Details of the mysterious role Ren Meguro will play have not yet been revealed, but those sad eyes suggest there is some kind of tragic past", "I'm starting to think Ren Meguro might be playing an illegitimate child", and "Is Ren Meguro, whose photo appears at the end, the illegitimate child of Sanno Kozo?"
