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Leo Tanaka
Leo Tanaka is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Tim Kano. He made his first appearance in the main show during the episode broadcast on 22 September 2016. The character was introduced alongside his twin brother David Tanaka (Takaya Honda), and they arrive in Erinsborough to find their long-lost biological father. Both Kano and Honda auditioned for both Tanaka roles and were later awarded their respective parts. The show's producer Jason Herbison had planned their stories months in advance. The shows writing team meticulously researched the show's history to find a way to introduce the two characters into the show's long-standing Robinson family. Leo and David's search ended in the revelation that the show's villainous character, Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) was their father.
Leo is characterised as a flirtatious and charming businessman who takes entrepreneurial risks. He is portrayed as both "ruthless and driven", which Kano believed was his character's personality flaw. He thought Leo was an interesting addition to the Neighbours cast because his attitude clashes with the show's moralistic female residents. Leo's stories have focused on business decisions and romance. He arrives in Erinsborough to start a new business. Despite a history in bar management he decides to open a new hostel for backpackers. Romance stories feature a near incestuous relationship with his half-sister Amy Williams (Zoe Cramond) and more prominent relationships with Mishti Sharma (Scarlet Vas) and Terese Willis (Rebekah Elmaloglou).
Other storylines include Leo getting crushed under concrete, feuds with other characters, and Kano filming overseas in London. Leo and Amy's near romance attracted some media attention, with Alex McCarthy from TV Week branding it "awkward" and a Metro reporter viewing it as "gross". In 2019, Kano's management confirmed he would be leaving the serial and he filmed his final scenes in June. Leo's departure aired on 10 September 2019, but he made a guest appearance from 11 December 2019 to 1 January 2020. In April 2021, it was confirmed Kano had reprised his role as a regular and his return scenes began airing from 15 June of that year. His return storyline sees his ex-girlfriend, Britney Barnes (Montana Cox), give birth to Leo's daughter.
On 22 August 2016, Neighbours announced its intention to introduce two new regular characters. It was revealed Leo and David Tanaka would be twin brothers played by Tim Kano and Takaya Honda respectively. Kano was delighted to be cast in the show because he believed Leo is "such a great character to play". Leo and David arrive in Erinsborough to solve "a family mystery". The character was billed as having a "superficial facade" whilst being a good-hearted man.
The casting directors prepared themselves for a long audition process. They were adamant they wanted to find actors who looked alike to accurately portray twins. Honda, who plays David recalled the process as being a strange experience which involved many call backs. Each actor originally auditioned for both roles because directors wanted to see who best suited which character. Kano has stated that his first ever audition had him switching character from Leo to David in seconds. Kano praised Neighbours for introducing two ethnic actors into their show. He believed it was "fantastic" that the Tanakas were regular characters with a "really strong plot line".
"Charming and flirtatious, Leo is a born salesman and has been known to boast that he can “sell snow to the Eskimos”. Behind his flashy exterior lies a morally ambiguous, self-involved human being. Well groomed and image conscious, Leo likes to surround himself with high-end material possessions and is prepared to take big risks to get them."
Leo is characterised as a charming individual who is image conscious and boasts a "flashy exterior". He is a self-involved entrepreneur who is unafraid to take risks to fund his materialistic lifestyle. Leo can behave in an underhanded manner to achieve success. His official character biography states that "he is not averse to using dubious methods to improve his lifestyle and believes people have to spend money to make money." In comparison to his serious minded brother, Leo does not make long-term plans. His career aspirations are driven by his entrepreneurial persona. He managed nightclubs prior to arriving in Erinsborough but decides to start his own business. There are stark differences in the twin's personalities. Leo has been touted as a "shameful opportunist" and "ruthless" in comparison to David who harbours a social conscience. Kano and Honda quickly built a good rapport off-set which helped them create brotherly bond on-screen. Both have other siblings and were able to draw from those sibling rivalries to form the on-screen relationship. Kano told Kerry Harvey from Stuff.co.nz that "he's really cheeky, really playful but under all the layers he's definitely a good guy with a good heart. It's nice to know all that's there and I don't just have to play this ruthless, superficial, bad boy all the time."
Leo is cheeky and charming but quite selfish. Kano believed that his character was flawed because he is "ruthless and driven" and lacks consideration for other character's feelings when achieving his goals. Many female characters in Neighbours are family orientated and Leo's attitude does not fit their strong morals and values. Kano believed this created a "great dynamic and tension" for his character. Leo is surprised by other people's perceptions of him and it proves "a good reflective process". Kano added "for Leo, to come to this down to earth town in Erinsborough where people call you out on your lies, it’s a great learning curve to learn there is more to life than what he was previously used to."
Leo Tanaka
Leo Tanaka is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Tim Kano. He made his first appearance in the main show during the episode broadcast on 22 September 2016. The character was introduced alongside his twin brother David Tanaka (Takaya Honda), and they arrive in Erinsborough to find their long-lost biological father. Both Kano and Honda auditioned for both Tanaka roles and were later awarded their respective parts. The show's producer Jason Herbison had planned their stories months in advance. The shows writing team meticulously researched the show's history to find a way to introduce the two characters into the show's long-standing Robinson family. Leo and David's search ended in the revelation that the show's villainous character, Paul Robinson (Stefan Dennis) was their father.
Leo is characterised as a flirtatious and charming businessman who takes entrepreneurial risks. He is portrayed as both "ruthless and driven", which Kano believed was his character's personality flaw. He thought Leo was an interesting addition to the Neighbours cast because his attitude clashes with the show's moralistic female residents. Leo's stories have focused on business decisions and romance. He arrives in Erinsborough to start a new business. Despite a history in bar management he decides to open a new hostel for backpackers. Romance stories feature a near incestuous relationship with his half-sister Amy Williams (Zoe Cramond) and more prominent relationships with Mishti Sharma (Scarlet Vas) and Terese Willis (Rebekah Elmaloglou).
Other storylines include Leo getting crushed under concrete, feuds with other characters, and Kano filming overseas in London. Leo and Amy's near romance attracted some media attention, with Alex McCarthy from TV Week branding it "awkward" and a Metro reporter viewing it as "gross". In 2019, Kano's management confirmed he would be leaving the serial and he filmed his final scenes in June. Leo's departure aired on 10 September 2019, but he made a guest appearance from 11 December 2019 to 1 January 2020. In April 2021, it was confirmed Kano had reprised his role as a regular and his return scenes began airing from 15 June of that year. His return storyline sees his ex-girlfriend, Britney Barnes (Montana Cox), give birth to Leo's daughter.
On 22 August 2016, Neighbours announced its intention to introduce two new regular characters. It was revealed Leo and David Tanaka would be twin brothers played by Tim Kano and Takaya Honda respectively. Kano was delighted to be cast in the show because he believed Leo is "such a great character to play". Leo and David arrive in Erinsborough to solve "a family mystery". The character was billed as having a "superficial facade" whilst being a good-hearted man.
The casting directors prepared themselves for a long audition process. They were adamant they wanted to find actors who looked alike to accurately portray twins. Honda, who plays David recalled the process as being a strange experience which involved many call backs. Each actor originally auditioned for both roles because directors wanted to see who best suited which character. Kano has stated that his first ever audition had him switching character from Leo to David in seconds. Kano praised Neighbours for introducing two ethnic actors into their show. He believed it was "fantastic" that the Tanakas were regular characters with a "really strong plot line".
"Charming and flirtatious, Leo is a born salesman and has been known to boast that he can “sell snow to the Eskimos”. Behind his flashy exterior lies a morally ambiguous, self-involved human being. Well groomed and image conscious, Leo likes to surround himself with high-end material possessions and is prepared to take big risks to get them."
Leo is characterised as a charming individual who is image conscious and boasts a "flashy exterior". He is a self-involved entrepreneur who is unafraid to take risks to fund his materialistic lifestyle. Leo can behave in an underhanded manner to achieve success. His official character biography states that "he is not averse to using dubious methods to improve his lifestyle and believes people have to spend money to make money." In comparison to his serious minded brother, Leo does not make long-term plans. His career aspirations are driven by his entrepreneurial persona. He managed nightclubs prior to arriving in Erinsborough but decides to start his own business. There are stark differences in the twin's personalities. Leo has been touted as a "shameful opportunist" and "ruthless" in comparison to David who harbours a social conscience. Kano and Honda quickly built a good rapport off-set which helped them create brotherly bond on-screen. Both have other siblings and were able to draw from those sibling rivalries to form the on-screen relationship. Kano told Kerry Harvey from Stuff.co.nz that "he's really cheeky, really playful but under all the layers he's definitely a good guy with a good heart. It's nice to know all that's there and I don't just have to play this ruthless, superficial, bad boy all the time."
Leo is cheeky and charming but quite selfish. Kano believed that his character was flawed because he is "ruthless and driven" and lacks consideration for other character's feelings when achieving his goals. Many female characters in Neighbours are family orientated and Leo's attitude does not fit their strong morals and values. Kano believed this created a "great dynamic and tension" for his character. Leo is surprised by other people's perceptions of him and it proves "a good reflective process". Kano added "for Leo, to come to this down to earth town in Erinsborough where people call you out on your lies, it’s a great learning curve to learn there is more to life than what he was previously used to."