The new cast for the NHK Taiga drama "Toyotomi Brothers!" (General TV, Sundays at 8pm and other times), starring Nakano Taiga, was announced on January 14th, revealing that seven new members of the Oda clan will be appearing.
Kuroda Kanbei, a military strategist who becomes a strong ally of Hidenaga and Hideyoshi, will be played by Yuki Kura. Nobunaga's eldest son, Oda Nobutada, will be played by Koseki Yuta, and Nobunaga's third son, Oda Nobutaka, will be played by Yuki Kosei.
Furthermore, it has been revealed that Gen Ito will play Kato Kiyomasa, Yuki Matsuzaki will play Fukushima Masanori, Shinta Horii will play Ikeda Tsuneoki, and Kenta Izuka will play Takigawa Kazumasu. This will be Kura, Koseki, Yuki, Ito, Matsuzaki, and Inozuka's first appearance in a taiga drama, while this will be Horii's third, following "Hana Moyu" (2015) and "Saigo Don" (2018).
Producer Takahashi Yukako commented, "Although they will be appearing for a while, all of them are essential characters in portraying Toyotomi's reign over the country. In particular, we received many questions about Kuroda Kanbei, asking 'Who will play him?' even before the show started. For this production, we asked Yuki Kura. He is a wonderful actor who can portray a wide range of roles and express emotions with fine tuning. Please look forward to the portrayal of Kanbei that is unique to 'Toyotomi Brothers!' and the strategist showdown between him and Masaki Suda, played by the previously announced Suda Masaki."
"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 is played by Nakano Taiga, and Hideyoshi is played by Ikematsu Sosuke. The script is written by Yatsushi Hiroyuki, known for "Hanzawa Naoki" (TBS) and the Asadora drama "Ochoyan."
The roles of the seven new cast members are as follows:
◇Kuroda Kanbei (Yuki Kura)
He was a military strategist who served Hideyoshi. He served the Kodera family in Harima (western Hyogo Prefecture), the front line of the power struggle between the Oda and Mori clans. However, when Hideyoshi was entrusted with the conquest of Harima, he took the initiative to join Hideyoshi's forces. He developed a strong rivalry with Takenaka Hanbei.
◇ Nobutada Oda (Yuta Koseki)
Nobunaga's eldest son. He was handed over as head of the family by Nobunaga and ruled Mino and Owari. He was killed along with his father during the Honnoji Incident.
◇ Nobutaka Oda (played by Kosei Yuki)
Nobunaga's third son. Together with his older brother Nobutada, who inherited the family headship, he became a driving force behind Nobunaga's unification of the country. He learned of the Honnoji Incident while on an expedition to Shikoku on his father's orders.
◇Kato Kiyomasa (Gen Ito)
He served Hideyoshi as a close attendant from a young age. He achieved many military feats and is known as one of the "Seven Spears of Shizugatake" for his achievements in the Battle of Shizugatake, where Hideyoshi clashed with Shibata Katsuie.
◇Masanori Fukushima (Yuki Matsuzaki)
Like Kato Kiyomasa, he was a close vassal of Hideyoshi and was one of the "Seven Spears of Shizugatake," who are said to have achieved the greatest military feat in the Battle of Shizugatake.
◇ Tsuneoki Ikeda (Shinta Horii)
He served Nobunaga as a page and later became his chief retainer. After the Honnoji Incident, he sided with Hideyoshi at the Kiyosu Conference.
◇ Kazumasu Takigawa (Kenta Izuka)
A senior retainer of the Oda clan. After the downfall of the Takeda clan in Kai, he was entrusted with managing the eastern provinces. After the Honnoji Incident, he parted ways with Hideyoshi and sided with Shibata Katsuie.
