- Kyoko said she wanted the companies to launch a genuine investigation to find out what pushed her 22-year-old daughter to kill herself.
- Prior to her death, Hana reportedly complained that the producers “don’t treat the cast like human beings.”
- Kyoko and her legal team stated that the lawsuit will seek to uncover whether certain scenes in the show were staged and edited with the intention of depicting the cast members in a negative light.
- An episode in March 2020, which showed Hana blowing up in anger, generated hateful comments from viewers.
- “Terrace House Tokyo,” which is the fifth installment of the “Terrace House” franchise, was first released on Netflix Japan on May 14, 2019.
- As the episodes aired on Fuji Television and Netflix, social media users reportedly targeted Hana with vicious comments and messages.
- In July 2020, Kyoko filed a complaint to the Broadcasting Ethics & Program Improvement Organization, declaring that the reality show “violated her daughter’s personal and human rights,” reported Kyodo News.
- The organization would later find that the show had been “ethically problematic.”
- After the show was canceled following Hana’s death, all “Terrace House” cast members were reportedly told to sign nondisclosure agreements that prevent them from talking about what happened during filming, according to The New York Times.
- According to Kyoko, her daughter simply “wanted to present herself well as a professional wrestler” but was directed to dial up her villain image.
- Kyoko’s lawsuit also wants the companies to be held accountable for keeping the series on air even after Hana committed self-harm shortly after the controversial March 2020 episode premiered.
- Her 44-year-old mother is now hoping to find more clues, such as unreleased footage from the series, by filing a motion to secure evidence with the Tokyo District Court.
- Last Friday, the court responded with an order for the production company to submit unedited tapes, scripts and other relevant material as Kyoko requested. The production company reportedly plans to challenge the court’s order.