Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, a Tokyo-born actor whose life's work in film and television, including iconic roles in "Mortal Kombat" and the TV series "The Man in the High Castle," has come to an end at the age of 75. The actor passed away surrounded by his loved ones in Santa Barbara, following complications from a stroke, confirmed by his manager, Margie Weiner, on Thursday.
"Cary was a rare soul: generous, thoughtful, and endlessly dedicated to his craft," she said in an email. "His loss is immeasurable. My heart goes out to his family, friends, and all who adored him."
Tagawa's journey in film and television truly began to take off in 1987 when he appeared in Bernardo Bertolucci's Oscar-winning film "The Last Emperor." Since then, he has starred in films such as "Pearl Harbor," "Planet of the Apes," and "License to Kill," among many others.
Born to a father assigned to US mainland Army bases while mostly raised in the US South, Tagawa lived in Honolulu and on the Hawaiian island of Kauai for a while. His father met his mother while stationed in Japan, and Tagawa was named after Cary Grant and his brother after Gregory Peck, as he revealed to Honolulu Magazine in 2004. His mother, Ayako, was a stage actor in Japan, and Tagawa said she asked him not to pursue acting because there weren't many good roles for Asians.
Despite this early setback, Tagawa embarked on an acting career at the age of 36 after a varied background as a celery farmer, limo driver, pizza supply truck driver, and photojournalist. "The good news for Asian actors and Hollywood is that it's better than it's ever been, but the bad news is that it hasn't changed that much," he told Midweek in 2005. "The opportunities haven't increased that much, but commercially there's more exposure."
In 2005, Tagawa played the Baron in "Memoirs of a Geisha," a film based on the bestselling novel chronicling a young girl's rise from poverty in a Japanese fishing village to life in high society. While some critics found the film lacking authenticity, Tagawa believed it was unrealistic to expect a fictional work written and directed by Americans to fully reflect Japanese style and sensitivities. "What did they expect? It wasn't a documentary," Tagawa told The Associated Press in 2006. "Unless the Japanese did the movie, it's all interpretation."
Beyond his acting career, Tagawa developed a system he called Ninjah Sportz, which incorporated martial arts as a training and healing tool. He worked with professional athletes like World Boxing Council light flyweight champion Brian Viloria and advised members of the University of Hawaii football team.
However, in 2008, Tagawa pleaded guilty in a Honolulu court to a petty misdemeanor charge of harassing a girlfriend. At the time, police said she had bruises on her legs. His attorney said he took full responsibility for the case from the beginning and made no excuses.
