Hisashi Higashiyama, the singer and actor who has served as president of SMILE-UP. since the talent agency was restructured following Japan’s sweeping entertainment industry sexual abuse scandal, announced on September 28 that he will step down from his post.
Higashiyama made the announcement at a press conference held the same day, according to Nippon TV News (NNN). He said the compensation work still ahead for the company will primarily involve “situations that require legal procedures and specialized judgment,” suggesting the next phase of the process will lean more on legal and administrative expertise rather than his own leadership.
According to Sponichi Annex, the announcement also addressed concerns that a change in leadership could signal the company winding down its responsibilities. A statement tied to the new structure stressed that the transition “does not mean an end to the response to the sexual abuse problem,” indicating that SMILE-UP. intends to continue its compensation obligations under new leadership.
The scandal that led to SMILE-UP.’s creation is considered one of the most significant in Japanese entertainment history. Johnny Kitagawa, who built the former Johnny & Associates into the dominant force behind Japan’s boy-band and idol industry for decades, was accused after his 2019 death of sexually abusing numerous young trainees and performers over the years. An external investigation commissioned by the agency in 2023 concluded the abuse had indeed taken place, prompting the company’s leadership to publicly apologize, rename itself SMILE-UP., and commit to compensating victims, while spinning off talent management into a separate company, STARTO ENTERTAINMENT.
Monday’s report did not name a successor or specify exactly when Higashiyama’s resignation will take effect, and further details on the new leadership structure are expected to follow.
Who is Hisashi Higashiyama?
Hisashi Higashiyama (東山紀之) is a veteran Japanese singer, actor, and dancer who began his career as a member of the idol group Shonentai (少年隊), one of the pioneering acts on the original Johnny & Associates roster in the 1980s. Beyond music, he has built a long-running acting career across film, television, and stage, and is also known publicly for his marriage to actress Norika Fujiwara. Higashiyama took on the SMILE-UP. presidency as the agency’s leadership was overhauled in the wake of the abuse revelations, shouldering the difficult task of overseeing compensation to victims while the company worked to rebuild public trust.
His departure marks another shift in an already turbulent restructuring process that has spanned the exit of the Kitagawa family from management, the company’s renaming, and the ongoing rollout of compensation payments to survivors who came forward after the scandal became public in 2023.
Author’s Comment
Of course the man who agreed to be the public face of cleaning up somebody else’s decades-long cover-up doesn’t get to stay forever — nobody signs up for that job expecting a long, comfortable tenure. Higashiyama took on work nobody envied, and Japanese social media is already split between ‘he did his part, let him go’ and ‘okay, but who’s actually finishing this.’ That split is the real story: SMILE-UP. keeps insisting the compensation process isn’t over, but every leadership change makes survivors and the public alike wonder whether accountability quietly has an expiration date. I’ll believe this company is serious about seeing it through when they actually name who’s picking up the file next — until then, forgive me for reserving judgment.
