Nanaka Yano appears in the TV Tokyo drama series "The Revenge of the Cheated-on: The Wives Who Formed an Alliance" (Wednesdays at 1 AM), which stars Ayame Mizusaki, Mariko Shinoda, and Nako Yabuki in triple lead roles. She plays Madoka Sekine, the mistress of Yoshitaka (Takashi Nikaido), the husband of one of the main characters, Natsuko Kishimoto (Takashi Nikaido). She appears in the drama from the first episode and even takes on a daring bed scene. Yano recalls watching the broadcast in real time and said, "I cried my eyes out."
◇Initially, she couldn't shake off her embarrassment? The 20-year-old's "challenge"
The drama is a scathing yet exhilarating "revenge drama about infidelity" in which three "cheated wives" plot revenge against their cheating husbands. Mizusaki plays Kishimoto Natsuko, who decides to take revenge after witnessing her emotionally abusive husband's infidelity; Shinoda plays Endo Yoshino, who is furious about her husband's infidelity and proposes a "revenge alliance"; and Yabuki plays Saotome Reina, who achieved her dream of marrying into wealth, only to discover that her husband is having affairs with multiple women.
Yano, who plays Madoka, is a 20-year-old from Kanagawa Prefecture, born on October 14, 2005. She has made a name for herself in magazine gravure shoots, leveraging her adorable looks and excellent figure. Her improvisational skit "Super Annoying Woman" on former TV Tokyo producer Nobuyuki Sakuma 'Nobuyuki Sakuma YouTube channel, "NOBROCK TV," has also garnered significant attention.
In "The Revenge of the Betrayed," Ms. Yano plays a woman having an affair and even performs a daring bed scene, but what did she actually think of the broadcast?
"On the day the first episode aired, I really wanted to watch it live, so I was glued to the TV. But the tension and fear of realizing that this was being broadcast nationwide, and that everyone was watching without knowing what the scene would be like, made me burst into tears the moment I appeared on screen. I was still sobbing when the broadcast ended, but afterwards I immediately searched online and saw what the fans were saying, and they were all such warm comments like, 'We could see Nanaka's determination,' 'I was surprised she was more mature than I thought,' and 'I'm a little jealous,' which I was very grateful for."
Yano's nervousness and fear were relieved by the positive feedback she received from those around her, such as her acting teacher telling her, "It's really amazing that you were able to do that much at the age of 20." However, she admitted that she couldn't shake off her embarrassment at first during the actual filming.
"When I was cast as Madoka, I thought, 'I'm gonna do it!' But when I actually got to the set, I realized I had to be practically naked from the waist up, so I was really embarrassed. It was an intimacy scene, so the number of people on set was kept to a minimum. Even so, it's not often that you show your body to people you've just met, even in gravure modeling, so I felt embarrassed and muttered to myself, 'I'm so embarrassed,' when the stylist encouraged me by saying, 'It's okay. You're an actress,' and at that moment, my embarrassment disappeared, and I was able to perform properly."
◇I am also a person who is very results-oriented.
In the drama, from the second episode onwards, Madoka's true nature is revealed with each passing episode. According to Yano, Madoka's strong will and love for men, which she says can only be satisfied by taking what belongs to others, become too much for Yoshitaka to handle. In the fourth episode, perhaps due to her frustration at things not going her way, she throws a huge tantrum, even breaking up with Yoshitaka.
Yano said that there were parts of Madoka that he could relate to.
"I think Madoka probably doesn't like herself. That's why she wants to believe in herself by being acknowledged by others, or by Yoshitaka telling her she's prettier and cuter than his wife. I could relate to that strong need for validation. I'm not particularly confident in myself either, and I'm the type of person who feels secure when people tell me I'm cute or that they like me. I also think Madoka is a results-oriented woman. She's able to act on her affair with Yoshitaka because there's a result to be had. I'm also a very results-oriented person, so no matter how difficult or unpleasant things get, if the result is good, it's all that matters. I believe that what's put out into the world is everything, so I thought we might be a little similar in that we both act in pursuit of results."
In terms of romance, Yano says, "I'm not really interested in what other people have, so in that respect I'm the complete opposite of Madoka." However, through this work, which deals with themes of "adultery" and "revenge," she also felt the weakness and fragility of human beings, realizing "how easily people can break down."
A major highlight of the drama will be how Yano portrays Madoka's "descent into madness" as she finally becomes the target of the protagonists' revenge.
"The way Madoka is subjected to revenge is mentally very difficult. It was a scene that I couldn't have performed without breaking out of a shell within myself, and the transformation of Madoka, or rather, the way her personality completely changes, was something I created with the support of everyone, so I really hope you will watch it." (Mutou Kishibe/MANTANWEB)
