Double Take Moment: Mukai Osamu & Kuninaka Ryoko’s Afternoon Shopping Stuns Shoppers

A young housewife with a child looked at her twice.

“His face is so small!”

After a housewife who happened to be there did a double take, she couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration. The tall man she was staring at, wearing a knit cap and mask, entered a stationery store with a woman who appeared to be his wife.

On a chilly afternoon in January, the tall man with a notably small face entered the store with the woman who was likely his wife.

The couple, known for being inseparable, were Mukai Osamu (43) and Kuninaka Ryoko (45). Inside the store, Kuninaka led the way while Mukai quietly followed.

Mukai and Kuninaka, who are well-known for being a happy couple, began dating after co-starring in the 2012 drama Hungry! (Fuji TV). They nurtured their love amidst their busy schedules and got married in December 2014. Their marriage, as a couple of leading actors, was a huge topic at the time.

Mukai, who celebrated his 43rd birthday on the 7th of this month, is entering his prime as an actor. In last year’s autumn drama Lion’s Hideaway (TBS), he portrayed a “DV husband,” a role contrasting his refreshing image. His stunning looks, which have kept him in the top five of the “Desired Faces” ranking for seven consecutive years, are still going strong as he continues his path as a handsome older man (ikeoji). As he walked through the stationery store, his tall, slim, and well-proportioned frame, along with his big, sparkling eyes, made him stand out.

On the other hand, Kuninaka rose to fame as the heroine Eri in the 2001 morning drama Churasan. The drama continues to be beloved by viewers, having even been re-broadcast in April last year. Now the mother of two elementary school children, her presence on-screen remains powerful. She is still active as an actress, starring in dramas and films.

Since it was a weekday afternoon, their children were in class. Mukai and Kuninaka were enjoying a shopping outing as a couple. Perhaps they couldn’t find the items their children had asked for, as the two exchanged a few words after a brief gaze at the storefront and then left the stationery store.

“Our family is one team.”

Mukai will be leaving his agency, Hori Agency, in March to mark his 20th debut anniversary and has announced the establishment of his own personal agency to start anew.

“It’s a blow for the Hori Agency to lose an actor capable of headlining as Mukai. There were rumors circulating that, around the same time, Kuninaka might also be leaving Rising Production, the agency she belongs to, which has left some people nervous. Recently, Higa Manami, who is also from Okinawa like Kunichika, has left her agency,” said an executive from an entertainment company.

Kuninaka once mentioned in an interview that, “Our family is one team.” Perhaps one day, she and her beloved husband, Mukai, may team up in their careers as well.