Masahiro Motoki

Acting

Masahiro Motoki

Born December 21, 1965 (age 60)

Masahiro Motoki (本木雅弘 Motoki Masahiro, born December 21, 1965 in Okegawa, Japan) is a Japanese actor. He portrayed protagonist Daigo Kobayashi in Departures, which won the 81st Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film. His performance earned him the Award for Best Actor at the 2009 Asia Pacific Screen Awards, at the 3rd Asian Film Awards and at the 32nd Japan Academy Prize.

Known For

DeparturesDepartures · 2008
Departures
7.82008
MovieDrama
Daigo, a cellist, is laid off from his orchestra and moves with his wife back to his small hometown where the living is cheaper. Thinking he’s applying for a job at a travel agency he finds he’s being interviewed for work with departures of a more permanent nature – as an undertaker’s assistant.
TekkonkinkreetTekkonkinkreet · 2006
Tekkonkinkreet
7.42006
MovieAnimationAction
Two penniless orphans, Black and White, struggle to survive on the mean streets of Treasure Town. When a megacorporation threatens to tear down the town to build an amusement park, Black and White engage in the fight of their life.
TouchTouch · 2024
Touch
7.42024
MovieRomanceDrama
Soon after the break of the pandemic and realizing that his clock is ticking, Kristofer gets the urge to embark on a journey to try to find out what really happened when his Japanese girlfriend mysteriously vanished without a trace from London fifty years earlier.
The Samurai and the PrisonerThe Samurai and the Prisoner · 2026
The Samurai and the Prisoner
8.12026
MovieDramaHistory
When Lord Murashige rises up against the tyrannical Oda, he finds himself besieged within the walls of his own castle. Isolated, he is confronted with a series of mysterious crimes that shatter the fragile order of his court, plunging the fortress into fear and suspicion. With Oda's army closing in and a traitor hiding among his ranks, Murashige is forced into an uneasy alliance with Kanbei, a brilliant and dangerous strategist held prisoner in the dungeon, as he must outwit his enemies and uncover the truth before time runs out.
Shall We Dance?Shall We Dance? · 1996
Shall We Dance?
7.51996
MovieMusicComedy
A bored accountant spots a beautiful woman in the window of a ballroom dance studio. He secretly starts taking dancing lessons to be near her, and then over time discovers how much he loves dancing. His wife, meanwhile, has hired a private detective to find out why he has started coming home late smelling of perfume.
GeminiGemini · 1999
Gemini
6.51999
MovieDramaFantasy
When his mother's untimely death quickly follows his father's, a doctor begins to believe a killer may be targeting him and his amnesiac wife.
GoninGonin · 1995
Gonin
6.61995
MovieActionCrime
Five men plot to steal a large sum of money from the local yakuza, but everything does not go as planned and the men find themselves hunted down by contract killers.
The Emperor in AugustThe Emperor in August · 2015
The Emperor in August
6.72015
MovieHistoryWar
In July 1945, during the end of World War II, Japan is forced to accept the Potsdam Declaration. A cabinet meeting has continued through days and nights, but a decision cannot be made. The U.S. drops atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. General Korechika Anami is torn over making the proper decision and the Emperor of Japan worries about his people. Prime Minister Kantaro Suzuki leads the cabinet meeting, while Chief Secretary Hisatsune Sakomizu can't do anything, but watch the meeting. At this time, Major Kenji Hatanaka and other young commissioned officers, who are against Japan surrendering, move to occupy the palace and a radio broadcasting station. The radio station is set to broadcast Emperor Hirohito reading out the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War.

Filmography

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The Emperor in AugustThe Emperor in August · 2015
The Emperor in August
6.72015
MovieHistoryWar
In July 1945, during the end of World War II, Japan is forced to accept the Potsdam Declaration. A cabinet meeting has continued through days and nights, but a decision cannot be made. The U.S. drops atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. General Korechika Anami is torn over making the proper decision and the Emperor of Japan worries about his people. Prime Minister Kantaro Suzuki leads the cabinet meeting, while Chief Secretary Hisatsune Sakomizu can't do anything, but watch the meeting. At this time, Major Kenji Hatanaka and other young commissioned officers, who are against Japan surrendering, move to occupy the palace and a radio broadcasting station. The radio station is set to broadcast Emperor Hirohito reading out the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War.

Emperor Showa

Awaiting KirinAwaiting Kirin · 2020
Awaiting Kirin
8.42020
SeriesDramaWar & Politics
After the Onin War, the world is plunged into chaos. Amid this situation, heroes of the warring states begin to emerge in an attempt to unify the country and rule in these turbulent times. In the mid-1540s, there is a young wandering samurai in Mino which is strategically located between the East and West. His name is Akechi Mitsuhide. At this time, there is plenty of internal strife within the Toki clan which rules Mino. Surrounded by the Oda of Owari, the Imagawa of Suruga and the Asakura of Echizen, Mino has constantly faced the risk of invasion. Mitsuhide is pulled into battle and destroys the enemy. His bravery as well as stratagem catches the attention of Saito Toshimasa, the chief retainer of the Toki clan, and he is singled out. This man who is also known as Saito Dosan will go on to takeover the Toki and make Mino his own.

Saitou Toshimasa / Saito Dousan [the "Viper of Mino"]

On the Single Bed TonightOn the Single Bed Tonight · 2005
On the Single Bed Tonight
2005
SeriesDrama
Tomonaga Akiyuki and his wife Yu have been married seven years. Akiyuki is a graphic designer, and is quite happy in his work and private life. One day, he attends the wedding of his younger half-brother Ichinose Ryo. However, Ryo runs off with a young woman who appears at the wedding, leaving the bride Jumonji Azusa at the altar. Akiyuki bows his head and apologizes to Jumonji, and this is the prelude to a growing intimacy between them. Is it love, or is Jumonji after revenge? And what do Yu and Ryo think as they become aware of this relationship? Akiyuki and Yu, it seems, are headed for divorce. Further complications arise for Akiyuki and Yu when Akiyuki’s close friend Shunsuke and lawyer Reiko, advising on divorce, get involved.

Tomonaga Akiyuki

The Neighbours Are Secretly LaughingThe Neighbours Are Secretly Laughing · 1999
The Neighbours Are Secretly Laughing
1999
SeriesDrama
The story starts with a serial killer, whose victims are lone women and acts are perpetrated in Mizuno Maki's neighborhood (it is suggested that Motoki is this serial killer). Motoki is a police officer with 2 faces: he has an obsession for housewife Maki and is very gentle with her, and on the other side he rapes & tortures one of her friend, Kanda Uno. His ultimate goal seems to make Maki fall in love with him: so he uses her friend Uno to affect her relationship with her husband & he gradually introduces himself into her life. Another person is also obsessed with Maki (she is a sort of public personality as she runs a cooking club with other housewives and appears in magazines), harassing her all the time on the phone, spying on her, etc...: this person is close to her as he knows things from her past (her son drowned in an accident). Motoki also had an ordeal in his past: his mother was killed in a fire, by her lover.

Takagi Koichi

Prince of HappinessPrince of Happiness · 2003
Prince of Happiness
2003
SeriesDrama
This is the tragic love story of Shuhei and Umi. Shuhei is the only surviving son of a hospital director. He loves to play the piano as accompaniment to Umi's cello. Umi is the only daughter of a couple who own a little restaurant. As she is a great cellist, Umi obtained a scholarship to attend a famous music school in Austria. While Shuhei dreams of going to Austria with her, being the sole heir in his family, he has to take up medicine to become a doctor. Ryosuke is Shuhei's best friend, but he secretly covets Umi for himself. On graduation day, Ryosuke purposely lied to the young lovers, causing them to miss meeting each other. On her way home, Umi was knocked over by a truck, and lost the full mobility to her fingers, dashing her dream of becoming a cellist. Shuhei meanwhile, thinks that Umi had given up on him, and left for Austria.

Narukawa Shuhei