It was revealed on January 4th that musician and TV personality DAIGO will be playing Saito Yoshitatsu in the 2026 NHK Taiga drama "Toyotomi Brothers!" (General TV, Sunday 8pm and others), starring actor Nakano Taiga. He made a surprise appearance without prior notice in the first episode, "Two Monkeys," which aired on the same day. This will be DAIGO's first time appearing in a Taiga drama. Expressing his joy in his own "DAI-speak," he said, "I felt like, 'TTS! I'm finally appearing in a Taiga drama!'" He also revealed, "I practiced with my wife (actress Keiko Kitagawa) and she told me, 'Do your best!'"
Saito Yoshitatsu was a Sengoku daimyo of Mino. He was the eldest son of Saito Dosan, who was a vassal of the Toki clan and rose to become a Sengoku daimyo. He became the head of the family, but came into conflict with his father and defeated him. He continued to oppose Oda Nobunaga, but died of illness at an early age. The Saito family was succeeded by Tatsuoki at a young age.
DAIGO said, "I was really happy to be able to play a Sengoku warlord! I researched Saito Yoshitatsu and played the role in my own way!" He then called out to the viewers, "Hello, I'm DAIGO, the Taiga actor! The adventure of the Toyotomi brothers has just begun. Let's have fun together!"
"Toyotomi Brothers!" is the 65th taiga drama. It is a success story of hope and dreams, depicting the miracle of the Toyotomi brothers, Hidenaga (Koichiro) and his older brother Hideyoshi (Tokichiro), who achieve the great feat of unifying the country with their strong bond.
