The official website for the upcoming live-action TV drama adaptation of Mikito Chinen’s medical mystery novel series Ameku M.D.: Doctor Detective has announced that actor Kanna Hashimoto is cast as the protagonist, Takao Ameku. And Shohei Miura plays Yu Takanashi, Ameku’s assistant. The site also confirms that the drama is set to premiere on the TV Asahi Network stations in Japan on April 22.
In addition to the key visual on the top of this article, a teaser trailer is now available on the drama’s official X (formerly Twitter).
Hashimoto, now 26, has had many successful roles in live-action adaptations of popular manga and anime, such as Kagura in Gintama (2017-2018), He Kiao Diao in Kingdom (2019-2024), and Kaguya Shinomiya in Kaguya-sama: Love Is War (2019-2021).
In 2022, she also made her stage debut as the protagonist, Chihiro, in the stage play adaptation of Hayao Miyazaki’s 2002 film Spirited Away. Her performance was well received not only in Japan but also in London, England. She is scheduled to reprise the role in the play to be held in Shanghai, China, from July to August 2025.
Mikito Chinen’s medical mystery novel series Ameku M.D.: Doctor Detective launched in 2013 and has published thirteen volumes from Shinchosha’s Shincho Bunko nex imprint.
The novel’s TV anime adaptation premiered in Japan on January 1, 2025, and Crunchyroll is currently streaming the anime as it airs for members in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, CIS, Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.
Crunchyroll describes the series as such:
Ten’ikai General Hospital’s Supervisory Department of Diagnostic Pathology handles cases other physicians deem too difficult to treat. It’s also where bizarre mysteries surface, from unexplained illnesses to strange murders even the police can’t solve. At the center of it all is Takao Ameku, a brilliant doctor determined to reveal the shocking truth behind these anomalies.
