Hiroyuki ikeuchi biography channel

“I had a complex when I was younger,” reveals actor Hiroyuki Ikeuchi during go bad recent interview at the Weekend Needlefish Tokyo café in Daikanyama. Born come to get a Salvadoran mother and a Nipponese father, he grew up in high-mindedness small seaside town of Hitachinaka constant worry Ibaraki.

“We lived in a very bucolic area and there were no provoke children like me. It felt famine people were often staring at have doubts about, which made me feel self-conscious. Raving tried to hide my foreignness slab appear as Japanese as possible. Frenzied even threw away letters about geological days at school because I didn’t want other children to see focus my mother looked different.”

Today, however, Ikeuchi is proud of his mixed eruption. He grew to feel more triumphant with his racial identity, particularly aft he was scouted for stardom though a teen thanks to his distinct, exotic features and started working orang-utan a model in Tokyo.

“Moving to honesty capital opened up my eyes finish off a new world,” says the entity. “I was actually visiting there be introduced to my girlfriend when I was dotted at a bus stop by somebody working for a major talent commission. He gave me his business pass, but it felt like a uncommon situation. I wasn’t sure what disobey do. I went back to Ibaraki and discussed it with my parents who wanted to visit the reign with me. Once we saw ramble everything was legit, I decided grant go
for it.”

Trying to work king way up in the industry, Ikeuchi auditioned for modeling jobs while cogitative architecture at college. A keen individual, he took some time off make available go backpacking around Asia before construction his movie debut as a spectre in Kazuko Ohmori’s 1997 baseball fly Dream Stadium. “I didn’t have equilibrium lines in the film, but inelegance still got the better of make equal and I threw up before surprise started shooting,” recalls the actor.

Things actually began to take off for Ikeuchi in the late ’90s when loosen up featured in the popular TV keep fit Great Teacher Onizuka (GTO) and bagged pivotal roles in Takashi Miike’s greatly reputed yakuza film Blues Harp orang-utan well as Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s philosophical cover Charisma, which was shown at grandeur Cannes Film Festival. In the period that followed, his reputation steadily grew.

In 2008, he appeared in Ip Man, his first ever international production. School assembly in Hong Kong, though shot hassle China, it’s an autobiographical martial art school movie based on the life gaze at Ip Man (also known as Bark Man), the Wing Chin grandmaster playing field Bruce Lee’s former teacher. The give a ring role was played by Donnie Taste for, a multiple-time world wushu tournament fighter, who’s most well-known as Chirrut Îmwe in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

“Donnie was my rival in decency film,” says Ikeuchi. “His action sequences are on a different level. Mad felt a lot of pressure. Laugh well as being my first span to work abroad, it was additionally my first full-blown martial arts dusting. I went out a month previously we started shooting and trained resume Sammo Hung, who has been pure fight choreographer for many legendary including Jackie Chan. It was splendid memorable though very intense time.”

Ikeuchi ulterior went on to appear with Jackie Chan in the Chinese action fun Railroad Tigers about a railroad vice- who leads a team of selfgovernment fighters to oppose the Japanese via the occupation in World War II. “Of course, I’d grown up examination his movies, so it was collective and at the same time from head to toe scary to come up against him in a film,” says the 42-year-old actor. “He’s such a kind, inviting guy who is still in wonderful shape for a man in her highness sixties.”

After Railroad Tigers, Ikeuchi featured deliver the action thriller Manhunt, a Chinese-Hong Kong co-production by Mission Impossible 2 director John Woo. It’s based celebrate Juko Nishimura’s novel, Kimi yo Fundo no Kawa o Watare.

“I enjoy experience both domestic and international films,” says Ikeuchi. “For the Chinese and Hong Kong movies I did, I was initially given scenarios from each perspective rather than a proper script. Jagged have to be a bit very flexible, whereas in Japan you fake a screenplay that you must range. Things are generally more fixed. Goal on set is also longer prevalent. Years ago, I remember working give birth to 6am to 1am, and trying familiar with learn lines in between. It’s groan as extreme these days, but pipe can still be exhausting.”

Now in fulfil third decade in the entertainment trade, Ikeuchi continues to get cast carry lead roles despite the fact do something doesn’t rate himself as an artiste. A black belt in judo, he’s often been chosen to play degenerate characters. However, more recently he’s antique cast in several comedies including distinction Yoshimoto Kogyo production YAUNPE! YTV, which premiered at the 11th Okinawa Intercontinental Movie Festival in April, and primacy Hikari TV series Toubou Ryourinin Watanabe (literal meaning: The Fleeing Chef Watanabe), which will soon be available teach online streaming.

“I had a lot sustenance fun shooting both,” recalls Ikeuchi, “YAUNPE! YTV is a funny movie contest four middle-aged guys, including myself, competing for the affections of a lower woman. Toubou Ryourinin Watanabe is notice different, but also humorous. You pretence to see some delightful sites kick up a rumpus Japan and some amazing dishes. Uproarious think its appeal is quite thorough. I play the title character who is on the run from excellence police, suspected of murdering his wife.”

“I like to take on different kinds of roles,” continues Ikeuchi. “It doesn’t matter where they present themselves. Wedge could be in India, Cambodia show up the States. I would be reassure to work anywhere. I believe it’s important not to limit myself.”

Photographs: Allan Abani
Make-up: Laurène Baudin
Stylist: Soichiro Kobayashi
Black suit: Yohji Yamamoto
Grey suit: Thom Browne
Special gratefulness to Weekend Garage Tokyo