Takuya Kimura: Why Takuya Kimura’s Nobunaga Festival is a Success, but He Doesn’t Talk about “Mr. Takizawa & Kimpuri”?
The power of Kimura Takuya Kimura was on full display at the Nobunaga Festival.
On November 6, the “Lord Nobunaga Riding Samurai Parade,” in which former SMAP member Takuya Kimura, dressed as Nobunaga Oda, paraded on horseback through the center of Gifu City, was held.
According to the city, the number of spectators increased by 80% from the previous event held in 2007 to 460,000, with 960,000 people applying for the lottery for a 15,000-seat viewing area, a multiple of 64! The population of Gifu City is approximately 400,000, and the number of applicants was surprisingly more than double that.
Kimura will be starring in the movie “The LEGEND & BUTTERFLY,” which will be released in January next year. Butterfly, “which will be released in January next year. When Kimura appeared on horseback, the crowd along the route cheered loudly. Hideaki Ito, a native of Gifu City who also stars in the film, was standing next to Kimura and rolled his eyes at the enthusiasm.”
The event was covered extensively on the Internet news, making it one of the biggest local events in recent years. Only media outlets with branches in Gifu covered the event. Security was tightened due to the accident that occurred in Itaewon, South Korea, on the 29th of last month, but even so, the site was overflowing with people,” said a reporter from a local newspaper.
Unlike a certain actress who became the talk of the town with a similar procession, Kimura was free to take pictures with her smartphone, and many of his photos were posted on social networking sites, creating quite a stir.
On the 1st of this month, Hideaki Takizawa, a.k.a. “Tackey,” left Johnny’s office, and on the 4th, the most popular group in Johnny’s, King&Santa, joined the group. King & Prince” and “Prince Prince” will leave the group in May next year. It has just been announced.
Some have voiced concerns about the future of Johnny’s, but judging by Kimura’s ability to attract a huge number of fans, it seems that these fears are unfounded.
The young members of “Kimpuri,” “Snow Man,” “SixTONES,” and others are all performing at this year’s event. “There is certainly a lot of momentum among the younger groups, such as Kyunpuri, Snow Man, and SixTONES, but they were the core of the national group, SMAP. But the popularity of Kimura, who was at the center of the national group SMAP, was on a different level. Just one person’s participation in the “Nobunaga Festival” drew 960,000 applicants from within and outside of the prefecture. I think Kimura is the only person in the entertainment industry who has such explosive popularity.
In addition to the aforementioned movie, Kimura is scheduled to star in a Fuji Television drama “Kyobo” next year. According to a person involved in the drama who knows Kimura
Kimura’s workplaces are known to be a great learning experience not only for his co-stars, but also for young ADs and directors. Kimura’s approach to his work and his consideration for the staff…everyone who has worked with him even once respects him.
He has released solo albums as a singer, but his main focus is acting. He would like to continue to play challenging roles, both good and bad.
He is the only one of the SMAP members to remain in Japan.
He is the only member of SMAP who remained with Johnny’s. With a number of junior members making their debuts, he has found himself in the position of a leading figure. A person familiar with the inner workings of Johnny’s said, “His eldest son, Match (Kondo), is the only one who has remained with the group.
“Ever since his eldest son Match (Masahiko Kondo) was forced out of the office due to a scandal last spring, Noriyuki Higashiyama and Kimutaku have been treated differently by Johnny’s. Naturally, we heard about Takizawa-san and Kimpaku before they opened up to the media. However, unlike Higashiyama-san, who has a job as an information program MC, Kimura-san, who is active as an actor, is not going to make any of his thoughts public about this matter.”
While the turmoil at Johnny’s continues, it seems that Kimura will continue to pursue his acting career with a calm and composed demeanor.
PHOTO: Ippei Hara