It has been almost a year since he left the entertainment world due to a trouble with a former female announcer at Fuji Television Network. Masahiro Nakai’s surroundings have become increasingly hectic. Matsumoto Hitoshi (62), a longtime friend of Nakai, and Becky (41), who appeared as a guest on his own Internet broadcasting service “Downtown+,” got into a lively conversation about a certain topic. In the video broadcast on December 5, they talked about a restaurant the three of them had visited together in the past, and Becky referred to the third person as “that person,” while Matsumoto added “dabe” at the end of the word. Matsumoto added “dabe” to the end of the word, implying that he was referring to “that person. Dabe” is a dialect of Nakai’s hometown of Shonan (Kanagawa Prefecture), and it is also his habit. In fact, when Becky was suspended in 2016 due to allegations of infidelity, it was Nakai who held a meeting to encourage her. It seems that they were talking about that time, and it is clear that “that person” refers to Mr. Nakai. Gekidan Hitori (48) and writer Furuichi Noritoshi (40), who appeared on “Nakai Masahiro’s Saturday Night Club” (TV Asahi), which ended right after the trouble broke out, also touched on the Nakai turmoil in a radio program broadcast on October 22. They said, “It’s been exactly 10 months.” “We used to see each other every week, but we haven’t seen each other for a long time. We used to see each other every week, but we haven’t seen each other since then. Since no celebrity has ever mentioned Nakai, even indirectly, outside of news programs, many people were thrilled by this exchange between the two. The reason for this may be because Nakai’s personal life, which at one point had been so dismal that he couldn’t take his eyes off her, had changed. Nakai’s hair, which used to be carelessly long and streaked with gray, has been cut short and dyed black, and he increasingly goes out at the wheel of his car. He also seems to be showing a desire to play mahjong and golf, which have been his hobbies for many years, and it is apparent that he is getting back to his daily life. It is believed that people who care about Nakai, who have heard about such changes, are talking about him as an observation balloon to find out how the public will react. Nakai is said to be searching for a realistic way to return to society. Nakai’s friends are considering social contribution through welfare activities as a “place for his return. Nakai has donated large sums of money at the time of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (1995) and the Great East Japan Earthquake (2011), and has received the “Medal with Dark Blue Ribbon” three times, which is awarded to those who invest their private funds for the public good. His donations are said to total nearly 300 million yen, and he has actively visited disaster-stricken areas. As a first step toward his comeback, there is a proposal to visit a facility run by an acquaintance of Mr. Nakai’s. Mr. Nakai is said to be listening to the people involved and is beginning to positively consider the idea” (Nakai’s acquaintance) (Continued to Part 2) *Women’s Seven December 25, 2025/January 1, 2026 issue
