<figure id="attachment_441435" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-441435" style="width: 525px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="75fb8e34"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/10/f5d86fc8bedf751f4722e064b2788934.jpeg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-441435" class="wp-caption-text">Downtown&#8221; Hitoshi Matsumoto is set to return to the stage on November 1. &#8230;&#8230;</figcaption></figure>
<h2><span class="strongInContent"> The &#8220;contents&#8221; of the big project that will be the company&#8217;s fortune.</span></h2>
<p> Downtown&#8217;s Hitoshi Matsumoto (62) and Masanori Hamada (62) will finally begin distributing their online distribution service, &#8220;DOWNTOWN+,&#8221; on November 1.</p>
<p> Downtown Plus,&#8221; which can be viewed on a smartphone, is available by subscription for 1,100 yen per month or 11,000 yen per year. Contents are divided into three categories: &#8220;Downtown,&#8221; &#8220;Hitoshi Matsumoto,&#8221; and &#8220;Masatoshi Hamada.&#8221; Matsumoto&#8217;s contents will include comedians&#8217; participation in comedy, talk shows with guests, and other programs.</p>
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<p> Production costs and other expenses will be funded by Yoshimoto&#8217;s content fund, which has received investment from domestic and foreign companies. Downtown will lead the way, but in the future, Yoshimoto will produce documentaries and audition programs featuring Yoshimoto comedians such as Akashiya Sanma, Nakagawa Family, Chidori, Kamaitachi, Magical Lovely, Chocolate Planet, Naomi Watanabe, SHIMOFURI MYOJO, and sports athletes.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Yoshimoto is thinking about exporting Japanese comedy overseas. Yoshimoto is thinking of exporting Japanese comedy overseas. This is a big project that will be the company&#8217;s destiny,&#8221; said a comedy writer.</span></p>
<p> says a comedy writer. Expectations are high, as top-notch production staff from the industry are said to be joining the project one after another.</p>
<p> On the other hand, there are some in the TV industry who are wary of the project.</p>
<p> It is no exaggeration to say that not a day goes by without seeing a comedian on TV these days, especially those from Yoshimoto. The relatively inexpensive fee is a major factor, but the way comedians appear on TV is likely to change in the future.</p>
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<p><span class="strongInContent"> For example, why should a comedian do something for free on TV when he or she can make money on his or her own platform? For example, why do you need to do something for free on TV if you can make money from it on your own platform? People who want to watch it will have to pay to watch it, just like in the U.S. and Europe.</span></p>
<p> Matsumoto&#8217;s focus is also tremendous. During his hiatus, he watched not only comedy shows but also popular dramas, movies, and animations at home to increase his &#8220;drawer&#8221; of laughs. He also played a central role in the planning and conception of Downtown Plus, and his originality and creativity sometimes left the staff in stitches.</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" First of all, how did Matsumoto come to appear as a stand-up comedian?"></div>
<h2><span class="strongInContent">In an interview, he said, &#8220;I want to do it with Hamada.&#8221;</span></h2>
<p> It was around June that he made the offer to his old comedian friend to appear on the show. A person involved in the comedy industry who knows the situation said, &#8220;We made the offer, but Matsumoto-san changed his mind later.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> A comedian who knows the situation said, &#8220;We made the offer, but Matsumoto-san changed his mind later and we had to break it off. He is a stoic when it comes to laughter. He went through a lot of trial and error.</span></p>
<p> Matsumoto told an entertainment journalist in December last year.</p>
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<p> Matsumoto first confessed his ideas about the distribution program in an interview with entertainment reporter Masao Nakanishi in December of last year. At that time, the first time, he said</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> &#8220;I want to do it with Hamada.</span></p>
<p> Hamada. However, on November 1, he plans to appear alone in the &#8220;Hitoshi Matsumoto&#8221; category.</p>
<p> What fans want to see is Downtown with Matsumoto and Hamada side by side. Matsumoto was also hoping for an early realization, but according to the aforementioned source</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> &#8220;There was an opinion that it would be better to make it a &#8216;later event&#8217; to prevent members from leaving the group.</span></p>
<p> The source said.</p>
<p> It is also reported that Hamada said he wanted to wait.</p>
<p> Matsumoto&#8217;s activities have been suspended since January 2012 due to a report in the &#8220;Weekly Bunshun&#8221; magazine that he had a trouble with a woman. He had expressed his intention to concentrate on the trial with Bunshun, but both parties agreed to end the trial in November of last year.</p>
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<p><span class="strongInContent"> Downtown Plus is a place for Mr. Matsumoto to make a comeback. During Mr. Matsumoto&#8217;s absence, his partner, Mr. Hamada, took some time off to take care of his health in the middle of the show, but he continued to do his TV work as usual. Because of the subtle difference in their positions, even if they were in Downtown for the first time, it would be a funny thing to do to the other programs. From Mr. Hamada&#8217;s point of view, I guess he is saying, &#8216;I&#8217;m not back.</span></p>
<p> What will Matsumoto say in his first speech? All eyes will be on Matsumoto.</p>


 Yasuko Sakaguchi

 Downtown's Hitoshi Matsumoto, who has disappeared from the public eye due to trouble with a woman, will return on November 1 with the online streaming service "Downtown Plus. However, his partner will be there. ......

Why Hitoshi Matsumoto is likely to appear alone in the first episode of “Downtown Plus,” despite his desire to work with Hamada.

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