EXILE's AKIRA to play Juri Ueno/上野樹里's husband in Gou/江～姫たちの戦国～

AKIRA (29) will become the first member of EXILE to act in one of NHK's taiga dramas, it has been learned. He will appear in the ongoing series "Gou ~Himetachi no Sengoku~/江～姫たちの戦国～" in the role of Toyotomi Hidekatsu/豊臣秀次, one of the husbands of the main character Gou/江, who is played by lead actress Juri Ueno/上野樹里 (24).

Historically, Hidekatsu/秀次 was the nephew of Toyotomi Hideyoshi/豊臣秀吉. He became the second husband of Gou/江 after she divorced Saji Kazunari/佐治 一成, but Hidekatsu/秀次 died shortly after that during Japan's invasions of Korea. Gou later married her third and final husband, Tokugawa Hidetada/徳川秀忠, played by Osamu Mukai/向井理 (28).

As an actor, AKIRA has appeared in a few films and television dramas. Last year, he received Best New Actor in the 19th Japan Movie Critics Awards for his role in the 2009 film "Chanto Tsutaeru/共有してください."

AKIRA's appearance in "Gou/江" will start with the series' 17th episode, scheduled to air on May 1.

2011 江～姫たちの戦国～

Source: tokyograph.com