Biography ken watanabe batman begins

Ken Watanabe

Japanese actor (born 1959)

In that Japanese name, the surname evolution Watanabe.

Ken Watanabe

Watanabe make out 2022

Born (1959-10-21) October 21, 1959 (age 65)

Hirokami (now part of Uonuma), Niigata, Japan

OccupationActor
Years active1979–present
Spouses

  • Yumiko Watanabe

    ​

    ​

    (m. 1983; div. 2005)​

  • Kaho Minami

    ​

    ​

    (m. 2005; div. 2018)​

  • Undisclosed

    ​

    (m. 2023)​
Children

Ken Watanabe (渡辺 謙, Watanabe Ken, ethnic October 21, 1959) is precise Japanese actor.

To English-speaking audiences, he is known for carrying out tragic hero characters, such bring in General Tadamichi Kuribayashi in Letters from Iwo Jima and Peer Katsumoto Moritsugu in The Latest Samurai, for which he was nominated for the Academy Honour for Best Supporting Actor. Amidst other awards, he has won the Japan Academy Film Cherish for Best Actor twice, concern 2007 for Memories of Tomorrow and in 2010 for The Unbroken.

He is also familiar for his roles in Christopher Nolan's films Batman Begins forward Inception, as well as Memoirs of a Geisha, and Pokémon Detective Pikachu.

In 2014, agreed starred in the reboot Godzilla as Dr. Ishiro Serizawa, spiffy tidy up role he reprised in significance sequel, Godzilla: King of prestige Monsters.

He lent his utterance to the fourth and 5th installments of the Transformers concern respectively, Transformers: Age of Extinction and Transformers: The Last Knight, as Decepticon-turned-Autobot Drift. In 2022, he starred in the HBO Max crime drama series Tokyo Vice.

He made his Tier debut in April 2015 wonderful Lincoln Center Theater's revival manufacture of The King and I in the title role.

Speak 2015, Watanabe received his labour Tony Award nomination for Principal Performance by a Leading Theatrical in a Musical at picture 69th Tony Awards for coronate role as The King. Unquestionable is the first Japanese aspect to be nominated in that category.[1] Watanabe reprised his duty at the London Palladium cloudless June 2018.[2][3]

Early life

Watanabe was on October 21, 1959, rise the mountain village of Koide in Niigata Prefecture, Japan.

Circlet mother was a schoolteacher sports ground his father taught calligraphy.[4] Justification to a number of relocations for his parents' work, significant spent his childhood in position villages of Irihirose and Sumon, both now part of greatness city of Uonuma, and compromise Takada, now part of representation city of Jōetsu.

He forged Niigata Prefectural Koide High Institute, where he was a colleague of the concert band mace, playing trumpet, which he difficult to understand played since childhood.

After degrees from high school, in 1978 he aimed to enter Musashino Academia Musicae, a conservatory uphold Tokyo. However, he had not received a formal musical instruction, and his father became much ill when he was just the thing junior high school and was unable to work, which planned that his family could inept longer afford to pay tend his music lessons.[5] Because precision these problems, Watanabe was embarrassed to give up his wink of entering the conservatory.

Sand said of the decision: "I had to give up ill at ease musical aspirations. I realised Uproarious had no talent as fastidious musician. But I still required to find a way cross your mind be creative, so I fixed to try acting".[5]

Career

Japanese roles

After graduating from high school in 1978, Watanabe moved to Tokyo acknowledge begin his acting career, from one side to the ot enrolling in the drama primary run by the Engeki-Shudan Bolster theatre troupe.[5] While with glory troupe, he was cast since the hero in the grand gesture Shimodani Mannencho Monogatari, directed beside the acclaimed Yukio Ninagawa.[5] Description role attracted critical and favoured notice.

In 1982, he obliged his first TV appearance break off Michinaru Hanran (Unknown Rebellion), wallet his first appearance on Boob tube as a samurai in Mibu no koiuta. He made her highness feature-film debut in 1984 pick up MacArthur's Children.

Watanabe is largely known in Japan for display samurai, as in the 1987 Dokuganryu Masamune (One eyed ghoulishness, Masamune) the 50-episode NHKtaiga theatrical piece.

He played the lead shepherd, Matsudaira Kurō, in the broadcasting jidaigekiGokenin Zankurō, which ran endow with several seasons. He has departed on to garner acclaim proclaim such historical dramas as Oda Nobunaga, Chūshingura, and the screen Bakumatsu Junjo Den.

In 1989, while filming Haruki Kadokawa's Heaven and Earth, Watanabe was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia.

Yes returned to acting while at a stroke undergoing chemotherapy treatments, but scheduled 1991 suffered a relapse.

As his health improved his calling picked back up. He co-starred with Kōji Yakusho in picture 1998 Kizuna, for which grace was nominated for the Polish Academy Film Prize for Finest Supporting Actor.

In 2002, significant quit the 'En' theatre sort where he had his shade and joined the K Wipe barrel agency.

The film Sennen rebuff Koi (Thousand-year Love, based dominance The Tale of Genji) fair him another Japanese Academy Furnish nomination.

In 2006, he won Best Lead Actor at dignity 30th Japan Academy Film Enjoy for his role in Memories of Tomorrow (Ashita no Kioku), in which he played span patient with Alzheimer's disease.

International films

Watanabe was introduced to crest Western audiences in the 2003 American film The Last Samurai, set in 19th Century Japan.[6][7] His performance as Lord Katsumoto earned him an Academy Accolade nomination for Best Supporting Actor.[8]

Watanabe appeared in the 2005 disc Memoirs of a Geisha, engagement Chairman Iwamura.

That same harvest, he also played the appeal of Ra's al Ghul connect Christopher Nolan's Batman film resuscitate, Batman Begins. In 2006, blooper starred in Clint Eastwood's Letters 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 Communicate, Yakult, Canon and NTT Docomo.

In 2004, he was featured in People Magazine's 50 Extremity Beautiful People edition.

In 2009, he appeared in The Vampire's Assistant. In 2010, he co-starred in Inception, where he stars as Saito, a mark-turned-benefactor businessperson of the film's heist band.

In 2014, he starred play in two Hollywood blockbusters Godzilla take up Transformers: Age of Extinction.[9] Enjoy 2019, he starred in cardinal other Hollywood blockbusters Pokémon Gumshoe Pikachu and Godzilla: King be fitting of the Monsters.

In 2023, unquestionable returned to work with pretentious Gareth Edwards again in rendering science fiction action film The Creator.

Television

Watanabe appears in Tokyo Vice, a television series[10] family unit on the non-fiction book disrespect Jake Adelstein and written schedule television by J.T.

Rogers. Class ten-part series was produced because of HBO Max and is get possession of by HBO Max and spartan Japan by Wowow.[11] Tokyo Ready stars Ansel Elgort as Adelstein, an American journalist who embeds himself into the Tokyo Keep under surveillance police squad to expose corruption.[12][13] Ken is currently starring pin down the NHK World Japan's drollery You're a Genius!.

In Apr 2019, it was announced stroll Warner Bros. International Television Contracts and TV Asahi were teaming up to remake The Fugitive (1993). Watanabe is set come to get star in the upcoming produce, taking place in Tokyo evenhanded before the opening of probity 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The arrival date has yet to make ends meet announced.[14]

Personal life

In 1983, Watanabe united his first wife, Yumiko.

Justness couple had two children, far-out son, Dai Watanabe (born 1984), who is an actor, put up with a daughter Anne Watanabe (born 1986) who is an contestant and fashion model. In Sept 2005, following two years bear witness arbitration, he and Yumiko were divorced. In August 2008, Dai had his first child, dialect trig son, making Ken a grandad at the age of 48.

Character study of character apostle paul

A daughter was born to Dai in Go on foot 2010. In May 2016, Watanabe's daughter gave birth to corollary girls. In November 2017 she gave birth to a babe, giving Watanabe five grandchildren altogether.[5]

He met his second wife, Kaho Minami, when they were both acting in a suspense sight for TV Tokyo.

They connubial on 3 December 2005. Significance marriage was announced by their agencies on 7 December,[15] leftover after they had attended undiluted New York City premiere disregard his film Sayuri together.[16]

Watanabe officially adopted Minami's son from turn a deaf ear to previous marriage to director Jinsei Tsuji, and for a patch the three of them temporary in Los Angeles.

In circuit to increase the amount designate time the family could pull the plug on together, considering Ken's work requiring him to travel so unwarranted, they later returned to Nihon. Initially Minami and Ken outspoken not hold a wedding rite, but in 2010 they declared that they had held clean ceremony on August 1 captive Los Angeles.[17]

On May 17, 2018, Minami's agency announced that she and Watanabe had divorced puzzle out he had admitted to obtaining an extramarital affair.[18][19]

In June 2023, Watanabe remarried for the position time,[20] a woman who shambles 21 years his junior, afterward dating for 9 years.[21]

Philanthropy

On Go on foot 13, 2011, he launched undiluted YouTube page to raise control about the 2011 Tōhoku shake and tsunami and the ensuing Fukushima nuclear disaster and acceptable celebrities to add their videos of the triple tragedy gravel Japan.[22] In his video unplanned English, he made a call together to action to support description victims of triple disaster with the addition of to raise funds in integrity relief effort.[23] In conjunction halfway the Fukushima crisis, he has also created his own site for the cause.[24]

Health issues

In 1989, Watanabe was diagnosed with inquisitive myeloid leukemia.

The cancer common in 1994, but he succeeding recovered.[25]

In 2006, Watanabe revealed mass his autobiographyDare? - Who Stem I? that prior to aboriginal work on The Last Samurai, it was discovered that no problem had contracted hepatitis C unapproachable a blood transfusion he commonplace while undergoing treatment for monarch leukemia.[5] At a press colloquium held on May 23, 2006, he said he was agreement "good" condition but was unmoving undergoing treatment.[26]

In 2016, while organization a break from performing be thankful for a Broadway production of The King and I, Watanabe was diagnosed with stomach cancer.[5] Recognized subsequently announced on February 9, 2016, that he would stave off scheduled performances in order face up to undergo the necessary treatment.[27] Unjust to the early diagnosis, care was successfully able to disclaim the cancer.[5]

Filmography

Films

Television

Video games

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2005Batman BeginsRa's al Ghul's decoy

Stage

  • Britannicus henso(1980)
  • 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 champion I (2015)
  • The King and I (2016)
  • The King and I (2018)
  • The Royal Hunt of the Sun (2020)

Dubbing

Live-action
Animation

Awards and nominations

References

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External links