Beat Takeshi Deemed PM-Worthy by Japanese Women

A new TV drama series that started last week stars pop heartthrob Takuya Kimura as the prime minister of Japan. Whaat? I thought Japanese prime ministers had to be old, bushy-eyebrowed, and totally incapable of making a woman swoon or laugh. (Koizumi LINK may have been the exception.) A weekly magazine took a poll to find out which celebrity they felt would make the best prime minister. The winner? Takeshi Kitano, of course. "He seems like he would understand Japanese politics from a global perspective," one woman writes of the famed movie director-turned-fiction writer. Not surprisingly, the top 10 had a good number of other comedians—George Tokoro, Tamori, and Akiko Wada all made the cut. In Japan, post-war politics has been a pretty dull, stagnant game across the decades. It's no surprise that the people want a little fun and flair at the helm.

Comments

[Greg]

I've liked just about everything I've seen Takeshi Kitano do....I'm just amazed at how MUCH he does, from acting, to writing, to directing, etc etc...that guy must sleep like 2 hours a day or something.

I think he'd be great because he's got a really cool vibe, one that people would "get" be they in asia, europe or even north america....

[vagrant]

The gf was pretty anxious to watch that new series last week. I watched it as well, but was surprised to find the position was for Prime Minister and not just some local position, or prefecture governor, as we've seen two come to position recently.

It was entertaining enough, even for a person that barely understands...wait, doesn't understand Japanese language.

I'm not sure Takeshi Kitano would be my choice for PM. I'd keep flashing back to Takeshi's Castle/Fuun Takeshi Jo. Then again, I have Schwarzenegger as my governor when I'm at home.

[Ujin]

Takeshi has scared me ever since I first saw "Battle Royal". As PM I would be scared he would turn Japan into a police state and force high schoolers to have gory death matches.