Society

Japanese reality show 'Terrace House' cast member dies

May 24 (Japan Today) - Hana Kimura, a 22-year-old female professional wrestler who was among the cast of the most recent installment of the internationally popular Japanese reality show series "Terrace House," died Saturday after having been victimized by cyber-bullying, sources close to the matter said.

Kimura's death was announced by Stardom, a wrestling promotion business she belonged to, without saying anything about the cause of her death.

According to the sources, Kimura had posted a picture of herself and a cat with the message "I love you, please live a long and joyful life. I'm sorry," on Instagram, shortly before her death was confirmed at a hospital in the early hours of the day.

The Yokohama native was among the six cast members of "Terrace House Tokyo 2019-2020," which is broadcast by Fuji Television. It has also garnered a cult following overseas as it is distributed by U.S. video streaming service Netflix with English subtitles.

There had been comments circulating on social media criticizing Kimura's remarks and behavior during the show, the sources said.

Stardom said it does not know the details of her death, adding that it will cooperate in conducting a probe into the matter.

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