Seven Samurai1954
As Samurai Wandering through Town (uncredited)
TMDb 8.5 / 10
Tatsuya Nakadai
Born
Tatsuya Nakadai (仲代 達矢, Nakadai Tatsuya; born Motohisa Nakadai; December 13, 1932 – November 8, 2025) was a Japanese actor. Widely regarded as one of the greatest actors in the history of Japanese cinema, he collaborated extensively with many of Japan's best-known and acclaimed directors. In his over seven decade career, he appeared in more than 160 films, and received numerous accolades. He was honored with a Medal with Purple Ribbon in 1996 and Japan's Order of Culture in 2015. Nakadai rose to prominence starring in Masaki Kobayashi's films, with his breakthrough being the protagonist of the epic anti-war trilogy The Human Condition (1959–1961). He won the Blue Ribbon Award for Best Actor for his performance as the vengeful ronin in Harakiri (1962), a role he considered his finest. Nakadai collaborated on eleven films with Kobayashi—including Kwaidan (1964) and Samurai Rebellion (1967)—and five with Akira Kurosawa, most notably as the tragic warlord in Ran (1985), a performance that earned global acclaim. His other notable credits included Seven Samurai (1954), Yojimbo (1961), The Sword of Doom (1966), The Face of Another (1966), Goyokin (1969), Kagemusha (1980), and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (2013). A lifelong stage actor, he founded the Gendai Nohgaku-kai troupe in 1975 and continued performing on stage into his nineties. Description above from the Wikipedia article Tatsuya Nakadai, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography (192)
Ran1985
As Lord Hidetora Ichimonji
TMDb 8.0 / 10
High and Low1963
As Chief Detective Tokura
TMDb 8.4 / 10
Harakiri1962
As Hanshiro Tsugumo
TMDb 8.5 / 10
The Tale of The Princess Kaguya2013
As Charcoal-maker Old Man (voice)
TMDb 8.1 / 10
Kagemusha1980
As Shingen Takeda / Kagemusha
TMDb 7.8 / 10
Yojimbo1961
As Unosuke, gunfighter
TMDb 8.1 / 10
Sanjuro1962
As Hanbei Muroto
TMDb 7.9 / 10
Kwaidan1965
As Minokichi (segment "The Woman of the Snow")
TMDb 7.7 / 10
Today We Kill, Tomorrow We Die!1968
As James Elfego
TMDb 6.1 / 10
The Human Condition II: Road to Eternity1959
As Kaji
TMDb 8.2 / 10
Samurai Rebellion1967
As Tatewaki Asano
TMDb 8.3 / 10
The Human Condition I: No Greater Love1959
As Kaji
TMDb 8.1 / 10
Yamato2005
TMDb 5.4 / 10
The Human Condition III: A Soldier's Prayer1961
As Kaji
TMDb 8.4 / 10
Belladonna of Sadness1973
As The Devil (voice)
TMDb 7.4 / 10
Hachiko1987
As Shujiro Ueno
TMDb 7.8 / 10
Final Yamato1983
As Narrator
TMDb 6.8 / 10
Return from the River Kwai1989
As Major Harada
TMDb 5.0 / 10
The Face of Another1966
As Mr. Okuyama
TMDb 7.8 / 10
After the Rain2000
As Tsuji Gettan
TMDb 7.3 / 10
Isao Takahata and His Tale of The Princess Kaguya2014
As Self
TMDb 6.7 / 10
Giovanni's Island2014
As Older Junpei Senou (voice)
TMDb 7.5 / 10
The Sword of Doom1966
As Ryunosuke Tsukue
TMDb 7.7 / 10
Gun Woman2014
As Hamazaki
TMDb 5.0 / 10
Battle of the Japan Sea1969
As Major Genjiro Akashi
TMDb 6.4 / 10
Wicked City1992
As Daishu
TMDb 5.8 / 10
Four Days of Snow and Blood1989
As Sugiyama
TMDb 7.3 / 10
The Battle of Okinawa1971
As Colonel Hiromichi Yahara
TMDb 7.8 / 10
Fireflies in the North1984
As Takeshi Tsukigata
TMDb 5.6 / 10
Onimasa: A Japanese Godfather1982
As Masagoro Kiryuin - Onimasa
TMDb 6.2 / 10
When a Woman Ascends the Stairs1960
As Kenichi Komatsu
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Port Arthur1980
As Maresuke Nogi
TMDb 7.4 / 10
Bandits vs. Samurai Squadron1978
As Kumokiri Nizaemon
TMDb 6.1 / 10
Japan's Longest Day1967
As Narrator (voice)
TMDb 7.3 / 10
Battleship Yamato1990
As Vice Admiral Seiichi Itō
Tenchu!1969
As Hanpeita Takechi
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Goyokin1969
As Magobei Wakizaka
TMDb 7.5 / 10
Kurosawa2000
As Self
TMDb 7.0 / 10
East Meets West1995
As Kaishu Katsu
TMDb 5.7 / 10
Jubaku: Spellbound1999
As Hideaki Sasaki
TMDb 6.2 / 10
Wish Upon a Star2005
As Takanori Wakamiya
Hunter in the Dark1979
As Gomyo Kiyoemon
TMDb 6.3 / 10
Zatoichi: The Last2010
As Tendo
TMDb 5.4 / 10
Through the Mist2009
As (archive footage)
TMDb 6.3 / 10
The Inheritance1962
As Kikuo Furukawa
TMDb 7.3 / 10
Zatoichi Goes to the Fire Festival1970
As Ronin
TMDb 6.8 / 10
Black River1957
As Joe
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Murder of the Inugami Clan2006
As Sahei Inugami
TMDb 6.9 / 10
The Thick-Walled Room1956
As Prisoner (uncredited)
TMDb 7.2 / 10
Solar Eclipse1975
As Yasuo Hoshino, the Chief Cabinet Secretary
TMDb 6.9 / 10
The Ambitious1970
As Shintaro Nakaoka
TMDb 7.3 / 10
Admiral Yamamoto1968
As Narrator (voice)
TMDb 8.5 / 10
The Empty Table1985
As Nobuyuki Kidoji
TMDb 6.9 / 10
Three Yakuza1965
TMDb 7.8 / 10
Odd Obsession1959
As Kimura
TMDb 6.3 / 10
Heat Wave1991
As Tsunejiro Murai
TMDb 5.9 / 10
A. K.1985
As Self
TMDb 6.3 / 10
Kin chan no Cinema Jack1993
I Am a Cat1975
As Kushami
TMDb 4.0 / 10
Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create: 'Kagemusha'2002
As Self
TMDb 7.0 / 10
The Fox Dancing in the Dusk1984
Sugata Sanshiro1977
As Yano
TMDb 10.0 / 10
Cash Calls Hell1966
As Oida
TMDb 7.5 / 10
Haru's Journey2010
As Tadao Nakai
TMDb 6.6 / 10
Lone Wolf and Cub: The Final Conflict1993
As Yagyu Retsudo
TMDb 7.5 / 10
Inn of Evil1971
As Sadashichi
TMDb 6.3 / 10
Kurosawa: The Last Emperor1999
As Self
TMDb 6.2 / 10
Great evil does not go to sleep: The counterattack of the special investigation unit prosecutor2016
As Yohei Tachibana
TMDb 7.0 / 10
The Human Bullet1968
As Narrator (voice)
TMDb 6.0 / 10
Love Under the Crucifix1962
As Ukon Takayama
TMDb 7.1 / 10
Will to Conquer1970
As Yoshida Tōyō
Legacy of the 500,0001963
As Mitsura Gunji
TMDb 6.9 / 10
Blood Type: Blue1978
As Minami
TMDb 6.1 / 10
Immortal Love1961
As Heibei
TMDb 7.4 / 10
Human Revolution II1976
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Conflagration1958
As Tokari
TMDb 7.1 / 10
Kill!1968
As Genta
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Daughters, Wives and a Mother1960
As Kuroki Shingo
TMDb 7.3 / 10
Like Asura2003
As Kotaro Takezawa
TMDb 6.6 / 10
The Pass: Last Days of the Samurai2022
As Makino Tadayuki
TMDb 7.4 / 10
Until the Break of Dawn2012
As Sadayuki Akiyama
TMDb 6.6 / 10
The Taika Reforms2005
As Minabuchi no Syôan
Madame Aki1963
As Tatsumi
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Battle Anthem1983
TMDb 7.7 / 10
13 Assassins1990
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Battle Cry1975
As Hijikata Toshizo
TMDb 5.9 / 10
Queen Bee1978
As Ginzo Daidoji
TMDb 7.6 / 10
Diary of an Elegant Hot Spring1958
As Kazuo Shimada
Portrait of Hell1969
As Yoshihide
TMDb 7.9 / 10
The Fir Trees Remain1983
Shadow Hunters1983
TMDb 8.0 / 10
The Wolves1971
As Seji Iwahashi
TMDb 7.4 / 10
Basara: The Princess Goh1992
As Oribe Furuta
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Another Way: D-Kikan-Joho1988
As Shimamura
TMDb 1.0 / 10
The Return2019
As Unokichi
TMDb 7.3 / 10
Tange Sazen: The Million Ryo Pot1982
As Sazen Tange
TMDb 9.0 / 10
The Family1974
As Teppei Manpyo
TMDb 9.0 / 10
The Life and Love of Kenji Miyazawa1996
As Seijiro Miyazawa
TMDb 8.0 / 10
The Beast Shall Die1959
As Kunihiko Date
TMDb 6.2 / 10
Fort Graveyard1965
As Sakuma
TMDb 6.1 / 10
The Corporation1976
As Tadashi Iki
TMDb 3.7 / 10
The Phoenix1978
As Jingi the Conqueror, leader of the Takamagahara
TMDb 6.1 / 10
Taikoki1987
As Narrator (voice)
TMDb 8.0 / 10
The Last Judgment1965
TMDb 8.3 / 10
Atami Murder Case1986
As Denbei Nikaido
TMDb 10.0 / 10
Untamed Woman1957
As Kimura
TMDb 7.5 / 10
The Human Trust2013
As Nobuhiro Sasakura
TMDb 4.0 / 10
Oración1988
As Heihachiro Wagu
TMDb 6.7 / 10
Willful Murder1981
As Yashiro
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Kojiro1967
As Musashi Miyamoto
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Safari 50001969
TMDb 7.2 / 10
Vengeance for Sale2002
As Umetaro Katakura
TMDb 6.8 / 10
A Woman's Life1963
As Takashi Akimoto
TMDb 7.1 / 10
The Law of Hell1982
As Ikuzô
Sleeping Village2019
As Narrator (voice)
TMDb 6.7 / 10
Pressure of Guilt1963
TMDb 7.5 / 10
Get 'em All1960
As Tsubota
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Elegy1976
As Setsuo Katsuragi
TMDb 10.0 / 10
The Journey1967
As Yuichiro
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Ant Hell War1964
TMDb 9.0 / 10
Henkan kōshōjin: Itsuka, Okinawa o torimodosu2018
As Narrator (voice)
Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create: 'Yojimbo'2002
As Self
Before The Leaves Fall2015
As Kenichiro Miya
Summer of the Moonlight Sonata1993
TMDb 9.0 / 10
Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create: 'High and Low'2002
As Self
Skin-Colored Moon1957
As Jirô Taki
The Gate of Youth1975
TMDb 8.3 / 10
The Age of Assassins1967
As Shinji Kikyo
TMDb 7.6 / 10
Japan's Tragedy2012
As Fujio Murai
TMDb 6.5 / 10
The King1973
As Kinjiro Sekine
The Daphne1966
TMDb 10.0 / 10
Sazae-san1956
As Norisuke
TMDb 7.5 / 10
Faraway Sunset1992
As Kobayashi
TMDb 10.0 / 10
The Scandalous Adventures of Buraikan1970
As Naojiro Kataoka
TMDb 7.1 / 10
A Dangerous Hero1957
As Reporter Imamura
TMDb 9.0 / 10
Lear on the Shore2017
As Kuwahata Chokichi
TMDb 6.4 / 10
The Other Woman1961
As Minami
TMDb 6.3 / 10
Farm Girls1962
As Kenichi
TMDb 10.0 / 10
The Naked Sun1958
As Jiro Maeda
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Michi1986
As Seiji Tajima
TMDb 1.0 / 10
Illusion of Blood1965
As Iyemon Tamiya
TMDb 6.4 / 10
Mr. Giant's Victory Flag1964
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Tatsuya Nakadai on 'The Human Condition'2009
As Self
Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create: 'Ran'2002
As Self
Floating Weeds Diary1955
As Union Member
TMDb 4.3 / 10
Pilgrimage at Night1959
As Kaname
Teenage Sazae1957
As Norisuke
TMDb 10.0 / 10
Challenge at Dawn1971
As Tsukagoshi
A Duel Tale2015
As Sanosuke Shoji
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Zokuzoku Ôban: Dotô hen1957
As Shindon
TMDb 8.0 / 10
The Blue Beast1960
As Yasuhiko Kuroki
TMDb 8.0 / 10
The Mandarin Room1956
As Ando
TMDb 8.0 / 10
A Boy and Three Mothers1958
As Kensaku, the Engineer
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create: 'Sanjuro'2002
As Self
Gaku2012
As Kazama Shin-ichi
The Legend of Sayo1982
As Otozo
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Dawn of a New Day: The Man Behind VHS2002
As Matsushita (Matsushita Denki Co.)
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Duel at Fort Ezo1970
As Daizennokami Honjo
TMDb 5.8 / 10
Rise, Fair Sun1973
As Sakuzo
TMDb 10.0 / 10
Trinacria: Porsche 9591987
Futari no shikeishû - saishin imada hirakarezu2015
As Narrator (voice)
Phoenix1956
As Keiichi Naganuma
TMDb 6.5 / 10
All About Marriage1958
As Akira Nakayama
TMDb 10.0 / 10
NORIN TEN inadzukagonjirō monogatari2015
As Gonjiro Inazuka
Promise: The Nabari Poisoned Wine Case, The Life of a Death-row Inmate2013
As Masaru Okunishi
Miren1963
As Ryôta Kinoshita
Go and Get It1958
As Hara
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Listen to My Heart2009
As Kyozo Hayami
How the Bell of Liberty Rings1954
As (uncredited)
Ôban1957
As Shin Don
TMDb 9.0 / 10
Making of Ran1985
As Self
The Human Revolution1973
TMDb 7.0 / 10
Oban kanketsu hen1958
As Shin Don
To Dance with the White Dog2002
As Eisuke Nakamoto
TMDb 9.0 / 10
Let Him Rest in Peace1989
As the Clouds Scatter1961
As James Kimura
TMDb 6.0 / 10
The Limit2025
As Narrator (voice)
Three Dolls in Ginza1959
As Kyosuke Tamura
Florence My Love1991
Love on Rainbow Island1956
As Yûji Wada
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Kampai! Miai Kekkon1958
As Kunihiko Sasada
Life Work of Akira Kurosawa2022
As Self
TMDb 8.0 / 10
The Shadow Daughter1957
As Motohashi
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Magistrate of the Floating World1981
TMDb 6.0 / 10
Zoku Ôban: Fûun hen1957
As Shin don
TMDb 9.0 / 10
Blood End1969
As Sentaro
TMDb 6.3 / 10
Who Is Gomez?1967
As Sakamoto
A Town and a Tall Chimney2019
As Hyoma Sekine
TMDb 8.0 / 10
Nakadai Tatsuya: to Live for Acting2015
As Self
The Gion Tempest1958
As Masaki
Pinwheel Hamakichi's Spell1992
Filmography and biography: TMDb