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| Kosaka Juri Joins NHK’s 2026 Morning Drama “Kaze, Kaoru” as Second Lead (Yahoo JP) |
Looks like dreams really can come true — even after a few misses. On 3rd June 2025, NHK officially announced that rising actress Kosaka Juri has been cast as one of the two heroines in its 114th asadora (morning drama) titled “Kaze, Kaoru”, airing in the first half of 2026.
She’ll be starring alongside Mikami Ai, in what’s shaping up to be a heart-tugging buddy drama set in the Meiji era, following two young women pioneering the world of nursing — back when the concept was still fresh in Japan.
Kosaka Juri born in 2005, is set to play Ooya Naomi, a complex and quietly fiery character who grew up without family, drifting from church to church under the care of various Christian pastors.
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With no stable home and a lifetime of watching society turn its back on the poor and vulnerable, Naomi’s learnt early on that survival often depends on your own grit — and a little bit of cheeky luck.
She’s not afraid to bend the truth or bluff her way through life when she needs to. After all, pride’s a luxury she couldn’t afford growing up. What she lacks in trust for God or people, she makes up for in sheer resilience.
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This will be Kosaka Juri’s first time starring in an asadora, and the emotion was all over her face as she took the stage with tears in her eyes at the press conference.
“I never thought I’d actually get to be a heroine,” she said, overwhelmed. “This feels like a dream. I’ve auditioned for morning dramas three times now, and I honestly can’t believe I’m standing here.”
And stand out she did — from a whopping 2,410 applicants. According to executive producer Matsuzono Takehiro, there was something unmissable about her presence:
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“She has this rare kind of light that flickers in every little scene — whether she’s angry, scheming, or can’t quite say what she means. You can’t take your eyes off her. That raw strength, hidden underneath a quiet resolve, just was Ooya Naomi.”
He added that pairing her with Mikami Ai, who plays the co-lead Ichinose Rin, sparked an immediate sense of excitement. “I was sure they could stir up a wind of change together — and that’s what the story needs.”
About “Kaze, Kaoru”
Set in the Meiji era, the drama is inspired by the lives of real-life trained nurses Oozeki Wa and Suzuki Masa, who helped usher Western-style nursing into Japan.
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The story follows two women with wildly different upbringings and personalities, thrown together in a world that barely knows what a “nurse” is. As they push through hardship, stigma, and internal doubts, they grow into an unstoppable duo — reshaping both themselves and the future of healthcare.
And with Kosaka Juri and Mikami Ai at the helm, this asadora looks set to deliver both the emotional punch and quiet power we’ve come to expect from NHK’s best.