The curtain falls on six and a half years! Final episode of the popular show “Ariyoshi’s Wall” filmed on location—“Popular comedians gather in Asakusa”

Production Budget Cuts

“Daah~~ Haah~~”

The banquet hall of a city hotel in Nishi-Asakusa, Tokyo, was filled with roars of laughter. The scene was a location shoot for “Ariyoshi no Kabe” (Nippon TV), which aired its final regular episode on September 30.Originally launched as an irregular special, the show moved to the prime-time slot in April 2020 and was promoted to a regular series. Over the course of six and a half years, it has launched the careers of numerous popular comedians.

“A total of 65 regulars—known as the ‘Wall Comedians’—gathered for the final episode’s taping. After the taping, host Hiroyuki Ariyoshi (52) gave a speech about the show’s history and the challenges they’d faced, and there was even a moment when assistant host Shiori Sato (36) struggled to hold back her tears.“Still, since it has been decided that the show will continue as a special program, the event wrapped up in a lighthearted atmosphere, with comedians teased by Ariyoshi even calling out playful jibes at him,” said a source from the production company.

Shortly after 8:00 p.m., the comedians who had finished filming began emerging from the hotel one after another.

Shohei Nagata (46) of “Chocolate Planet”—the group behind popular characters such as “TT Brothers” and “Mr. Parka Jr.”—left the venue with his close friend and ally, Kei Mukai (40) of “Panther,” with whom he shares a deep personal bond.

Takeshi Yasumura (44), who has appeared on the show since its very first special episode and is known for his cheerful personality, was chatting with Takashi Watanabe (48) of “Nishikigoi” and Otake (43) of “Jungle Pocket” while waiting for a taxi.The popular comedians who had gathered in Asakusa exchanged words, seemingly congratulating each other on their efforts right up until the very end, before boarding their respective shuttle vehicles—.

The average household viewership rating for “Ariyoshi’s Wall” had been hovering between 5 and 6 percent. A production company official mentioned earlier revealed, “Those numbers were by no means close to the cancellation threshold,” but what lay behind Nippon TV’s decision to end the show? The biggest factor was the issue of production costs.

“Between 10 and 30 comedy acts appear each week. Mid-level comedians earn around 100,000 to 300,000 yen, but top-tier stars command at least 500,000 yen. Ariyoshi’s fee is likely over 1 million yen, so appearance fees alone amount to 5 to 6 million yen.

Since we had to rent out commercial facilities for every location shoot—on top of security costs, transportation expenses, and staff salaries—production costs sometimes exceeded 20 million yen. Amid efforts to cut costs, production expenses on par with those of a special program could no longer be overlooked,” said a Nippon TV staff member.

The popular show has reached a turning point.

The October 2 issue of *FRIDAY* (October 16 edition) and the paid version, *FRIDAY GOLD*, provide detailed coverage of the “other reason” behind the show’s cancellation.

Click here to view the full details and multiple photos ↓

From the October 16, 2026 issue of *FRIDAY*