Karen Fukuhara On How Kimiko’s Muteness Influenced Her Interpretation and Evolution: “I quickly realized that sign language is a language and those words can be powerful although not verbal.”

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As a dedicated fan who has been following The Boys since its inception, I must say that the fourth season has truly outdone itself, and Kimiko’s character development has been nothing short of captivating. Listening to Karen Fukuhara on the I’ve Never Said This Before With Tommy DiDario podcast was a treat, providing us with an intimate look into the mind of the actress who brings our beloved mute superhero to life.

Title “The Boys” is a globally acclaimed superhero show, and its fourth installment concluded on July 18, 2024. Initial responses to the season were moderate, but it gradually gained momentum, ultimately earning a ‘Certified Fresh’ status along with impressive ratings.

In the fourth season, there were numerous intriguing and unexpected events, and while we have delved into several characters, Kimiko, whose most dramatic moment yet unfolded in the season finale, was not a character we’ve discussed extensively until now. However, this is about to change as we will be focusing more on her in this report.

In this write-up, we’ll share insights from Karen Fukuhara’s latest chat on the “I’ve Never Said This Before With Tommy DiDario” podcast. During their recent discussion, Fukuhara revealed intriguing behind-the-scenes facts about her character Kimiko, shared experiences from the audition phase, and even touched upon aspects of her personal life.

On the “I’ve Never Said This Before With Tommy DiDario” podcast, Karen Fukuhara discussed Kimko’s muteness. She openly shared her feelings and ideas about this aspect of the character, explaining how it impacted the growth and progression of her role.

Did you anticipate that the character might start talking at some point, or was it important to you in the early stages of preparing for this role and auditioning, whether the character would eventually become verbal?

Throughout and particularly at the beginning of the series, a major question lingered in my mind as theories emerged. In Season One, she didn’t utter a single word, not even through sign language, and I remember discussing this with Kripke, but we weren’t certain about his plans. Frankly, I had no clue. In the source comics, she rarely spoke until much later, so I knew that her silence would likely continue in our show. Initially, I was okay with the possibility that she might never speak, but as sign language was introduced in Season Two and she began to establish a connection with Frenchie and explore her past, I soon understood that sign language is a language, and its words can be just as impactful as spoken ones.

Have you ever found yourself slipping up and saying something unintended while working, much like someone who is talkative by nature might do, such as myself – an Italian from New Jersey who tends to keep talking? I’m guessing you’ve had instances where you let out a sound or word and realized too late that you needed to stay quiet, right?

Sure thing!

Absolutely! In the earlier seasons, one of my all-time favorite jokes was when a character mispronounced Katniss as ‘Ketney’. He also struggled to remember it because he hadn’t seen The Hunger Games before. They added that line at the last minute during filming, and I believe Kripke was directing it. He asked the actor to add the line when it came up in the script, and the actor replied something like, “What is Katniss?” Another favorite moment for me was when a character said, “He’s trying to get in my asshole,” referring to a termite. That one still cracks me up!

Are you saying that comment was quite amusing, causing a momentary break from your act, possibly resulting in a genuine laugh?

KF: For sure. Luckily it’s usually when I’m not on camera.

Listening to Fukuhara’s perspective was truly enlightening, as someone who has had a diverse background myself, I found his insights particularly intriguing. If you’re curious about his full story and the wealth of information he shared, I highly recommend taking the time to listen to the entire podcast. You can access it through this link.

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2024-08-02 15:24