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July 25, 2026
 

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KEN WATANABE

Actor Ken Watanabe responds to customers' requests to take a selfie with him at his cafe called K-port in Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, on Saturday.
51³Ô¹ÏÍø
Dec 22, 2025
Actor Ken Watanabe closes cafe he opened to support Tohoku reconstruction
The actor began visiting evacuation centers in affected areas soon after the March 2011 disaster and opted to open the cafe to offer a place where people could enjoy chatting.
Lee Sang-il¡¯s "Kokuho" stars Ryo Yoshizawa as an orphan from a yakuza clan who rises through the world of kabuki to become a star performer.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 8, 2025
¡®Kokuho¡¯ finds riveting drama on and off the kabuki stage
Ryo Yoshizawa and Ryusei Yokohama deliver stage performances that are both convincing as kabuki and arresting as drama in Lee Sang-il¡¯s ambitious film.
Lee Sang-il¡¯s ¡°Kokuho,¡± which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival this year, follows the life of an "onnagata," a male kabuki actor who plays female roles, from his childhood as the son of a yakuza boss in 1960s Nagasaki to his official designation as a living national treasure.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 6, 2025
¡®Kokuho¡¯ illuminates the high price of becoming a national treasure
Director Lee Sang-il turns a long-held vision into reality with his sumptuously shot film that reveals the dedication, sacrifice ¡ª and loneliness ¡ª behind kabuki greatness.
NHK¡¯s latest taiga period drama, ¡°Unbound,¡± centers on Tsutaya Juzaburo (Ryusei Yokohama), a commoner who becomes a successful bookseller and publisher.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jan 10, 2025
¡®Unbound¡¯ breaks NHK period drama tradition with a hero of the common folk
Public broadcaster NHK marks its 100th anniversary by flipping the script on its long-running period drama series.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Apr 8, 2022
¡®Tokyo Vice¡¯ steps into the capital¡¯s criminal underworld
Ken Watanabe and Hideaki Ito star alongside Ansel Elgort in the cross-cultural series that brings to life an American reporter¡¯s memoir about investigating Japan¡¯s yakuza in the 1990s.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 13, 2020
Conquering history and conquering the stage with Ken Watanabe
Japanese actor Ken Watanabe returns to ¡®Pizarro¡¯ 35 years after his last performance in the play, this time in the lead role as the titular Spanish conquistador.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Mar 7, 2020
What ¡®Fukushima 50¡¯ can teach us about crises
Author and journalist Ryusho Kadota on how the nation¡¯s handling of the 3/11 triple disaster bodes for its ongoing response to COVID-19.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 6, 2020
Paying cinematic tribute to the ¡®Fukushima 50¡¯
Actor Koichi Sato discusses his role in ¡®Fukushima 50,¡¯ a film which looks at the events that followed the Great East Japan Earthquake
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Mar 5, 2020
¡®Fukushima 50¡¯: A disaster film with real-life roots
Ken Watanabe and Koichi Sato star in the first film dramatization of the meltdown at the Fukushima No. 1 power plant.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 12, 2019
Dai Watanabe: Forging his own path, away from the familiar
Though he rarely acknowledges the fact in public, Dai Watanabe is the son of Ken Watanabe: arguably Japan¡¯s most internationally known actor since Toshiro Mifune. Among Japanese media, the fact is common knowledge, though in interviews with Watanabe junior, the subject is often off-limits.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 22, 2019
The ¡®King¡¯ returns and theaters look to Russia for 2019
Whether it¡¯s regular theater that gets you going these days ¡ª or you¡¯re skipping along more to musicals ¡ª as 2019¡¯s curtains rise, variety will be the spice of live stages this coming year.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 16, 2018
Ken Watanabe: Japan¡¯s flag-bearer in the world of entertainment
Ahead of the opening of ¡®The King and I¡¯ in London on June 21, the award-winning actor calls on young Japanese to step outside their comfort zone.
Japan Times
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 16, 2017
There¡¯s no business like a star¡¯s personal business
If you¡¯ve got a Twitter account in Japan, you¡¯ve probably seen the promoted tweets for Netflix featuring comedian Sanma Akashiya. In these video spots, Sanma compares working for a streaming service to working for a commercial broadcaster, but doesn¡¯t mention the context for his remarks.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 27, 2016
Van Sant plots a bleak hike through Aokigahara
At least Arthur Brennan didn¡¯t want sushi, an AKB48 concert or a night out on the town with a maiko (trainee geisha) on his arm. As Japan¡¯s ranking soars on the international travelers¡¯ destination lists, the more cliched their itineraries seem to get. But Matthew McConaughey¡¯s Brennan of Gus Van Sant¡¯s...
51³Ô¹ÏÍø / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 2, 2016
Seeing 2015 through a fragmented media lens
Media literacy means understanding that objective reality is impossible to comprehend, and that the best you can do to make sense of the world is to know how to interpret signals. Part of that process is identifying what¡¯s at stake: Newspapers and broadcasters have parties they think they need to please,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Sep 12, 2015
Dante Carver: ¡®Dream big, love bigger and do what you love¡¯
SoftBank¡¯s Yoso Guy on games, design and what it¡¯s really like to be a part of the White family
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
May 26, 2015
Will ¡®King¡¯ Watanabe be the first Japanese actor to win a Tony?
When this year¡¯s nominees for the top honors in U.S. theater, the annual Tony Awards, were announced on April 28, the new musicals ¡°An American in Paris¡± and ¡°Fun Home¡± led the field after each being listed in 12 categories.
LIFE
Jan 11, 2014
Everything you ever wanted to know about Godzilla but were afraid to ask
Japan weighs regulating Pokemon cards amid trading mania
A Pokemon event is held in Jakarta on July 11
Head of Swiss euthanasia firm dies after collapsing while ascending Mount Fuji
Around 200,000 people typically scale the 3,776 meter Mount Fuji each year.
Indian brothers make manga debut in Japan
Two Indian brothers made their manga debut in Japan with "Kung Fu Kung Fool" ¡ª an action-comedy series that follows the adventures of a notorious thief and a young boy.
Japan scientists identify clusters of protein believed to trigger Alzheimer¡¯s disease
A team of researchers said they found a ¡°seed¡± that accelerates the amyloid beta accumulation process in the brain, naming it ¡°Peak 1 amyloid beta,¡± as seen in a mouse's brain.
A perfect storm: Kaze Fujii fans flock to Fuji Rock
Okayama-born singer-songwriter Kaze Fujii has carved out a distinctive place in Japanese pop since his major-label debut in 2019.
The sci-fi sensibilities of electronic trio Black Boboi
Black Boboi was formed in 2018 when solo artists Julia Shortreed, Utena Kobayashi and Ermhoi came together under Kobayashi¡¯s newly founded label, Bindividual.
A perfect storm: Kaze Fujii fans flock to Fuji Rock
Okayama-born singer-songwriter Kaze Fujii has carved out a distinctive place in Japanese pop since his major-label debut in 2019.
Can Japanese comedy get laughs in English? Yoshimoto Kogyo lets the jokes rip
Wes-P has millions of followers and his viral clips made him recognizable out of Japan.
The 180-day locals: Life on Japan¡¯s digital nomad visa
Christopher Flinn works remotely from Tokyo earlier this month. Japan issued 646 digital nomad visas in 2025, but tourism officials are hoping to increase that figure in the coming years, with Japan's relatively cheap cost of living and the weak yen seen as potential draws for young professionals.
Japan reveals hint of new defense spending target in fiscal blueprint
The Self-Defense Forces' Type 16 mobile combat vehicle fires during a joint live-fire drill with U.S. Marines as part of the annual Resolute Dragon exercises in Yufu, Oita Prefecture, on June 28.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

For many people, utility poles and power lines have become such a familiar part of Japan¡¯s landscape that they often go unnoticed.
Why Japan¡¯s utility poles won¡¯t be disappearing anytime soon
By Alex K.T. Martin

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