A couple of milestones for two of Japan’s most popular and enduring male stars. Singer/actor Fukuyama Masaharu (39, profile) appeared yesterday at a post-production event for the big screen adaptation of last year’s successful Fuji TV drama series “Galileo.” The movie role is Fukuyama’s first in 20 years and his first ever lead. He reprises the role of physics genius Yukawa Manabu, who teams up with a detective (Shibasaki Kou, 27) to tackle puzzling crimes. The Fuji drama was based on a series of short stories by Higashino Keigo, while the movie is based on his Naoki Prize-winning novelization.
Meanwhile SMAP member Kimura Takuya (35, profile) has topped one ranking of Japan’s most popular men for a remarkable 15th year in a row. The annual ranking is done by women’s magazine “anan” and published in a special issue. In addition to being the Most Popular Man, “Kimutaku” was top once again in four other categories: Best Boyfriend (he’s married), Sexiest Man, Sharpest Dresser, and Man I’d Most Like to Sleep With. With SMAP about to release a new album and start a concert tour at Tokyo Dome tomorrow, there seems to be no limit to Kimutaku’s popularity.