Miho Watanabe

is a Japanese actress and presenter. She starred in With You, Who Wanted to Be A Star, Good Morning, Sleeping Lion (2022), Seishun Gestalt Houkai (2025), and Love Live! School Idol Musical the Drama (2024), the first live-action series adaptation of the popular Love Live! franchise.

Watanabe began her career as a member of the girl group Hinatazaka46 (formerly Hiragana Keyakizaka46) from 2017 to 2022 and made her acting debut in the group's drama Re:Mind (2017). She currently hosts the movie information show Cinema Addict on BS TV Tokyo and is an ambassador for the Women's Japan Basketball League. She is represented by the talent agency Queen-B.

Early life Watanabe played basketball from elementary to high school. She was the captain and point guard of her high school team, and participated in prefectural level tournaments. She briefly attended university after graduating high school, but dropped out to focus on her career.

Career

On August 15, 2017, Watanabe was introduced as one of nine Hiragana Keyakizaka46 (now Hinatazaka46) "second generation" members. She made her acting debut two months later in the group's drama Re:Mind, aired on TV Tokyo and Netflix, and was the only second generation member to appear in the main story with the founding first generation members.

Watanabe's first photobook, titled Hidamari and photographed in New Zealand, was released on January 17, 2019. About 17,000 copies were sold in its release week, placing it first on the Oricon Weekly Photobook chart and fifth on the overall Weekly Book chart. It was the first and only solo photobook by a Hiragana Keyakizaka46 member, as subsequent books by other members were released after they were rebranded into Hinatazaka46 in February of that year.

Watanabe appeared in the Hinatazaka46 dramas Dasada (2020) She and fellow members Miku Kanemura and Akari Nibu, together colloquially known as the "Saitama Trio" after their shared home prefecture, also lent their voices to characters named after themselves in the short animation series Pickles the Frog: Color of Feelings (2021).

Watanabe played female lead Nasa Kotosaka in the television drama adaptation of the romance/science fiction novel (2021), alongside Gordon Maeda. The drama was aired on Nippon TV and Hulu Japan, with slightly different storylines for each version. She played female lead Remi Watanuki in the action web film Good Morning, Sleeping Lion (2022) alongside Seiji Takaiwa and several other Kamen Rider franchise veterans. On being offered the role, she remarked that a fortune teller on the Hinatazaka46 variety show Hinatazaka de Aimashō had predicted years earlier that "a Kamen Rider offer" would come to her.

On April 3, 2022, Watanabe announced that she would depart from Hinatazaka46 after the promotion for the group's 7th single "Boku Nanka" (2022) has concluded. She would be the first second generation member, and the third after the group's rebrand, to leave the group. For that single, she served as center (lead performer) for the "aggressive, rock-sounding" track "Koishita Sakana wa Sora wo Tobu", and the music video for "Hikōkigumo ga Dekiru Riyū" is about the closing of a dormitory named "Hidamari", a reference to her aforementioned photobook. Her "graduation" ceremony took place on June 28 at the Tokyo International Forum, Hall A; recordings of the concert were included on the Type A and Type B editions of Hinatazaka46's 8th single "Tsuki to Hoshi ga Odoru Midnight" (2022). A graduation commemorative book, titled Watashi ga Watashi de aru Tame ni was published by Nikkei BP, which sold 16,000 copies in its release week and placed fourth on the Oricon Weekly Book chart. She officially left Hinatazaka46 on July 31, with her posting on its official blog for the last time the next day, August 1. In an interview with Oricon, Watanabe stated that she would continue her entertainment career and utilize her acting experience.

On September 1, 2022, Watanabe announced her affiliation with the talent agency Queen-B. She also launched her Twitter and Instagram accounts, an official website and her own fanclub.

Watanabe appeared in the dramas Brother Trap (2022) She made her full-fledged voice acting debut in the NHK short animation series Animation x Paralympic, in a 2023 episode featuring paracanoe athlete . She is also a member of the Saitama Prefecture public relations group, the Saitama Supporters Group, or Kobaton Club.

Watanabe continued to expand her acting career in 2025 with regular roles in the television dramas Junkissa Tsunagari, Heiten Shimasu (TV Aichi),

Filmography Film

Television drama series

Variety and talk shows

Music video

Discography

Watanabe had participated in all Hinatazaka46 title songs until "Boku Nanka" (2022). Prominent appearances include:

"Kirei ni Naritai" (Hashiridasu Shunkan, 2018), as a trio with Nao Kosaka and Akari Nibu "Yasashisa ga Jama o Suru" ("Do Re Mi Sol La Si Do" B-side, 2019), as the "Respect Three" trio with Shiho Katō and Hinano Kamimura "Akubi Letter" ("Tteka" B-side, 2021), as the "Color Chart" trio with Miku Kanemura and Akari Nibu "Koishita Sakana wa Sora wo Tobu" ("Boku Nanka" B-side, 2022), center (lead performer) "Hitoribocchi no Kakumei" (Good Morning, Sleeping Lion theme song, 2022), solo song

Other appearances

Radio

Fashion shows Tokyo Girls Collection