Kimura Takuya’s Role in ‘Believe’ Reflects Star Status Despite Typecasting Criticism

When a drama role is decided, there’s speculation about ratings even before it airs, along with various criticisms, some even without seeing the drama. After it airs, not only the content but also the lead actor’s performance gets scrutinized, and this seems to happen especially with certain individuals, doesn’t it?

Yes, we’re talking about Kimutaku, also known as Kimura Takuya. 

When it comes to Kimura Takuya, his lead roles in dramas used to consistently achieve high ratings, earning him the reputation of a superstar. However, recently, he hasn’t maintained the same level of momentum and often finds himself trailing behind other dramas.

Recently, his 26th consecutive lead role drama, “Believe – Kimi ni Kakeru Hashi,” aired its final episode.

Before the broadcast began, there were concerns online, including critiques about inaccuracies in the protagonist’s occupational setting. However, after the series ended, the ratings weren’t as bad as feared. Still, it didn’t top the ratings for dramas airing in the April season, settling for second place, which triggered the expected “Kimutaku scrutiny articles.”

 

In these post-drama reviews, a common critique is that no matter what role he plays, Kimura Takuya always seems to be perceived as “Kimura Takuya” rather than fully embodying his characters. This perception has led to his dramas being humorously referred to as “occupational cosplay dramas,” reflecting on his portrayal of various professions. 

On January 2, 2019, Kimura appeared on the TBS program “Monitoring,” where he was subjected to a hidden camera prank.

“Because everything I do gets criticized in various ways. Even I get criticized. No matter what I do, they say it’s just ‘Kimutaku’.”

He is revealing his own struggles.

Recently, it seems he’s been trying to shake off the “Kimutaku” image by taking on roles with distinctive traits, but he still comes across as unmistakably Kimura Takuya.

This time, he played a role he had never portrayed before: a chief engineer in a major construction company. Lately, he’s been challenging roles that involve overcoming setbacks rather than playing the admired hero. In this latest role, despite suffering from an injury, he portrays the least glamorous character, a fugitive enduring pain while living on the run. 

“It’s seen by some industry insiders as a comeback story from rock bottom, where Kimura wants to pave the way for new horizons.”

Some industry insiders feel this way, but is it really the case?

In Hollywood action movies, it’s common to see former special forces members or CIA agents living a miserable life, confronting villains, initially getting beaten up but ultimately defeating everyone. It’s not that different from that scenario. They unmistakably look like superheroes.

Similarly, in this case, the protagonist, who is imprisoned, gets into a scuffle with other inmates and ends up defeating them all. Maybe he’s a salaryman with martial arts experience, but he still transforms into a cool hero.

“Kimutaku no matter what role he plays and always a hero no matter the situation are not solely Kimura-san’s responsibility. When a star is cast as the lead, it’s unavoidable and often a deliberate choice by the production side.”

That’s according to a veteran movie journalist.

Before, I

“It would be interesting if Mr. Kimura also played roles like villains, disliked characters, or bad guys just like Hollywood stars.”

And when I made that statement, fans

 “It’s fine for other actors to do that. Mr. Kimura should stick to playing cool roles.”

I have received many admonishing comments like that. Many fans don’t want to see Mr. Kimura in unflattering roles.

On the contrary, the production side might think that by casting him in roles that fans desire, the drama could achieve high viewership ratings.

“The drama production side naturally keeps viewership ratings in mind, always brainstorming how to create a drama that can earn high ratings. However, by making a drama with Kimura-san, who has such a large fan base, as the lead, they can expect to achieve substantial, if not the highest, ratings.

Therefore, for the production side, featuring Kimura-san as the main character is relatively easy. To put it more bluntly, fans want to see ‘Kimura Takuya’, and they’re satisfied as long as it’s ‘Kimutaku’, regardless of the role. Antagonists probably won’t watch his dramas anyway, so it’s okay to ignore them.” (drama production company) producer.

If many fans want to watch a drama for that reason, it’s natural for the production side, which seeks high viewership, to cater to those desires. In addition, when discussing Kimura’s acting skills and so on

“Those who were considered major stars in the Showa era, especially male stars, weren’t necessarily known for their acting skills. Among the big stars, there were also people similar to Kimura-san who were said to be ‘XXXXX no matter what role they played.’

But everyone went to the movies to see them. That’s what a star is.” (film journalist mentioned earlier)

And claiming that great acting ability is essential for a big star is nonsense.

Whether it’s good or bad, being able to attract attention from many people, generate numbers, and bring in money are all signs of a big star. In that sense, Kimura is definitely one of them.