24-Hour Television Returns After 21 Years with No Former Johnny’s Talent and Masaki Aiba Faces Ratings Crisis

“In the past, talents who took on the main roles would visit local areas for charity project shoots several months before the broadcast and appear on NTV’s variety shows for promotional purposes, making them crucial assets for ’24-Hour Television.’ Among them, STARTO talents, who have significant influence on young people and strong presence on social media, provided immense advertising benefits.

Their presence had always ensured high fan interest even before the broadcast. However, this year, with the absence of the program’s ‘face,’ there is a noticeable lack of excitement.”

In addition to the decreased promotional effect, there are other concerns. ’24-Hour Television’ has traditionally aired a special drama around 9 PM on Saturday nights, a time when viewership tends to increase. The absence of former Johnny’s talents is also impacting this segment.

“This special drama has often featured former Johnny’s talents in the lead roles, from Kazuya Kamenashi (38) of ‘KAT-TUN’ in 2006 to Shunsuke Michieda (22) of ‘Naniwa Danshi’ in 2023. Before and after the broadcast, ’24-Hour Television’ content would trend on X (formerly Twitter), increasing interest in the program. This year, the drama ‘Kinchou no Sumichan: The Woman Who Loved Kinichi Hagimoto,’ starring Atsushi Ito (40) and modeled after Kinichi Hagimoto (83), will air. Given that former Johnny’s talents are not in the main roles for the first time in 21 years, the ratings might be challenging.

Adding to the difficulties, there has been a controversy involving Yasuko (25) and Fuwa-chan (30) related to ‘SNS Defamation,’ which led to last-minute revisions of planned segments. Additionally, the charity marathon involving Yasuko is being reconsidered due to the approach of Typhoon No. 10, leading to further complications. Among those involved, there is a pessimistic view that a drop in ratings this year may be unavoidable” (entertainment industry insider).

With problems arising even before the broadcast, ’24-Hour Television’ faces a tough challenge. Whether NTV can overcome these headwinds and prove its worth as a flagship special remains to be seen.