Masahiro Ota stars in "Kimi to Shita Kiss wa Forever" (Kimi Kiss), currently airing on ABC TV's "Drama L" slot. The drama is an original story set in a lakeside hotel that has been fully renovated from a closed elementary school, and is a series of ephemeral yet precious and beautiful short stories that weave together various forms of love with loved ones. We spoke to Ota, who plays the main role alongside Takuya Mizoguchi in episode 7, about his thoughts as he approached filming.
◇ I was very conscious of my facial expressions during laughing scenes.
In addition to Ota and Mizoguchi, "Kimi Kiss" also stars members of Amuse's "Team Handsome!" cast, including Hosoda Kaito, Kanata Hosoda Junsei Motojima, Kenta Izuka, Aoyagi Ruito, Fukuzaki Nayuta, Koseki Yuta, and Matsuoka Kodai. Ota plays Kuga Keita, one of the five childhood friends.
Keita has lived in his hometown since he was an elementary school student, never leaving it and still lives there today. When a closed elementary school is fully renovated into a hotel, he is reunited with his childhood friends who have moved to Tokyo, and is forced to face certain feelings he had kept secret.
Ota said of Keita, "I got the impression that he has stayed in his hometown and is doing a solid job."
"When he was in his group of childhood friends, he was in the middle of everyone's conversations, picking up on what someone said and connecting the dots, so I think he was a very skillful person. If we were to compare him to a school class, I imagine him as being a little above the second-ranked group. But he himself hides his true feelings very much, and I thought he had a habit of purposely smiling even when he was in pain to cover up, so I was very conscious of the facial expressions he used in the scenes where he laughs. I think I thought a lot about his pain and brought it to the set, thinking things like, 'This is the kind of expression someone who can't say what they really thinks but can't honestly say it makes.'"
◇I hope you will see it as a pure love story.
The "certain feelings" that Keita had been keeping secret were for Akira Shioniri (played by Mizoguchi), one of his closest childhood friends, whom he had harbored feelings for since elementary school that went beyond friendship. In episode 7, there is a scene where Keita tells Akira about his feelings.
"I have a male friend close to me who is interested in men romantically, and he told me all sorts of stories that I wouldn't normally be able to ask, which I used as reference for my role. Episode 7 is mostly scenes between Keita and Akira. Keita was in a difficult position the whole time on set, but he has known Takuya, who plays Akira, for 10 years. I didn't take advantage of that, but I feel that I was able to express, even if unconsciously, the fact that they have a familiar relationship but also have something hidden, and looking back now, I think it was probably easy to make."
Ota believes, "There are many cases in this world where people thought they were just friends, but in fact they were in love," and reveals his thoughts, "I would be very happy if those who have experienced this could look at it from the perspective of the people involved, and I would also like them to see it as a pure love story."
Regarding director Ishibashi Yuho, who directed episode 7, Ota said, "I had previously taken a workshop with her," and this was a long-awaited collaboration.
"When we met, he told me things like, 'It's fine if you speak your lines colloquially and in a way that's comfortable for you,' 'I want to make sure the atmosphere is important, so don't get too hung up on the words,' and 'Don't be afraid to take pauses, and act without worrying about the length,' so I was incredibly grateful. From what Ishibashi said, I got the sense that this was a drama that was purely about pursuing an entertaining work without wavering, and it was a big challenge for me as well."
"Kimi to Shitashi Kiss wa Forever" airs on ABC TV every Sunday at 12:10 AM and on TV Asahi every Saturday at 2:30 AM. Episodes 1 to 3 and the latest episode are available for catch-up streaming on TVer and ABEMA. All episodes are available on FOD and Prime Video.
