Norika Fujiwara on the Verge of a Second Brea as Her Female Fans Increases
“Unlike in the past, she has become more friendly and likable.”
“She’s still as beautiful as ever.”
In magazines and on the Internet, articles on Norika’s popularity have become quite noticeable.
When she was a university student, she entered the “Miss Japan” contest and won. She entered the entertainment industry after winning the contest.
Her over 170 cm height and well-developed body attracted attention, and she became popular when she was chosen as a campaign girl for swimwear and beer, which was said to be the gateway to success for gravure talent at the time. She dominated the gravure pages of photo magazines and men’s magazines, and even had her own regular program, albeit a local Kansai program.
However, she was not an actress by choice. “I don’t think she was turning into an actress, but when she started appearing in TV dramas, she began to face some headwinds. There were some roles that she got into well, but her acting was not that good, and although she did not intend it to be so, many people felt that she was pretending to be an actress, and viewers began to drift away from her.”
“She is from the Kansai region, but for some reason, her lines in the Kansai dialect sounded like she was speaking deliberately, as if she was just trying to be funny. When she married Tomonori Jinnai in 2006, I am biased, but I thought, ‘What a nice person to marry a comedian even though she is a beautiful actress.'” (Wide show person)
However, her marriage to Jinnai broke up after three years. In 2016, she married Kabuki actor Ainosuke Kataoka and became the wife of Risono.
Norika, who had been bashed at every turn, was again criticized for her marriage to Ainosuke. The reason is that Ainosuke’s relationship with Kumakiri Asami was already known, and there was talk that he had not broken off with her until just before their marriage.
“It was not Norika’s fault, but at the time, there was a lot of fuss about the marriage, saying, “It’s a short-lived marriage!” After all, she was even slammed behind her back, saying, “I wonder if Norika is capable of being a wife,” or “She won’t be able to keep it up for much longer anyway.””(A women’s magazine reporter).
In Shukan Bunshun’s “Ranking of Women Who Hate Women” Norika was always ranked high from before her marriage to just after her marriage.
However, after her marriage, Norika betrayed expectations in a good way.
Two years ago, a women’s magazine published an article titled, “Norika Fujiwara’s Entertainment Skills Highly Admired by Her Favored Sources, Even Surpassing Those of Hiroko Mita,” and that she was well received by the wives of other Kabuki actors.
“When she appears on variety shows, for some reason, she is a hit,” according to a director of a major station.
“She was originally from the Kansai region and should have had a good sense of humor, but I could see that she was forcibly restraining herself. But now that she is over 50 years old, I think she has gotten over that and is showing her ‘true colors’ in a good way.”
“Her deliberate and slightly out-of-focus personality used to be a reason people disliked her, but I think people have come to realize that this is just who she is and have come to accept her for who she is. I think this has led to the expansion of her female fans.”
A movie that is perfect for the current Norika will be released soon. She will play the role of the mayor of Kobe in “Tonde Saitama: From Lake Biwa with Love,” a sequel to the legendary super-comedy film “Tonde Saitama”. She will also co-star with her husband, Ainosuke.
We can’t wait to see how much the new Norika will make us laugh. There is no doubt that she will have a second breakthrough.
PHOTO： Yoshio Tsunoda/Afro
