Fuji TV Cancels Terrace House Tokyo Following Hana Kimura’s Tragic Passing
Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images
Following the tragic loss of Stardom’s Hana Kimura, Japanese television station Fuji TV has canceled airings of the remainder of Terrace House Tokyo’s current season. The show, a reality-based program similar to Big Brother that Kimura appeared on, was cited as a major cause of the cyberbullying the 22-year-old received before her death. Particularly, a single incident with a male guest on the show seemed to cause much ire on the Internet after its airing.
Speaking in a statement following the announcement, Fuji TV offers “sincere condolences to [Kimura’s] family.” They also take “her passing with utmost sincerity,” and are pursuing “active steps to formulate a response.” The Japanese government has also responded to the tragedy, with Communications Minister Sanae Takaichi stating that they’re looking into ways to seek out those who bullied the star online and punish them.
Terrace House has become an international hit thanks to its inclusion in Netflix’s streaming library. That includes this current season, which is still available on the service at the time of writing. Speaking with Variety, a Netflix representative confirmed that there are no plans to take down the episodes at this time.