Actor/singer Takuya Kimura (53) appeared on the November 16 episode of “Arido Times” (TV Asahi), hosted by freelance announcer Yumiko Arido (56). During the talk, he made a remark that reminded people of SMAP, which he once belonged to, and of Masahiro Nakai, 53, who retired from the entertainment world on January 23 this year due to a trouble with a woman, and it has attracted attention. Kimura appeared in the “Legends & Stars” section, a special program featuring interviews with people who have made significant contributions to their respective fields. The interview delved into Kimura, who has created numerous legends as an idol, singer, and actor from his debut to the present. Kimura never directly mentions proper names such as “SMAP” or “Nakai,” but at the beginning of the interview, he says, “I’m not sure if it’s true or not, but I’m sure it’s true. However, at the beginning of the interview, he answered Ms. Udo’s question, “Did you dislike being called an idol? Kimura made a comment reminiscent of Nakai’s in the beginning of the interview when he was responding to a question by Udo: “Didn’t you always get called a national idol? Kimura replied, “No, I haven’t been called a national idol. Kimura was asked by Arido, “You were always referred to as a national idol, weren’t you? I started saying it myself. （Someone (in the group) did. I thought it was an unnecessary thing to say.” “I think we said it ourselves,” he confessed. Many fans felt that this “someone” might have been Mr. Nakai. When the topic turned to “national stars,” Nakai often said, “SMAP is a national star because we are a national star! I thought, “How could Nakai-kun say that? I thought that Takuya Kimura looked a little pissed off because he was frustrated that he couldn’t mention their names, and I asked him, “Nakai-kun, are you watching? I was like, “How are you? Mr. Kimura said that it was one of the members who started calling SMAP a national idol. He was talking about Mr. Nakai, wasn’t he? That made me feel happy. I thought he was talking about Nakai, since they are obviously the three members of New Map. As one viewer commented, when Mr. Kimura said, “Someone said something unnecessary,” he seemed to be putting a lot of effort and emotion into the scene. Kimura and Nakai were the oldest duo in the group for 28 years, from the time SMAP was formed in 1988 until its dissolution in late 2016, and many fans feel a renewed connection between the two. In the past, there have been reports of feuds, and there have been some words and actions that suggest such things, but they are still former members who have spent more than half of their lives together. That is why some people say that they may still have feelings for Mr. Nakai.
