Takehiro Hira, the BAFTA- and Emmy-nominated Japanese actor who stole hearts as the unforgettable lead in FX's historical epic Shogun and shone alongside Brendan Fraser in Searchlight's Rental Family, will be honoured with The Hollywood Reporter's Trailblazer Award at the upcoming 38th Tokyo International Film Festival. This prestigious accolade, presented in partnership with the Motion Picture Association, will be bestowed upon Hira during a dazzling "American Film Night" celebration at Roppongi Hills Club on October 28, attended by top executives, filmmakers, and stars from both the U.S. and Japanese screen industries.
As the second Japanese talent to ever receive this distinction, following in the footsteps of veteran actor Tadanobu Asano, Hira's career and creative choices have illuminated complex, boundary-crossing stories and helped expand representation in global entertainment. His layered performance as the ambitious warlord Ishido Kazunari in Shogun earned him an Emmy nomination for outstanding supporting actor in a drama series, while his role opposite Fraser in Rental Family has garnered warm reviews in Toronto and will be screened at this year's Tokyo festival.
Hira's global career has spanned two decades, effortlessly navigating between Hollywood, European, and Asian projects. His breakthrough came with the Netflix/BBC series Giri/Haji (2020), in which he portrayed detective Kenzo Mori, earning him a BAFTA TV Award nomination for best lead actor. He will soon reprise his role as Hiroshi Randa in Season 2 of Apple TV+'s popular action series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.
Hira's resume is deep and varied, with Japanese prestige films such as Masato Harada's Criminal on the Prosecutor's Side, Takashi Miike's Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai, and Yasuo Mikami's Bushido. He has also starred in big-budget Western titles like Neill Blomkamp's Gran Turismo, Robert Schwentke's Snake Eyes, and Marvel's Captain America: Brave New World.
The Tokyo International Film Festival, Japan's largest annual celebration of cinema, will kick off next week in the city's upscale Ginza district. The MPA and THR's award party will be one of the event's marquee cross-industry occasions. On October 29, in partnership with TIFF, the MPA will host its annual policy program on enhancing Japan's production ecosystem, with guest speakers including producers Schuyler Weis (Elvis), Eriko Miyagawa (Shogun), Obb Siricharoenji (Alien: Earth), and Junko Kusunoki (Tokyo Vice). The session will be moderated by THR's Asia bureau chief Patrick Brzeski. On October 31, Schuyler Weiss will also present a masterclass at TIFFCOM.
