佐藤 健 & 中村 倫也

It’s been 7 years since the two of you co-starred. Satoh: I thought, “Finally!” In the past, when we co-starred in a drama, I was told that there are actors of the same generation who are this good. Nakamura: Again, again. Satoh: No, really. Ever since then, I’ve been wanting to work with him again, but I didn’t have the chance. Really, really (laughs). He’s a very good actor, so he’s been busy in various areas. And this time, it’s finally come true. It’s been seven years since then, and I’m happy to finally be able to work with him. Nakamura: I’m also happy. This time, Masato has mostly scenes with Suzume and Ritsu. There are things that can go wrong, so I have to be careful not to be someone I know when I play. Satoh: Well, I see.

Have you met in private? Satoh & Nakamura: No, I don’t. Satoh: But I saw you a long time ago at a Chinese restaurant around Roppongi. I used to go there with my friends. Nakamura: What? I wish you would have talked to me. Satoh: No, I probably said something like “Oh!” Nakamura: Is that so? Was it after we met in the drama where we co-starred? Satoh: After we met. I was 22 or 23 years old, so about 6 years ago. (Cream soda is brought). Ugh? I didn’t drink this even in the play (laughs). Nakamura: Hohoho!

Speaking of cream soda, members of the assembly often ate okonomiyaki at the café “Tomoshibi.” Satoh: I’m confident that I ate the most during the recording. It looked like I was eating, but I actually didn’t eat much (laughs). Nakamura: Eating makes it difficult to talk. Satoh: Yes. Yuma Yamoto-san is said to not be good at okonomiyaki (laughs).

Previously, Nakamura-san said that his relationship with Satoh-san was the relationship Ritsu and Masato. Nakamura: I’m always teasing and joking around, and Takeru-san, who seems cool at first glance, knocks me down and yells at me. Satoh: No, no, no. Nakamura: You can do anything, right? Satoh: Absolutely not. Satoh: They taught me how to play piano between shoots. Satoh: There’s also the fact that Eriko Kitagawa-san gave us the address. The relationship between Suzume and Ritsu is somewhat similar to the relationship between Mei Nagano and me. That’s why, I’m playing a role, but I think I’m showing a lot of my humanity. Nakamura: Yeah. It feels like this. But Suzuai and Ritsu have been together since they were born, and even during filming, they have been together since the first Gifu arc. I entered from the Tokyo arc, but the combination of the two has already been completed. There was a kind of loneliness that entered there, so I thought, “I can use this feeling.” There was Masato’s line, “You can’t get someone who likes Ritsu.”

Speaking of Ritsu and Masato in the Tokyo arc, which scene left an impression on you? Nakamura: The scene in Masato’s room was fun. Satoh: Of course, it’s fun, but it’s a series of one-shots, so there’s a sense of tension. Nakamura: Four pages of one-shots were also quite common. Satoh: Yes, but I don’t want to make mistakes. Nakamura: It’s an unspoken understanding that we can do things freely and pick up when something goes wrong. It was two people who were doing it with feeling like how to enjoy it. I am proud that we are the best of “Hanbun Aoi”. Satoh: I’m happy (laughs). I thought it would never work. Even if I talk about it, I feel like I must make it interesting in the play. I think it’s my pride as an actor.

Didn’t you talk about things like “Let’s do this here” in advance? Satoh: Basically, we didn’t. Nakamura: Yeah, you don’t talk too much before your turn, including the “Well”, “Ah” grooves in between, I wonder if there’s a part where we made it with a live feeling that only the two of us can do. Satoh: Really? Nakamura: I was just playing around with the cut ends of the lines (laughs). Satoh: You sang it. Even though it was written, they just sent me the original song, and no one told me how to sing it. Nakamura: It’s a morning drama (laughs). Satoh: That’s right. It’s no good just waiting for directions. Nakamura: He was really reliable. Takeru moved smoothly without breaking the atmosphere of the place and made the scene better. When I saw something like this, I thought, “Oh, it’s okay for Masato to drop Suzuai and move to Jichijoji.” Satoh: That’s what I thought. Nakamura: Takeru is serious, isn’t he? I try not to show it to anyone, but when I saw that he was so enthusiastic before the performance, like, “Okay, let’s go!” Satoh: That’s right (smile).

Such a scene can be seen again with the reappearance of Masato. Nakamura-san, when did you hear about the reappearance? Nakamura: By the time we finished cranking up the first half, (Natsuko) Katsuta-san (Production Supervisor), who had spoken with Kitagawa-san, he told me that it was about 80% (laughs). So, when I told Takeru-san, “It’s almost to crank up,” he said. “You’re going to reappear again” (laughs). Satoh: It was inevitable. Nakamura: I’m happy.

This is Masato’s first appearance in 20 years. Is there anything that has changed? Nakamura: I don’t think so. When I first came back and said, “Hey!” to Takeru, he asked me, “Do you want to change something?” It started with a feeling of “Huh.” Satoh: Actually, Ritsu’s reappearance is close to the timing of Masato’s reappearance, isn’t it? I was curious about how everyone was passing the time, but in the end, I didn’t pay too much attention to it. Nakamura: After 20 years, the nuances are slightly different from the line when I both bitterness and sweetness. However, since it’s the age where it has to be out, I guess I just paid attention to that and didn’t worry too much about the rest. Satoh: Yeah, I don’t want to say, “Let’s change this.” Nakamura: Ritsu is divorced (laughs). Satoh: Ah, that’s right.

Masato also had a girlfriend 10 years older than him. Nakamura: I tell the viewers what kind of woman she is through Ritsu’s reaction when I showed him the photo. Satoh: I was shown a picture of Kankuro Kudo (laughs). Nakamura: I searched for images on the internet and set them as my standby screen. In addition, Akira Ikegami was on standby (laughs). I wanted to make Kagi and the staff laugh. Satoh: Hahaha. Nakamura: But after getting rid of Suzua-chan, Masato seems to have been devoted to that woman. Satoh: You said so. Nakamura: Masato was worried about hurting Suzume-chan, I think. I guess he’s grown up. Satoh: But he broke up with that girlfriend, right? Satoh: Yes. They broke up 3 days before the scene where they were talking about the fireworks, which will be aired in the future.

I’m looking forward to seeing how the two of you will co-star in the future. I just thought, Nakamura-san calls Satoh-san Kagi, but what does Satoh-san call Nakamura-san? Nakamura: Maybe I haven’t called you that often. Satoh: Maybe I haven’t called you that often. Nakamura: Are you shy? Satoh: (Passing through). What do people call you? Nakamura: Tomoya, there a lot of Tomoya-kun from when I was younger. Satoh: Is Tomoya the younger one? Nakamura: It’s okay. I can’t believe you’re younger than me. Satoh: Well… I’ll make it Moku-kun. Nakamura: Ahahaha! You want to go somewhere different from other people. Satoh: Ah, really? Nakamura: Are you shy? Satoh: No, I’m not embarrassed by Nakamura-san, but I’m embarrassed by Moku-kun.  Nakamura: Mok-kun is the Shibugaki corps! He is the only person on the planet who calls me.