Hiroyuki Sanada
Hiroyuki Sanada MBE (真田 広之, Sanada Hiroyuki, born Shimozawa; 12 October 1960) is a Japanese actor and martial artist. He began his career in the mid-1960's at the age of six, and gained prominence for his roles in Japanese and Hong Kong action films, later establishing himself as a dramatic actor.
Hiroyuki Sanada | |||||
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真田 広之 | |||||
Sanada on a press tour for the series Helix (2013) | |||||
| Born | Hiroyuki Shimozawa (下澤 廣之) 12 October 1960 Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan | ||||
| Occupation | Actor | ||||
| Years active | 1965–present | ||||
| Spouse |
Satomi Tezuka
(m. 1990; div. 1997) | ||||
| Children | 2 | ||||
| Japanese name | |||||
| Kanji | 真田 広之 | ||||
| Hiragana | さなだ ひろゆき | ||||
| Katakana | サナダ ヒロユキ | ||||
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He is best known to international audiences for his roles as Ryuji Takayama in Ring (1998), Seibei Iguchi in The Twilight Samurai (2002), Ujio in The Last Samurai (2003), Kenji in Rush Hour 3 (2007), and Hanzo Hasashi / Scorpion in Mortal Kombat (2021). His role as 'The Fool' in the Shakespeare play King Lear also gave him notable theatrical notice in the United Kingdom.
He made his first major Hollywood appearance portraying Ujio in The Last Samurai (2003), later appearing in such films as Sunshine (2007), Speed Racer (2008), The Wolverine, 47 Ronin (both 2013), Minions (2015), Life (2017), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Army of the Dead (2021), Bullet Train (2022), and John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023). He also had recurring roles on Lost (2010) and the HBO series Westworld (2018–2020).
He has received numerous accolades, including two Hochi Film Awards, two Japan Academy Film Prizes, a Mainichi Film Award, three Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Actor, four Kinema Junpo Awards, and honors from the Yokohama Film Festival. In 2018, he received the Medal of Honor with Purple Ribbon from the Japanese government for his "artistic developments, improvements, and accomplishments."