This weekend, Terrace House star and professional wrestler Hana Kimura died at the age of 22 years old. Fans around the world were saddened to hear of her sudden passing.
Note: If you are ever considering taking your own life, please know that there are people who will listen and can help.
Hailing from a wrestling family, Hana made her debut in 2016, and one of the reasons why she wanted to join the popular Terrace House series was to get people interested in wrestling. Stardom, the wrestling organization to which Kimura belonged, issued a statement about her passing and while the cause of death hasn’t yet been officially announced, as of writing, it’s believed she died by suicide.
As the current Terrace House season aired, Kimura experienced online harassment, which is thought to have contributed to her death. As Deadspin points out, this has brought new attention to cyberbullying. According to Asahi News, former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama tweeted that Japan should consider punishment for targeted, severe online bullying.
Kimura appeared on the latest season of Terrace House, which is set in Tokyo. Production was halted in April due to the novel coronavirus virus and has once again been suspended after Kimura’s death. According to the show’s official Japanese Twitter, episodes 43 and 44 were slated for Japanese TV on May 25 and 26 but won’t be aired. These episodes were also scheduled for Netflix, but according to the Netflix Japan account, the streaming of future episodes will be suspended. The US-based Netflix Twitter has yet to make a statement on the status of Terrace House: Tokyo 2019-2020.
Sponichi Annex quotes one Japanese TV insider as saying that considering the circumstances it will be “difficult” for the show to continue airing even on Japanese TV, something another TV insider also pointed out.
Terrace House cast members have written lengthy, emotional messages to Kimura on their social network accounts. Reina Triendl, one of the show’s hosts, wrote the following message in both Japanese and English:
The wrestling world has reacted to Kimura’s sudden passing:
Fans have been remembering Kimura with tributes and illustrations.
May she rest in peace.