Kôji Yakusho Height, Weight, Age, Spouse, Biography

Kôji Yakusho is a critically-acclaimed Japanese actor, voice actor, director, and writer who has been cast in a variety of movies such as Kamikaze Taxi, Shall We Dance?, Charisma, The Boy and the Beast, 13 Assassins, Warm Water Under a Red Bridge, Bounce Ko Gals, University of Laughs, Paco and the Magical Book, The Eel, Babel, Dora-heita, A Samurai Chronicle, The World of Kanako, Chronicle of My Mother, Lakeside Murder Case, Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai, The Uchōten Hotel, Lorelei: The Witch of the Pacific Ocean, Memoirs of a Geisha, The Blood of Wolves, The Woodsman and the Rain, The Emperor in August, Tokyo Sonata, Mifune: The Last Samurai, Under the Open Sky, Father of the Milky Way Railroad, Perfect Days, The Third Murder, I Just Didn’t Do It, Sleeping Man, Tampopo, Hunter in the Dark, Drug Connection, Twelve Months, Willful Murder, and The Great Department Store Robbery. He has also been a recipient of many accolades including the Japan Academy Prize, Asian Film Award, Blue Ribbon Award, Elan d’or Award, Hochi Film Award, Japanese Film Critics Award, Kinema Junpo Award, Mainichi Film Award, Nikkan Sports Film Award, Silver Screen Award, and Zenkoku Eiren Award.

Born Name

Kōji Hashimoto

Other Name

Kôji Yakusho

Sun Sign

Capricorn

Born Place

Isahaya, Nagasaki, Japan

Nationality

Education

Kôji Yakusho studied at Nagasaki Prefectural High School of Technology and graduated in 1974.

Occupation

Actor, Voice Actor, Director, Writer

Family

• Siblings – He has 4 older brothers.

Build

Slim

Height

5 ft 10 in or 178 cm

Weight

72 kg or 158.5 lbs

Girlfriend / Spouse

Kôji Yakusho has dated –

1. Saeko Kawatsu (1982-Present) – He got married to actor Saeko Kawatsu in the year 1982 and they have a son named Ichirô Hashimoto. Their son has worked as an actor in various projects such as Drops of God, Yami no Bansôsha, The Magnificent Nine, The Inerasable, A Sky Too Far to See, and Tsurugidake: Ten no ki.

Race / Ethnicity

Asian

Kôji Yakusho is of Japanese descent.

Hair Color

Salt and Pepper

Eye Color

Dark Brown

Sexual Orientation

Straight

Distinctive Features

Frequently cast by director Kiyoshi Kurosawa

Brand Endorsements

Kôji Yakusho was cast in a TV commercial for Hino Super Dolphin Profia (Japan) in 1992.

Kôji Yakusho Facts

1. He was employed at the Chiyoda municipal ward office, or kuyakusho, in Tokyo. This later inspired his stage name.
2. Kôji Yakusho was inspired to pursue acting after watching a production of Maxim Gorky’s The Lower Depths in 1976.
3. He auditioned for actor Tatsuya Nakadai’s the Mumeijuku (Studio for Unknown Performers) acting studio in the spring of 1978 and became one of 4 candidates that were chosen out of 800 applicants.
4. He co-starred as Shohei Sugiyama in the romantic comedy-drama film Shall We Dance? in 1996. For this performance, Kôji Yakusho received the Japan Academy Prize, Hochi Film Award, Blue Ribbon Award, Japanese Film Critics Award, Kinema Junpo Award, Mainichi Film Award, and Nikkan Sports Film Award for “Best Actor in a Leading Role”.
5. Alongside Masaharu Fukuyama, Suzu Hirose, Shinnosuke Mitsushima, Mikako Ichikawa, Izumi Matsuoka, Yuki Saito, Kōtarō Yoshida, and Isao Hashizume, Kôji Yakusho co-starred as Misumi Takashi in the 2017 legal thriller film The Third Murder. This won him the Japan Academy Prize for “Best Actor in a Supporting Role”.
6. He co-starred as Masao Mikami (a middle-aged former yakuza who has spent most of his life in prison and is released after serving 13 years for murder) in the 2020 drama film Under the Open Sky. This role won him Zenkoku Eiren Award for “Best Actor”, Kinema Junpo Award for “Best Actor in a Leading Role”, and the award for “Best Performance” at the Chicago International Film Festival.
7. Kôji Yakusho has also been cast in many television shows like Tokugawa Ieyasu, Sanbiki ga Kiru!, Moeyo Ken, Hana no Ran, Wagaya no Rekishi, The Days, and Aikotoba wa Yūki.

Featured Image by Dick Thomas Johnson / Flickr / CC BY 2.0