The story of how Japan and South Korea ended up joint-hosting the 2002 World Cup has been made into a TV docu-drama. It is scheduled to air on Fuji TV in October and will star popular actor Itoh Hideaki (29) as a member of the Japanese bid committee. The successful bid, decided in 1996, was the culmination of ten years of work that included the formation of the professional J-League. The drama will include actual footage of games and other significant events.
• The pre-production press conference for next sumer’s big movie was held on Tuesday. “Bokoku no Aegis” based on a best-selling novel of the same name, is the story of terrorists taking on the crew of one of the Japan maritime Agency’s Aegis destroyers. It will star four accomplished actors, all Japan Academy Award winners: Sanada Hiroyuki (43), Nakai Kiichi (42), Sato Koichi (43) and Terao Akira (57).