Ken Watanabe
| Ken Watanabe | |
|---|---|
 Watanabe at the New York premiere of Memories of Tomorrow in May 2007 | |
| Born | (1959-10-21) October 21, 1959 Hirokami, Niigata, Japan |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Spouse(s) | Yumiko Watanabe (m. 1983; div. 2005) Kaho Minami (m. 2005; div. 2018) |
| Children |
|
Ken Watanabe ( 渡辺 謙 , Watanabe Ken , born October 21, 1959) is a Japanese thespian. To English-speaking audiences, he is known for playing tragic hero characters, such as General Tadamichi Kuribayashi in Messages from Iwo Jima and Lord Katsumoto Moritsugu in The Concluding Samurai, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Player. Amongst other awards, he has won the Nippon Academy Film Prize for Best Thespian twice, in 2007 for Memories of Tomorrow and in 2010 for Shizumanu Taiyō. He is too known for his roles in Christopher Nolan's films Batman Begins and Inception, as well as Memoirs of a Geisha, and Pokémon Detective Pikachu.
In 2014, he starred in the reboot Godzilla as Dr. Ishiro Serizawa, a role he reprised in the sequel, Godzilla: Male monarch of the Monsters. He lent his vocalization to the 4th and fifth installments of the Transformers franchise respectively, Transformers: Age of Extinction and Transformers: The Concluding Knight, as Decepticon-turned-Autobot Migrate. In 2022, he starred in the HBO Max crime drama serial Tokyo Vice.
He made his Broadway debut in Apr 2015 in Lincoln Centre Theater's revival product of The Male monarch and I in the title role. In 2015, Watanabe received his kickoff Tony Accolade nomination for Best Operation past a Leading Actor in a Musical at the 69th Tony Awards for his role as The King. He is the first Japanese actor to be nominated in this category.[1] Watanabe reprised his part at the London Palladium in June 2018.[2] [three]
Early on life [edit]
Watanabe was born on October 21, 1959 in the mount village of Koide in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. His female parent was a school teacher and his father taught calligraphy.[4] Due to a number of relocations for his parents' work, he spent his childhood in the villages of Irihirose and Sumon, both at present part of the metropolis of Uonuma, and in Takada, now office of the city of Jōetsu. He attended Niigata Prefectural Koide Loftier School, where he was a member of the concert band lodge, playing trumpet, which he had played since babyhood.
Subsequently graduation from high school, in 1978 he aimed to enter Musashino Academia Musicae, a conservatory in Tokyo. Withal, he had never received a formal musical pedagogy, and considering his begetter became seriously ill when he was in junior high school and was unable to work, which meant that his family unit could no longer beget to pay for his music lessons.[v] Because of these problems, Watanabe was forced to give up his intention of entering the conservatory. He said of the decision: "I had to give up my musical aspirations. I realised I had no talent as a musician. Just I nevertheless wanted to find a way to exist artistic, and then I decided to try acting".[five]
Career [edit]
Japanese roles [edit]
Later graduating from high school in 1978, Watanabe moved to Tokyo to brainstorm his acting career, past enrolling in the drama school run by the En theatre troupe.[v] While with the troupe, he was cast as the hero in the play Shimodani Mannencho Monogatari, directed past the acclaimed Yukio Ninagawa.[5] The role attracted critical and popular notice.
In 1982, he made his offset TV advent in Michinaru Hanran (Unknown Rebellion), and his first appearance on Television receiver every bit a samurai in Mibu no koiuta. He made his feature-moving picture debut in 1984 with MacArthur's Children.
Watanabe is more often than not known in Japan for playing samurai, every bit in the 1987 Dokuganryu Masamune (One eyed dragon, Masamune) the l-episode NHK taiga drama. He played the atomic number 82 character, Matsudaira Kurō, in the idiot box jidaigeki Gokenin Zankurō, which ran for several seasons. He has gone on to garner acclaim in such historical dramas as Oda Nobunaga, Chūshingura, and the movie Bakumatsu Junjo Den.
In 1989, while filming Haruki Kadokawa'due south Heaven and Globe, Watanabe was diagnosed with astute myelogenous leukemia. He returned to interim while simultaneously undergoing chemotherapy treatments, but in 1991 suffered a relapse.
Equally his wellness improved his career picked back upwards. He co-starred with Kōji Yakusho in the 1998 Kizuna, for which he was nominated for the Japanese Academy Honour for Best Supporting Role player.
In 2002, he quit the En (Engeki-Shudan En) theatre group where he had his start and joined the M Nuance agency. The movie Sennen no Koi (Thousand-twelvemonth Love, based on The Tale of Genji) earned him another Japanese University Award nomination.
In 2006, he won Best Pb Role player at the Japanese Academy Awards for his part in Memories of Tomorrow (Ashita no Kioku), in which he played a patient with Alzheimer'due south disease.
International films [edit]
Watanabe was introduced to most Western audiences in the 2003 American movie The Last Samurai, set in 19th Century Japan.[6] [7] His performance equally Lord Katsumoto earned him an University Award nomination for Best Supporting Histrion.[viii]
Watanabe appeared in the 2005 picture Memoirs of a Geisha, playing Chairman Iwamura. That same year, he besides played the decoy of Ra's al Ghul in Christopher Nolan's Batman film reboot, Batman Begins. In 2006, he starred in Clint Eastwood'due south Messages from Iwo Jima, playing Tadamichi Kuribayashi. He has voiced Ra's al Ghul in the Batman Begins video game. He has filmed advertisements for American Express, Yakult, Catechism and NTT DoCoMo. In 2004, he was featured in People Magazine 's 50 Nearly Beautiful People edition. In 2009, he appeared in The Vampire's Assistant. In 2010, he co-starred in Inception, where he stars equally Saito, a marker-turned-benefactor man of affairs of the picture'due south heist team. In 2014, he starred in two Hollywood blockbusters Godzilla and Transformers: Historic period of Extinction.[9] In 2019, he starred in ii other Hollywood blockbusters Pokémon Detective Pikachu and Godzilla: King of the Monsters.
Television [edit]
Watanabe appears in Tokyo Vice, a tv set serial[10] based on the non-fiction book by Jake Adelstein and written for tv set by J.T. Rogers. The x-office serial was produced by HBO Max and is distributed by HBO Max and in Nippon past Wowow.[11] Tokyo Vice stars Ansel Elgort every bit Adelstein, an American announcer who embeds himself into the Tokyo Vice law squad to betrayal corruption.[12] [thirteen] Ken is currently starring in the NHK World Nippon's comedy You're a Genius!.
In April 2019, information technology was appear that Warner Bros. International Television Production and Japan's Goggle box Asahi network were teaming up to remake The Fugitive (1993). Watanabe is gear up to star in the upcoming remake, taking identify in nowadays-day Tokyo merely earlier the opening of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The broadcast date has nonetheless to be appear.[14]
Philanthropy [edit]
On March 13, 2011, he launched a YouTube page to heighten awareness about the 2011 Tōhoku convulsion and seismic sea wave and invited celebrities to add their videos.[fifteen] In his video in English, he made a call to activeness to back up the victims and to heighten funds in the relief endeavor.[16] In conjunction, he has created his ain website for the cause.[17]
Personal life [edit]
In 1983, Watanabe married his start wife, Yumiko. In September 2005, following two years of arbitration, he and Yumiko were divorced. The couple had two children, a son, Dai Watanabe (born 1984), who is an actor, and his daughter Anne Watanabe (built-in 1986) who is an extra and style model. In August 2008, Dai had his get-go child, a son, making Ken a grandfather at the age of 48. A daughter was born to Dai in March 2010. In May 2016, Watanabe'south daughter by his first marriage, Anne, gave nativity to twin girls. In November 2017 she gave birth to a son, giving Watanabe five grandchildren birthday.[v]
He met his second wife, Kaho Minami, when they were both acting in a suspense drama for TV Tokyo. They married on 3 December 2005. The marriage was announced by their agencies on 7 December,[18] just afterward they had attended a New York Urban center premiere of his film Sayuri together.[19]
Watanabe at the premiere of Inception in July 2010
Watanabe formally adopted Minami's son from her previous marriage to director Jinsei Tsuji, and for a time the three of them lived in Los Angeles. In social club to increment the amount of time the family could spend together, considering Ken's work requiring him to travel so much, they later returned to Japan. Initially Minami and Ken did not concur a nuptials anniversary, but in 2010 they announced that they had held a anniversary on August i in Los Angeles.[20]
On May 17, 2018, Kaho Minami'due south bureau announced that Minami and Watanabe had divorced after he had admitted to having an extramarital matter.[21] [22]
Health bug [edit]
In 1989 Watanabe was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. The cancer returned in 1994, but he after recovered.[23]
In 2006 Watanabe revealed in his autobiography Cartel? - Who Am I? that prior to commencing piece of work on The Terminal Samurai, information technology was discovered that he had contracted hepatitis C from a blood transfusion he received while undergoing treatment for his leukaemia.[5] At a press briefing held May 23, 2006 in Tokyo'south Ginza district, he said he was in good condition but was still undergoing treatment.[24]
In 2016, while on a pause from performing in a Broadway production of The King and I, Watanabe was diagnosed with stomach cancer.[five] He later announced on February 9, 2016, that he would postpone scheduled performances in lodge to undergo the necessary treatment.[25] Due to the early diagnosis, surgery was successfully able to remove the cancer.[5]
Filmography [edit]
Films [edit]
| Year | Championship | Function | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | MacArthur'southward Children | Tetsuo Nakai | |
| 1985 | Kekkon Annai Mystery | Funayama Tetsuya / Masakazu Sekine | |
| Tampopo | Gun | ||
| 1986 | The Sea and Poison | Toda | |
| 1998 | Welcome Back, Mr. McDonald | Raita Onuki, Truck Driver | |
| Kizuna | Detective Sako Akio | ||
| 2000 | Infinite Travelers | Sakamaki | |
| 2001 | Genji: A Thousand-Yr Love | Fujiwara Michinaga / Fujiwara Nobutaka | |
| 2002 | Dawn of a New Day: The Human being Backside VHS | Ōkubo | |
| 2003 | The Last Samurai | Katsumoto Moritsugu | Hollywood debut |
| T.R.Y. | Masanobu Azuma | ||
| 2005 | Memoirs of a Geisha | Chairman Ken Iwamura | |
| Batman Begins | Ra's al Ghul's Decoy | ||
| Year 1 in the North | Hideaki Komatsubara | ||
| 2006 | Memories of Tomorrow | Masayuki Saeki | |
| Letters from Iwo Jima | Full general Tadamichi Kuribayashi | ||
| 2009 | The Unbroken | Hajime Onchi | |
| Cirque du Freak: The Vampire'southward Assistant | Mr. Hibernius Tall | ||
| 2010 | Shanghai | Helm Tanaka | |
| Inception | Mr. Saito | ||
| 2012 | Hayabusa: The Long Voyage Home | Professor Yamaguchi Junichiro | |
| 2013 | Unforgiven | Jubei Kamata | |
| 2014 | Godzilla | Dr. Ishiro Serizawa | |
| Transformers: Age of Extinction | Drift (voice)[26] | ||
| 2015 | Bounding main of Trees | Takumi Nakamura | |
| 2016 | Rage | Yōhei Maki | |
| 2017 | Transformers: The Final Knight | Migrate (voice) | |
| 2018 | Isle of Dogs | Caput Surgeon (voice) | |
| The Samurai of Tsushima | The Emperor of Japan (vocalisation) | ||
| Bel Canto | Katsumi Hosokawa | ||
| 2019 | Detective Pikachu | Lt. Hide Yoshida | Also dubbed for himself in Japanese |
| Godzilla: Male monarch of the Monsters | Dr. Ishiro Serizawa | ||
| 2020 | Fukushima 50 | Masao Yoshida | In mail service-product[27] |
| TBA | Kensuke's Kingdom | Kensuke | Phonation function; In production |
| 2023 | Truthful Love | Postal service-production[28] |
Telly [edit]
| Yr | Championship | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Taiyō ni Hoero! | Yūji Shimizu | Episode 574 |
| 1984 | Sanga Moyu | Takeshi Kusuda | Taiga drama |
| 1986 | Hanekonma | Genzō Onodera | Asadora |
| 1987 | Dokuganryū Masamune | Date Masamune | Taiga drama |
| 1989 | Oda Nobunaga | Oda Nobunaga | TV movie |
| 1990–1992 | Baian the Assassin | Baian Fujieda | |
| 1993–1994 | Homura Tatsu | Fujiwara no Tsunekiyo / Fujiwara no Yasuhira | Taiga drama |
| 1995–2002 | Gokenin Zankurō | Zankurō Matsudaira | |
| 2000 | Ikebukuro West Gate Park | Inspector Yokoyama | |
| 2001 | Chūshingura one/47 | Cameo, Goggle box movie | |
| Hōjō Tokimune | Hōjō Tokiyori | Taiga drama | |
| 2004 | Suna no Utsuwa | Shūichirō Imanishi | |
| 2009–2011 | Saka no Ue no Kumo | Narrator[29] | Taiga special drama |
| 2018 | Segodon | Shimazu Nariakira | Taiga drama |
| 2019 | An Artist of the Floating World | Masuji Ono | Goggle box movie |
| 2020 | The Avoiding | Kazuki Kakurai | Mini-series |
| 2022 | Tokyo Vice | Hiroto Katagiri | Also executive producer |
Video games [edit]
| Year | Championship | Function | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Batman Begins | Ra'south al Ghul's decoy |
Stage [edit]
- Britannicus henso (1980)
- Shitaya mannencho monogatari (1981)
- Fuyu no raion (The Lion in Winter) (1981)
- Pajaze (1981)
- Platonof (1982)
- Kafun netsu (1982)
- Pizarro (1985)
- Hamlet (1988)
- Hamlet no gakuya -anten (2000)
- Towa part1-kanojo (2000)
- Towa part2-kanojo to kare (2001)
- Dialogue with Horowitz (2013)
- The King and I (2015)
- The King and I (2016)
- The Rex and I (2018)
- The Royal Hunt of the Dominicus (2020)
Dubbing [edit]
- First Blood (1985 NTV edition) (John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone))[xxx]
Awards and nominations [edit]
| Year | Organization | Award | Work(s) | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 11th Elan d'or Awards | Newcomer Honour | Himself | Won |
| 1999 | 22nd Nippon Academy Film Prize | Best Supporting Actor | Kizuna | Nominated[31] |
| 2002 | 25th Japan University Picture Prize | Best Supporting Histrion | Sennen no Koi Story of Genji | Nominated[31] |
| 2003 | 26th Nippon Academy Moving-picture show Prize | All-time Supporting Player | Hello Wa Mata Noboru | Nominated[31] |
| Washington DC Area Film Critics Clan Awards | Best Supporting Actor | The Last Samurai | Nominated[31] | |
| 2004 | University Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Nominated[31] | |
| Saturn Awards | All-time Supporting Actor | Nominated[31] | ||
| Blue Ribbon Awards | Special Laurels | Won[31] | ||
| Circulate Picture Critics Clan Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Nominated[31] | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | All-time Supporting Actor | Nominated[31] | ||
| Las Vegas Picture show Critics Society Awards | All-time Supporting Actor | Nominated[31] | ||
| Phoenix Film Critics Lodge Awards | Best Supporting Role player | Nominated[31] | ||
| Satellite Awards | All-time Supporting Role player | Nominated[31] | ||
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | Best Supporting Histrion | Nominated[31] | ||
| Television Drama University Awards (Wintertime) | All-time Supporting Actor | Suna no Utsuwa | Won[32] | |
| 2006 | 31st Hochi Film Awards | Best Role player | Memories of Tomorrow | Won[31] |
| Nikkan Sports Moving picture Awards | Best Actor | Won[31] | ||
| 2007 | Bluish Ribbon Awards | Best Role player | Won[33] | |
| 30th Japan Academy Picture Prize | All-time Actor | Won[34] | ||
| Fujimoto Prize | Special Prize | Won[35] | ||
| Kinema Junpo Awards | Best Actor | Won[36] | ||
| 2009 | 34th Hochi Picture Awards | Best Actor | Shizumanu Taiyo | Won[37] |
| 2010 | 33rd Japan Academy Picture show Prize | All-time Actor | Won[38] | |
| 2014 | 37th Japan Academy Pic Prize | All-time Actor | Unforgiven | Nominated |
| 2015 | Tony Awards | Best Histrion in a Musical | The King and I | Nominated |
| 2016 | Grammy Awards | Best Musical Theater Album | Nominated[39] | |
| 41st Hochi Moving-picture show Awards | Best Role player | Rage | Nominated | |
| 2019 | Olivier Awards | Best Actor in a Musical | The King and I | Nominated |
| 2021 | 44th Nihon University Picture show Prize | Best Supporting Actor | Fukushima 50 | Won |
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ "Ken Watanabe Receives 2015 Tony Nomination for "The Male monarch and I"". crunchyroll.com. April 29, 2015.
- ^ Longman, Will (November 17, 2017). "Details confirmed for The King and I at the London Palladium in 2018". LondonTheatre.co.united kingdom . Retrieved Nov 17, 2017.
- ^ "The King and I". londonboxoffice.co.u.k. . Retrieved November 17, 2017.
- ^ Keck, William (February 24, 2004). "Japanese Cruise". USA Today . Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f 1000 h Lee, Ann (May 19, 2022). "'Each little thing in my life is precious': Ken Watanabe on cancer, childhood and Hollywood cliches". The Guardian. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
- ^ Rebecca Murray. "The Last Samurai - Ken Watanabe and Shin Koyamada Interviews". About.com Entertainment. Archived from the original on September half-dozen, 2015. Retrieved Jan 28, 2016.
- ^ Corkill, Edan (July 6, 2013). "From Hollywood to Hirohito". The Nihon Times. The Nippon Times, Ltd. Retrieved February xix, 2014.
- ^ "Watanabe nominated for Academy Award". CNN. Archived from the original on February xiv, 2012. Retrieved February 12, 2012.
- ^ Justin Kroll (May viii, 2014). "John Goodman, Ken Watanabe to Voice Autobots in 'Transformers: Historic period of Extinction'". Variety . Retrieved January 28, 2016.
- ^ Will Thorne (September 12, 2019). "Ken Watanabe Joins Ansel Elgort in 'Tokyo Vice' at HBO Max". Multifariousness.
- ^ "Japan's Wowow Boards Michael Mann'south 'Tokyo Vice' every bit Co-Producer as Production Resumes This Week". November 23, 2020.
- ^ Joe Otterson (June six, 2019). "Ansel Elgort to Star in Drama Serial 'Tokyo Vice' at WarnerMedia Streaming Service". Variety.
- ^ Nellie Andreeva (June vi, 2019). "Ansel Elgort to Star in Drama Series 'Tokyo Vice' at WarnerMedia Streaming Service". Borderline. Penske Media Corporation.
- ^ Schilling, Mark (April 24, 2019). "Ken Watanabe to Star in Japan Edition of 'The Avoiding'". Variety . Retrieved February eight, 2020.
- ^ "kizuna311". YouTube. Retrieved Apr 12, 2012.
- ^ ""kizuna311" a message from Ken Watanabe". YouTube. Retrieved Apr 12, 2012. [ dead YouTube link ]
- ^ "Kizuna – Unity and Promise. Together we will prevail and overcome". Kizuna311.com. Archived from the original on March 28, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
- ^ "Actors Watanabe, Minami tie knot". The Japan Times. The Japan Times, Ltd. Dec 8, 2005. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
- ^ "'Memoirs of a Geisha' New York Urban center Premiere - Within Arrivals". Getty Images. December six, 2005. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
- ^ "Ken Watanabe to appear in Docomo advertisement with Darth Vader". Japan Today. September two, 2010. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
- ^ "Ken Watanabe of 'Last Samurai' fame divorces his actress wife". The Asahi Shimbun. The Asahi Shimbun Visitor. May nineteen, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
- ^ "Ken Watanabe and Kaho Minami divorce after adulterous scandal". Arama!. May 19, 2018. Retrieved May xix, 2018.
- ^ Freydkin, Donna. "Watanabe opens 'a box of painful memories'". U.s. Today . Retrieved February 10, 2016.
- ^ "May - 2006 - Japan Zone". Retrieved Jan 28, 2016.
- ^ Mark Kennedy (February ix, 2016). "Tony-nominated actor Ken Watanabe battling stomach cancer". Associated Printing. Archived from the original on November 12, 2016.
- ^ Bay, Michael (May viii, 2014). "John Goodman And Ken Watanabe Bring together The Autobot Voice Cast in Michael Bay'southward 'Transformers: Age Of Extinction'". Michael Bay . Retrieved May viii, 2014.
- ^ Shackleton, Liz (May 14, 2019). "Japan 2011 convulsion, seismic sea wave drama 'Fukushima 50' leads Kadokawa slate (exclusive)". Screen Daily. Media Business Insight Express. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (Feb 10, 2022). "Ken Watanabe Replaces Bridegroom Wong In Gareth Edwards' Motion picture 'True Love' For New Regency". Deadline Hollywood.
- ^ "スペシャルドラマ 坂の上の雲" [Special drama - Clouds on the slope]. NHK (in Japanese). Retrieved September 16, 2019.
- ^ "ランボー 4Kレストア版". HMV . Retrieved Oct five, 2021.
- ^ a b c d east f one thousand h i j k l m north o "Awards for Ken Watanabe". IMDB. Retrieved March 7, 2010.
- ^ "Drama University Awards". Tokyograph. Archived from the original on January 29, 2010. Retrieved March 7, 2010.
- ^ "Bluish Ribbon Awards: 'Hula Girl' Aoi on top". Tokyograph. January 24, 2009. Retrieved March 7, 2010.
- ^ "Another win for 'Hula Girl' at Nippon Academy Awards". Tokyograph. February 16, 2007. Retrieved March 7, 2010.
- ^ "TBS producer wins Fujimoto Prize". Tokyograph. June 8, 2007. Retrieved March 7, 2010.
- ^ "Kinema Junpo announces Best x". Tokyograph. January 9, 2007. Retrieved March seven, 2010.
- ^ "34th Hochi Movie Awards". Tokyograph. November 28, 2009. Retrieved March seven, 2010.
- ^ "33rd Nihon Academy Awards". Tokyograph. March 6, 2010. Retrieved March 7, 2010.
- ^ "58th Annual GRAMMY Awards Nominees". The GRAMMYs. Archived from the original on December 7, 2014. Retrieved Jan 28, 2016.
External links [edit]
- Ken Watanabe at IMDb
- Ken Watanabe at the Net Broadway Database
- Ken Watanabe at the Japanese Movie Database
- Ken Watanabe interview at USA Today
- Ken Watanabe interview at Nearly.com
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Watanabe
Post a Comment for "Ken Watanabe"