'Terrace House Tokyo' canceled after Hana Kimura's death, fans question why all material has been removed
Japanese reality television series ‘Terrace House: Tokyo’, the fifth installment of the ‘Terrace House’ franchise, will not continue, on account of the death of cast member Hana Kimura. On Wednesday, May 27, the show’s official Twitter account announced, “‘Terrace House Tokyo 2019 - 2020’ has been canceled. No new episodes will be released or produced.” So far, 36 episodes in three 12-episode parts have been aired.
According to Variety, the show’s Japanese broadcaster Fuji Television Network announced, “We would like to express our regrets for the death of Hana Kimura and offer our sincere condolences to her family. Taking her passing with utmost sincerity, we will take active steps to formulate a response,” adding, “Regarding ‘Terrace House Tokyo’, we have decided to cancel the production.”
The message also said, “We take this issue very seriously, and would like to continue to take sincere efforts in the future.”
The last line raises some questions. 22-year-old Kimura, the daughter of iconic pro-wrestler Kyoko Kimura, died on May 23. Although the police have refrained from revealing the details of her death out of respect for her family, many have speculated that this was a case of suicide. Kimura was the target of cyberbullying for some time now. It was triggered by an altercation with a male cast member on the show.
She was also vilified for her appearance. Shortly before her death, Kimura posted several photographs on social media. In one photo with her cat, she wrote in the caption, “Goodbye”. In what was reportedly her final post, she wrote, “I love you, have a long, happy life. I’m sorry.”
Is the last line of the announcement an acknowledgment of the suicide?
Fans of the show on Twitter noted that after the announcement of the show being canceled, the production team was removing all material related to this season from its social media. All photos of the season were removed from the official Instagram account. All videos of this season were removed from YouTube.
A fan noted, “I don't see how deleting every single trace of Hana or this year's cast from their official social media handles solves anything. I really hope that they don't take down this season from Netflix. It was nice seeing footage of her when she was happy and alive.”
The show is carried by global streaming service Netflix, outside Japan. “We have no current plans to take down the latest season of this incredibly loved show,” a Netflix spokesman told Variety regarding the season's episodes that have already aired.
While fans agreed with the cancelation, they were at a loss as to why the season’s existence was being wiped off the internet. “Canceling Terrace House's season following Hana's passing is the right decision. however, I don't know what to think about everything about the season being deleted from their social media,” wrote a fan on Twitter.