VIVANT Fans See Tojo Traitor Clues in His Room Change
The shift from Ultraman to Tiger Mask merchandise gives viewers a concrete visual clue to debate ahead of Episode 13's promised traitor reveal, turning a set decoration into the show's main talking point.
Key Facts
- Episode 12 of "VIVANT" Season 2 aired on August 2, 2026.
- Tojo's room in Season 2 replaces Ultraman merchandise with posters and figures of the pro wrestling manga "Tiger Mask."
- Episode 13 is previewed to reveal the "biggest traitor."
- Kazunari Ninomiya, who plays Nokor, posted on X during the broadcast, "Yamamoto... I like him."
- Ali Khan revealed that Yamamoto was among the lowest-ranked monitors in Tent and was not informed of Nogoon Beki's existence.
Reporting from 2 sources: Cinema Today, Magmix.
A new traitor theory has emerged for the TBS Sunday drama "VIVANT" after its 12th episode aired on August 2. The episode showed a change in the home of white-hat hacker Shota Tojo, played by Gaku Hamada. In Season 1, Tojo's room was filled with merchandise from Tsuburaya Productions' "Ultraman" series, and a poster for the 1999 film "Ultraman Tiga & Ultraman Dyna & Ultraman Gaia: The Battle in Hyperspace" appeared, a movie in which Hamada acted as a child. In Season 2, that merchandise is gone, replaced by posters and figures of the classic pro wrestling manga "Tiger Mask." The manga's protagonist, Naoto Date, donates his prize money to an orphanage anonymously, a practice viewers note resembles the ideology of the terrorist organization Tent, led by Nogoon Beki. On social media, fans speculate that Tojo may sympathize with Tent or is on its side, making the room change foreshadowing that he is the traitor. The next episode, Episode 13, is previewed to reveal the "biggest traitor."
The room change in Episode 12 is not the only detail drawing attention. The same episode also revealed embarrassing information about Takumi Yamamoto, the villain purged in Season 1, played by Takaya Sakata. Former Tent executive Ali Khan, played by Takashi Yamanaka, told protagonist Yusuke Nogi, played by Masato Sakai, that Yamamoto was among the lowest-ranked monitors and was never told about Tent's founder and leader Nogoon Beki, played by Koji Yakusho. Yamamoto, who was killed in a manner made to look like suicide by hanging, now leads the program "VIVANT Villains' Meeting Room," which broadcasts live on TBS Radio and YouTube after each episode. In the post-episode 12 broadcast, Yamamoto was teased by fellow villains Waniz, played by Yamato Kochi, and Gobi, played by Toru Baba.
During the broadcast, actor Kazunari Ninomiya, who plays Nokor, Tent's current top and Beki's stepson, posted on X, "Yamamoto... I like him." The official X account for "Villains' Meeting Room" reposted it with a photo of Yamamoto smiling faintly through a door. Fans commented on the image, with reactions ranging from "What expression is that w" to "It's funny that Yamamoto has become the most loved character in VIVANT." Ninomiya later quoted the post during the broadcast and wrote, "Oh, maybe I don't like him after all."
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.