Morning Drama, “Kamen Rider” and “Godzilla” also …… “What’s in the voice” whispered to Minami Hamabe who worked too hard in ’23.

Actress Minami Hamabe (23) was selected as the “Person of the Year” at the “2023 36th Shogakukan DIME Trend Awards” and delivered a message via VTR at the award ceremony held in Tokyo on December 13. Hamabe looked back on “2023 as an intense year for me that I will never forget no matter how much time passes,” and true to her words, it was a very busy year for her.

In the first half of this year, she played the highly acclaimed role of Jueko Nishimura, the wife of actor Ryunosuke Kamiki (30)’s character Mantaro Makino, in the NHK television series “Ranman.

Other than that, this year Hamabe also played the voice of the main character in the animated film “Gold Country, Water Country,” which was released on January 27. She also appeared in “Shin Kamen Rider” (released on March 18) as the heroine Ruriko Midorikawa, and “Godzilla-1.0,” starring Kamiki, with whom she co-starred in “Ranman,” and Hamabe as the heroine, was released on November 3. In addition, promotion of “Silent Love” starring Ryosuke Yamada (30) of “Hey! Say! JUMP”, which is scheduled to be released on January 26 next year, has already begun.

And because of his good performance in “Ranman” and other positive reviews, he will host the 74th NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen (Red and White Singing Contest) on New Year’s Eve, along with TV personality Hiroyuki Ariyoshi (49), actress Kanna Hashimoto (24), and NHK announcer Kozo Takase (47).

I think a year has flown by in the blink of an eye while I’ve been filming and promoting my work.” Already, she has surpassed Masami Nagasawa (36), her senior at the same agency, Toho Entertainment, in terms of the amount of work she has done.

Sisters Mone Kamishiraishi (25) and Moka (23), who are of the same age, are also active at the same agency, so they must be inspiring each other. However, Hamabe’s momentum is even stronger than the two sisters, and a movie starring her has already been announced for release next year.

Hamabe will star in the movie “Moshi Moshi Tokugawa Ieyasu ga Prime Minister ni naratta Naratta” (to be released on July 26 next year, directed by Hideki Takeuchi), which is based on Akito Manabe’s popular novel of the same title (published by Sanmark Publishing), which sold 110,000 copies, an exceptional figure for a business novel.

In the COVID-19 crisis of 2008, a cluster erupts at the prime minister’s office and the prime minister dies suddenly. Faced with an unprecedented crisis, the government, as a last resort, uses AI to resurrect great historical figures, and the “Great Person Jars,” an all-star team of great persons, form the strongest cabinet to save Japan from its predicament, in a comedic depiction.

Hamabe plays the role of a rookie reporter in the political department of a TV station. It has already been announced that Mansai Nomura (57), a Kyogen actor, will play Ieyasu Tokugawa, the Prime Minister, and Eiji Akachu (29), an actor, will play Ryoma Sakamoto, the Chief Cabinet Secretary.

Director Takeuchi, who has directed two hit films in the “Tonde Saitama” series, will also play the roles of Nobunaga Oda, Hideyoshi Toyotomi, Murasaki Shikibu, Prince Shotoku, Masako Hojo, Yoshimune Tokugawa, Tsunayoshi Tokugawa, and Yoshimitsu Ashikaga, all of whom are members of the upcoming cabinet.

The original story was set up with Ieyasu as the main character and a female announcer who was trying to solve the mystery of his cabinet, but the setting was changed to a rookie reporter, and Hamabe was chosen to play that role in the lead role. The distributor Toho is putting a lot of effort into this film, and there are high expectations for Hamabe,” said a source in the film industry.

Hamabe entered the entertainment industry in January 2011, when she was 11 years old, after winning the “New Generation Award” in the “Toho Cinderella Audition. After moving to Tokyo from her hometown of Ishikawa, she lived in the home of her male manager for a while and was carefully nurtured by the agency.’ In 2005, she made her breakthrough with the hit movie “Kimi no Pancreas wo Tabetai,” a live-action adaptation of a popular novel, in which she starred alongside actor Takumi Kitamura (26). After that, offers to play the lead or heroine in film productions and commercials began pouring in one after another.

Then, in September 2009, “Shukan Bunshun” (Bungeishunju) reported that she was dating Ryuga (26) of the male-female pop duo “Maruri and Ryuga. Both Ryuga and Maruri are close friends, and there is no evidence of a relationship,” their offices told the magazine, but they admitted to going back and forth to each other’s apartments. However, it is believed that they broke up after that.

There have been no rumors of any flirtation at all since then, and Hamabe has been working so hard that it seems as if she is overworked. Last fall, Gershey, 52, who is currently on trial for multiple charges, revealed a scandal before his breakup, but it did not spread much because it was revealed in an online salon for paying members.

Perhaps Hamabe herself has been trying too hard to get rid of the negative image of the dating reports and revelations. It is time to worry about her health. I hope she will get through the live Kohaku performance on New Year’s Eve and rest for a while,” said a TV station official.

Hamabe is attracting attention for her hosting performance on New Year’s Eve. She will be in the spotlight until the very end of the year, but we hope she will be careful not to overwork herself.

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