Kenjiro Tsuda Makes First Appearance as Hide-ojii in New ‘Chibi Maruko-chan’ x ‘Premium Malt’s’ Live-Action CM

The TV-CM series “Premoruko-chan” from Suntory’s “The Premium Malt’s” brand, which depicts a grown-up world of Chibi Maruko-chan in live-action, has a new installment. Starting May 18, 2026, the “‘Premoruko-chan: Hide-ojii Appears’ edition” will air sequentially nationwide. Kenjiro Tsuda makes his first appearance as “Premium Hide-ojii.”

“Premoruko-chan” is a TV-CM series based on the brand’s key message, “Life gets deliciously slow” (Jinsei wa, yukkuri oishiku naru), portraying the characters of Chibi Maruko-chan as premium adults in live-action. It began airing in February 2025, with Suzu Hirose as Premium Maruko, Sairi Ito as Premium Tamachan, and Joe Odagiri as Premium Hanawa-kun.

In the latest CM for “The Premium Malt’s Japanese Ale – Fragrant Ale”, titled “‘Premoruko-chan: Hide-ojii Appears’ edition”, the stage is a premium villa of Hanawa-kun on an island owned by the Hanawa family. The highlight is the scene where Premium Maruko and her friends reunite with Premium Hide-ojii, the butler of the Hanawa family, after a long time.

Premium Hide-ojii, played by Kenjiro Tsuda, appears from the sea on a jet ski he operates himself. Pay attention to the reactions of Premium Maruko and the others as they rejoice at the unexpected reunion with an old acquaintance. Tsuda also provides the narration, and the CM concludes with “And thus Maruko and her friends thought, ‘You’ve actually gotten younger.'”

For the filming, Tsuda, participating in the “Premoruko-chan” series for the first time, appeared with silver hair, a white beard, glasses, and a bow tie. Since it was his first time acting together with Hirose, Ito, and Odagiri, he looked a bit nervous during the initial rehearsal, but they welcomed him with warm smiles, saying things like, “His gentle voice perfectly matches Hide-ojii’s soft atmosphere,” “I never thought such a youthful and wonderful Hide-ojii would appear,” and “It suits you so well.” His expression soon relaxed.

As they became more comfortable with each take and naturally started chatting more, before the drinking shot, a heartwarming exchange occurred: “Tsuda-san’s beard might get beer foam on it.” “Indeed, that might happen (laughs).”

The new TV-CM “‘Premoruko-chan: Hide-ojii Appears’ edition” featuring Kenjiro Tsuda’s first appearance as “Premium Hide-ojii” will air sequentially nationwide from May 18, 2026.

Interview excerpts

――Please tell us your impressions of playing Premium Hide-ojii in the “Premoruko-chan” series.

Tsuda: I’m happy. I never thought the day would come when I would play Hide-ojii, so I’m very honored.

――When you first saw yourself as Hide-ojii in the mirror, what did you think?

Tsuda: It was a look I hadn’t seen much of myself, so at first I felt a bit strange, but I got used to it during filming. However, I’m worried that when I meet everyone at another set, they might not recognize me (laughs).

――All three of you acted with Tsuda for the first time. Please tell us your impressions of his portrayal of Hide-ojii.

Hirose: His very gentle voice matches the soft atmosphere of Hide-ojii that we see in the anime, and I was very happy that a new breeze blew into the “Premoruko-chan” series.
Ito: I never expected such a youthful and wonderful Hide-ojii to appear, so it was very surprising and interesting. I feel I was able to say the CM line “You haven’t changed at all” without any awkwardness.
Odagiri: It suited him so well that I felt envious, in a way. It makes me want to age like that.

■TV-CM Overview

Title: The Premium Malt’s Japanese Ale – Fragrant Ale
‘Premoruko-chan: Hide-ojii Appears’ edition (15 sec, 30 sec)
Cast: Suzu Hirose / Sairi Ito / Joe Odagiri / Kenjiro Tsuda
Broadcast start date: From Monday, May 18 (sequentially)
Broadcast area: Nationwide
*The TV-CM video can also be viewed on the Suntory official YouTube channel.

《Koutarou Nakase》