Five new cast members have been announced for the NHK Taiga drama "Toyotomi Brothers!" (General TV, Sunday 8pm and others), starring actor Nakano Taiga, and it has been revealed that Masaki Suda will play the legendary military strategist, Takenaka Hanbei. Suda, who is a close friend of Nakano, said, "A taiga drama starring Nakano Taiga. I couldn't be more excited. I've watched him rise to the top like the Toyotomi brothers for the past dozen years. I am grateful and happy to be able to accompany him as Takenaka Hanbei to one of his greatest peaks."
Ichikawa Danko plays Mori Ranmaru, who serves Oda Nobunaga as a page; Motoki Nakazawa plays Oda Nobukatsu, Nobunaga's younger brother who plots a rebellion; Ogata Atsushi plays Oda Nobusumi, Nobukatsu's eldest son who later becomes the son-in-law of Akechi Mitsuhide; and Daichi Nobunaga plays Asano Nagayoshi, who later becomes one of the five magistrates of the Toyotomi government under the name Asano Nagamasa.
This will be Suda's third appearance in a taiga drama, following his role as Ii Naomasa in "Naotora: The Lady Warlord" (2017) and Minamoto no Yoshitsune in "The 13 Lords of the Shogun" (2022). This will be Ogata's first appearance since "Idaten" (2019), and Daichi's second appearance since his role as Tokugawa Iemochi in "Hana Moyu" (2015). This will be Danko and Nakazawa's first appearance in a taiga drama.
"Toyotomi Brothers!" is a success story of hope and dreams, depicting the miracle of the Toyotomi brothers' rise to power, with Hidenaga, the younger brother of "the great ruler of Japan," Toyotomi Hideyoshi, as the protagonist. Hidenaga will be played by Nakano, and Hideyoshi by Ikematsu. The script will be written by Yatsushi Hiroyuki, known for "Hanzawa Naoki" (TBS) and the Asadora drama "Ochoyan."
