Masahiro Motoki Drama 'The Man Who Carries the Voice of August' Gets Theatrical Release
The theatrical release extends the life of an award-winning drama that has already won the Hashida Award, the Broadcast Culture Fund Award Encouragement Prize, and the Galaxy Award Grand Prize.
Reporting from 1 sources: Eiga Natalie.
The NHK drama starring Masahiro Motoki, which aired in August 2025 for the postwar 80th anniversary, will be released in theaters on August 21, 2026 with added unseen scenes. The film is based on journalist Ito Akihiko's book and follows a journalist collecting atomic bomb survivor testimonies in 1972.
Masahiro Motoki's NHK drama 'The Man Who Carries the Voice of August' will hit theaters on August 21, 2026, with additional scenes not seen in the broadcast version. The drama originally aired in August 2025 to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. It is based on journalist Ito Akihiko's book 'Legacy from the Future: A Biography of an Atomic Bomb Survivor's Experience' and is set in 1972, during Japan's high economic growth period. Motoki plays Tsujihara Tamotsu, a journalist from a Nagasaki broadcasting station who travels the country collecting the testimonies of atomic bomb survivors. Sadawo Abe plays Kuno Wahei, a survivor whose voice deeply affects Tsujihara. The supporting cast includes Shizuka Ishibashi, Aoi Ito, Machiko Ono, and Tetsuji Tanaka. The script is by Shunsaku Ikehata, known for the taiga drama 'Kirin ga Kuru,' and directed by Takeshi Shibata. The drama has won three major awards: the 34th Hashida Award, the 52nd Broadcast Culture Fund Award Encouragement Prize in the Drama Category, and the 63rd Galaxy Award Grand Prize in the Television Category. WOWOW is handling production and distribution. The film will screen at TOHO Cinemas nationwide except for some locations.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- Eiga Natalie 本木雅弘が主演のNHKドラマ「八月の声を運ぶ男」8月に劇場公開、未公開シーンを追加して