Tsuyoshi Ihara (伊原 剛志, Ihara Tsuyoshi; born Yun Yu-gu, Korean: 윤유구; November 6, 1963) is a Japanese actor of Korean descent.
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Early life
Ihara, a third-generation Zainichi Korean by birth, was born on November 6, 1963, in Kitakyūshū as Yun Yu-gu (윤유구; 尹惟久) and grew up in Ikuno-ku "Korea Town" section of Osaka. He is a graduate of Imamiya Senior High School, Naniwa-ku, Osaka. He received his Japanese citizenship in 1995.
Career
Ihara joined Sonny Chiba's Japan Action Club after leaving high school. Soon after, he began to work in numerous feature films and television dramas, including the 1996 NHK series Futarikko. In 2006, Ihara appeared as the Baron Takeichi Nishi in Clint Eastwood's critically acclaimed Academy Award-winning film Letters from Iwo Jima, introducing him to a wider international audience.
Ihara authored a book, Kokorozashite Sōrō (志して候う), published in Japan by Amoeba Books.
In 2016, he became an apprentice to Katsura. He made his debut as a rakugo artist.
Filmography
Films
Bakayaro! I'm Plenty Mad (1988), Kazuki Numayama
Jingi (1991), Jin Kanbayashi
Gamera: Guardian of the Universe (1995), Yoshinari Yonemori
Letters from Iwo Jima (2006), Baron Takeichi Nishi
Thirteen Assassins (2010), Hirayama Kujuro
Samurai Hustle (2014), Kumogakure Danzo
Samurai Hustle Returns (2016), Kumogakure Danzo
La Campanella (2025)
Samurai Hustle: Full Throttle (2027), Kumogakure Danzo
Television dramas
Takeda Shingen (1988), Oda Nobuyuki
Only You (1996)
Futarikko (1996), Masao kuroiwa
When the Last Sword Is Drawn (2002), Hijikata Toshizō
Shinsengumi! (2004), Sasaki Tadasaburō
Hanako and Anne (2014), Kippei Ando
Burning Flower (2015), Sakamoto Ryōma
The Naked Director Season 2 (2021)
Books
Kokorozashite Sōrō (author)