Masahiro Nakai Isolating at Home and Facing Showbiz Expulsion

The brand of someone who should not be on TV

The illustrious career of being the leader of SMAP was shattered in an instant.

Talent Masahiro Nakai (52) became embroiled in a major scandal that engulfed the entire television industry due to a women’s issue. In June of the year before last, he faced serious trouble with a woman named X, and through his representative, it was reported that he paid a large settlement of around 90 million yen.

“Women’s Seven” reported the issue in late December of last year. At that time, Nakai was said to be in shock but responded to concerned entertainment industry contacts with:

“I’ll do my best again.”

It is said that he responded with.

The situation worsened dramatically after the new year. Two companies canceled their commercials, and six regular TV and radio programs were replaced or suspended. The most damaging blow was when Nakai’s scenes were completely cut from the Nippon TV program “The! World’s Unbelievable News,” which was a fatal blow to his career as a talent.

“It’s still somewhat of a relief if they just replace the program or suspend the broadcast. To have your scenes cut from already recorded footage is like being branded with the mark of someone who should not be on TV” (TV station insider).

Around this time, Nakai began complaining about his mental health and started hinting at retirement to those around him.

However, in the apology statement released on January 9, Nakai emphasized that he had reached a settlement with X and expressed his intention to continue his entertainment activities without disruption:

“I will be able to continue my activities without any problems.”

This statement, contrary to the idea of retirement, only added fuel to the fire, with some speculating that it was a strategy to avoid breach of contract penalties. Regardless, his attempt to quell the situation failed, and he found himself in an even deeper crisis.