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is a Japanese actor. He is part of Stardust Promotion and has appeared several times in music videos, movies, TV series, and magazines. His major breakthrough role was as Ryoma Echizen in the live-action film adaptation of ''
The Prince of Tennis is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Takeshi Konomi. The manga was serialized in Shueisha's ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from July 1999 to March 2008, with its chapters collected in 42 volumes. Viz Media licensed t ...
'' and became even more widely known when he was cast as Shin in '' Nana 2''. In television, his most notable role was as Hinata in '' Himitsu no Hanazono'' and he starred in '' Seigi no Mikata''. For the live-action feature film adaptation of ''
Attack on Titan is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama. It is set in a world where humanity is forced to live in cities surrounded by three enormous walls that protect them from gigantic man-eating humanoids referred to a ...
'', he portrayed Armin Arlert. He has also been involved in anime voice acting as the lead character Ryōta Sakamoto in '' Btooom!''. He is occasionally incorrectly credited as Sōta Hongō.


Early life

Hongō was born in
Sendai is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,098,335 in 539,698 households, making it the List of cities in Japan, twelfth most populated city in Japan. ...
,
Miyagi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,265,724 (1 August 2023) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akit ...
. When he was in kindergarten, he became active as a child model for Sendai SOS Model Agency (now Morado Company). He attended
Nihon University , abbreviated as , is a private research university in Japan. Its predecessor, Nihon Law School (currently the Department of Law), was founded by Yamada Akiyoshi, the Minister of Justice, in 1889. The university's name is derived from the Ja ...
College of Art, where he studied
photography Photography is the visual arts, art, application, and practice of creating images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is empl ...
and graduated in 2013. In 2020, he was selected for the 14th Nihon University Awards and appointed as Nihon University Ambassador.


Career


2003–2006: Beginnings as a child actor

Hongō has appeared in several movies, including '' Moon Child'', which also starred
Gackt , better known as Gackt (stylized in all caps), is a Japanese singer-songwriter, musician, record producer and actor. Born in Okinawa Prefecture, Okinawa to a Ryukyuan people, Ryukyuan family, Gackt learned the piano at a young age and was rai ...
, Hyde, and
Leehom Wang Wang Leehom ( zh, c=王力宏, poj=Ông Le̍k-hông; born May 17, 1976), sometimes credited as Leehom Wang, is an American singer-songwriter, actor, producer, and film director. His music is known for fusing hip-hop and R&B, with Guoyue, tradi ...
. Hongō played the role of Sho as a child, while the adult role was played by Gackt. He appeared in the movie ''Daiteiden no Yoru ni'', released in November 2003. Hongō starred in the 2005 film '' Hinokio'', which was his first major role. He also appeared in two music videos in 2005, portraying the young boy in the singer YUI's music video for her song " Tomorrow's Way" and in "Zutto Yomikake no Natsu" by Keiichi Tomita featuring the pop duo
CHEMISTRY Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...
. In 2006, Hongō was cast as the popular
anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...
character Ryoma Echizen in the
live-action Live action is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live action with animation to create a live-action animated feature film. Live action is used to define film, video games or ...
adaptation film of ''
The Prince of Tennis is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Takeshi Konomi. The manga was serialized in Shueisha's ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from July 1999 to March 2008, with its chapters collected in 42 volumes. Viz Media licensed t ...
''. He joined the majority of the
Seigaku ''The Prince of Tennis'' manga and anime series has a large cast of fictional characters created by Takeshi Konomi; many have appeared in the musical and film adaptations. The cast of the series is largely made up of the members of the various ...
Regulars of the ''Prince of Tennis'' musicals as he was replacing
Kotaro Yanagi is a Japanese actor. Early life Yanagi was born on December 21, 1985, in Berlin, Germany. He lived in Germany for three years before moving back with his family to Japan. His family moved to India for work, and he lived there for three years. H ...
, who could not play the role due to a car accident he was involved in. Hongō also portrayed the young bassist Shinichi Okazaki in the movie '' Nana 2'', which was released in Japan on December 9, 2006. He had replaced
Kenichi Matsuyama is a Japanese actor. He is known for his affinity for strange character roles, and he is best known internationally for playing L in the 2006 films ''Death Note'', '' Death Note 2: The Last Name'' and '' L: Change the World'' in 2008. He was ca ...
, who had previously played Shin in the first '' Nana'' film. He also appeared in three episodes of the 2006 TBS series ''Memories of Matsuko''.


2007–2013: Rising popularity

His next feature film was alongside
Michael Pitt Michael Carmen Pitt (born April 10, 1981) is an American actor, model, and musician. In film, he has appeared in ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch (film), Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' (2001), ''Bully (2001 film), Bully'' (2001), ''Murder by Numbers'' ...
and
Keira Knightley Keira Christina Knightley ( ; born 26 March 1985) is an English actress. Known for her work in independent films and Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters, particularly Historical drama, period dramas, she has received List of awards and no ...
in ''
Silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...
'' which was screened at the 2007
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
. This marked Hongō's first appearance in an English language film, where he played a Japanese servant boy. He also starred in another music video,
B'z is a Japanese rock duo consisting of guitarist, composer and producer Takahiro "Tak" Matsumoto and vocalist and lyricist Koshi Inaba,佐伯明『B'z ウルトラクロニクル』ソニー・マガジンズ、2003年。新型光�B'zはなぜ� ...
s " Eien no Tsubasa" along with Tsubasa Honda and in
GReeeeN Gre4n Boyz (stylized as GRe4N BOYZ), until March 2024 named Greeeen (stylized as GReeeeN), is a Japanese all-male vocal group from Kōriyama in Fukushima Prefecture, comprising the four members: HIDE, navi, 92 (read as "kuni"), and SOH. They de ...
's music video of "Namida Sora". In television, Hongō's first major role was as major supporting character Hinata in '' Himitsu no Hanazono'', followed by another major supporting character role in the
drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...
''Seito Shokun!'' as a rebellious student, Kohei Aoki. Later, he appeared as a guest in two other shows, namely '' Detective School Q'' and '' Iryu: Team Medical Dragon 2''. In 2008, he starred as Riku Okamoto in '' Seigi no Mikata'', broadcast by NTV. He said Okamoto was probably his most normal role to date. He was then featured in the music video for The Gospellers' "Sky High", which was the opening to the second season of anime ''
Nodame Cantabile is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tomoko Ninomiya. It was serialized by Kodansha in the manga magazine ''Kiss'' from July 2001 to October 2009. A short series, ''Nodame Cantabile: Encore Opera Chapter'', was ser ...
''. Moreover, he starred in three films in late 2008, including ''Aoi Tori'', '' K-20: Legend of the Mask'', and ''
Goth Goth or Goths may refer to: * Goths, a Germanic people Arts and entertainment * Gothic rock or goth, a style of rock music * Goth subculture, developed by fans of gothic rock * ''Goth'' (2003 film), an American horror film * ''Goth'' (2008 f ...
''. The latter two were released in Japan on the same day, December 20. ''Goth'' is based on a Japanese novel of the same name, written by
Otsuichi is the pen name of is a Japanese writer and filmmaker. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of Japan and the Honkaku Mystery Writers Club of Japan. He made his debut with ''Summer, Fireworks and My Corpse'' while still in high school. Major wo ...
. In 2011, he portrayed the role of Jōichiro Nishi in ''Gantz'' and reprised his role in its sequel film ''Gantz: Perfect Answer'', as well as its sequel series ''Gantz: Another Gantz''. He also appeared in the drama special ''Saigo no Bansan: Keiji Tono Kazuyuki to Shichinin no Yougisha'', playing the character of a suspect among others. Moreover, he was a guest in one episode of ''Shibuya Deep A'', a series broadcast by
NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...
. He also made his stage debut in June 2011, performing in the Dotto! 25th anniversary play, ''Kinema no Kami-sama''. In January 2012, ''Shirato Osamu no Jikenbo'' was aired at TBS, where Hongō played the role of Kurosaki Hitoshi opposite
Yudai Chiba is a Japanese actor and model. He is under the Japanese talent AgencJapan Music Entertainment He is known for playing as Alata (Gosei Red) in '' Tensou Sentai Goseiger'' and its movies. He reprised this role in a voice-only appearance in '' Kame ...
. He also starred in ''Mirai Nikki Another: World'', a drama adaptation of the Japanese series of the same name. In October of the same year, he debuted as a
voice actor Voice acting is the art of Acting, performing a character or providing information to an audience with one's voice. Performers are often called voice actors/actresses in addition to other names. Examples of voice work include animation, animated, ...
in the anime '' Btooom!'' as the lead character Ryōta Sakamoto. Hongō also starred in the NHK FM Theater radio drama ''Mayu'', which also marked his radio debut. He also performed onstage in the ''rōdoku geki'' entitled ''Fuki no Hatsukoi, Ebina SA'' in September 2012. In October 2012, he appeared in the third short movie of the web drama ''Heather LOVE Short Movies'' entitled ''Umi Made Nan-kiro'', marking his debut in the said platform. In 2013, Hongō starred in ''Real Onigokko: The Origin'' as one of the lead characters, Tsubasa Sato, and in the UULA original web drama ''Yubikoi: Kimi ni Okuru Message'' alongside Korean actor
Seungri Lee Seung-hyun (; born December 12, 1990), better known by the stage names Seungri () and V.I, is a South Korean former singer-songwriter and was a member of the South Korean boy band BigBang (South Korean band), BigBang formed by YG Entertain ...
and Japanese actress
Miori Takimoto is a Japanese actress and a former singer. Takimoto debuted in 2003 as a singer of the girl group Sweets, where she performed under the name Miori. After Sweets disbanded, Takimoto appeared on television as an actress. Biography Miori Taki ...
. He also appeared as a guest character in the series '' Minna! ESPer Dayo!'' and in the drama special ''So Long!'', which was broadcast by NTV. Hongō also appeared in the WOWOW series ''KAZEOKE'' in August 2013 and performed in the radio drama ''Inanagi'' in February of the same year.


2014–2018: Transition in roles and success in Japan

Hongō starred in the 2014 drama ''Nazo no Tenkōsei'' as the titular character, who came from a parallel world, and he also appeared in the
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
drama '' Yowakutemo Katemasu'' as part of its recurring cast. In March 2014, he appeared in a guest role in the drama adaptation of '' Koibumi Biyori''. He played the lead role in the film '' Tokyo Slaves'', which was based on the Japanese novel series '' Doreiku'' written by Shinichi Okada. Hongō also voiced Julian Ayers Mackenzie in the
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
anime ''
Gundam Build Fighters , often abbreviated as GBF, is a 2013 Japanese science fiction anime television series based on Sunrise's long-running ''Gundam'' franchise. The series is directed by Kenji Nagasaki of '' No. 6'' and written by Yōsuke Kuroda of ''Mobil ...
''. He starred in the stage adaptation of the visual novel franchise ''
Danganronpa is a Japanese video game franchise created by Kazutaka Kodaka and developed and owned by Spike Chunsoft (formerly Spike). The series primarily surrounds various groups of apparent high-school students who are forced into murdering each oth ...
'' entitled ''Danganronpa: Kibō no Gakuen to Zetsubō no Kōkōsei THE STAGE''. He portrayed the lead character
Makoto Naegi is a fictional Character (arts), character introduced as the protagonist of the 2010 visual novel adventure game ''Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc'' by Spike Chunsoft. A fairly optimistic but otherwise average student who is selected in a raff ...
throughout its theatrical run from October to November 2014. In 2015, Hongō portrayed the
mahjong Mahjong (English pronunciation: ; also transliterated as mah jongg, mah-jongg, and mahjongg) is a tile-based game that was developed in the 19th century in China and has spread throughout the world since the early 20th century. It is played ...
prodigy Shigeru Akagi in '' Akagi'', a drama based on the
manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...
of the same name. He also starred in the NHK
miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...
''Chanpon Tabetaka'', the sequel to the 2013 series ''Castella''. By 2014, Hongō was revealed to portray
Armin Armin is a male given name and surname of Indo-European languages, Indo-European origin. In the Balkans, Armin is popular among Bosniaks in the former Yugoslavia, Yugoslav nations. The name is a modification of Amin (name), Amin, following a pat ...
in the 2015 live-action adaptation of the hit series ''
Attack on Titan is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama. It is set in a world where humanity is forced to live in cities surrounded by three enormous walls that protect them from gigantic man-eating humanoids referred to a ...
'' by
Hajime Isayama is a Japanese manga artist. His first series, ''Attack on Titan'' (2009–2021), became one of the best-selling manga series of all time with 140 million copies in circulation as of November 2023. He was awarded the Kodansha Manga Award in 201 ...
, which was aired in August 2015. He then reprised his role in the film's second part, ''Attack on Titan: End of the World'', which was released in September 2015. He also made a cameo appearance in the film '' Strayer's Chronicle'', which was distributed by
Warner Bros. Pictures Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film studio and distribution arm of the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group division of Warner Bros., both of which are owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex ...
, and he starred in the film ''Cinema Angel'' opposite Reiko Fujiwara and Mickey Curtis. Hongō starred in the 2016 drama-comedy film ''Yamikin Ushijima-kun Part 3'' alongside
Takayuki Yamada is a Japanese actor, singer, and producer. He is best known for his role as Sakutaro Matsumoto in TV drama ''Socrates in Love'' and as Densha Otoko in the Densha Otoko (film), 2005 film of the same name. Yamada gained international popularity th ...
and Gou Ayano. He also starred in the WOWOW series ''Kakko no Tamago wa Dare no Mono'', and reprised his character as Makoto Naegi in ''Danganronpa: Kibō no Gakuen to Zetsubō no Kōkōsei THE STAGE 2016'', which ran from June to July 2016. In 2017, Hongō played the role of young Jun Sekiya in '' Hyouka: Forbidden Secrets'' starring
Kento Yamazaki is a Japanese actor and model. He is best known for starring in manga adaptations, including the films '' L DK'' (2014), '' Orange'' (2015), ''Your Lie in April'' (2016), '' JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable Chapter I'' (2017), ...
and
Alice Hirose is a Japanese actress and former model. She has a younger sister, Suzu Hirose, who is also a model and actress. Filmography Television series Films Commercials * Takamiya Gakuen - ''Yoyogi Seminar'' (2009-2010) * Tomy - ''Love Digi'' Seri ...
, an adaptation of the Japanese
mystery novel Mystery is a fiction genre where the nature of an event, usually a murder or other crime, remains mysterious until the end of the story. Often within a closed circle of suspects, each suspect is usually provided with a credible motive and a re ...
'' Hyouka''. In December 2017, he portrayed the antagonist
Envy Envy is an emotion which occurs when a person lacks another's quality, skill, achievement, or possession and either desires it or wishes that the other lacked it. Envy can also refer to the wish for another person to lack something one already ...
in ''
Fullmetal Alchemist is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiromu Arakawa. It was serialized in Square Enix's shōnen manga, manga anthology magazine ''Gangan Comics#Monthly Shōnen Gangan, Monthly Shōnen Gangan'' between July 2001 and June ...
'', a live-action adaptation of the shōnen series of the same name. He starred in the series ''Rabuho no Ueno-san'' based on the
seinen is an editorial category of Japanese comics marketed toward young adult men. In Japanese, the word means "youth", but the term " manga" is also used to describe the target audience of magazines like '' Weekly Manga Times'' and '' Weekly Man ...
manga of the same name, portraying the titular character Ueno, and he later reprised this role for its second season. He also played the lead character in the four-episode late night drama '' Kaiju Club''. Hongō also reprised the role of Shigeru Akagi in ''Akagi: Ryūzaki·Yagi-hen/Ichikawa-hen'', the second part of its eponymous 2015 series. He appeared in the music video in Nano's 5th anniversary album ''The Crossing'', which was released on May 31, 2017. He voiced Sorrel in the ''
Pokémon is a Japanese media franchise consisting of List of Pokémon video games, video games, Pokémon (TV series), animated series and List of Pokémon films, films, Pokémon Trading Card Game, a trading card game, and other related media. The fran ...
'' film '' Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You!'' and voiced Naoyuki Andō in the anime '' Inuyashiki'', whom he also portrayed in the 2018 live-action adaptation of the same name. Hongō starred in the 2018
Yomiuri TV JOIX-DTV (channel 10), branded as , is the Kansai region flagship station of the Nippon News Network and the Nippon Television Network System, owned by the , itself a subsidiary of Yomiuri Chukyo FS Broadcasting Holdings. FYCS is partially c ...
–NTV drama ''Repeat'' opposite Shihori Kanjiya and Gori. In May 2018, he reprised the character of Shigeru Akagi in the concluding season of its 2015 series entitled ''Akagi: Washizu Mājan Kanketsu-hen''. He also starred in the LINE NEWS original web drama ''Mirai-san'' as the brother of the titular character.


2019–present: Career resurgence and continued success in roles

In 2019, Hongō starred in the mystery film ''Rin'' alongside Hayato Sano. He also portrayed Seikyou in the live-action adaptation '' Kingdom'' based on the 2006 manga of the same name, and played the role of contract killer Kid in the film ''
Diner A diner is a type of restaurant found across the United States and Canada, as well as parts of Western Europe and Australia. Diners offer a wide range of cuisine, mostly American cuisine, a casual atmosphere, and, characteristically, a comb ...
'' directed by Mika Ninagawa. He portrayed the character of Isami Kondō in the
MBS MBS may refer for: People * Mohammed Ben Sulayem (born 1961), president of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile * Mohammed bin Salman (born 1985), crown prince and prime minister of Saudi Arabia * Mohan Bikram Singh (born 1935), Nepales ...
drama ''Aozakura: Bōei Daigakukou Monogatari'', which was based on the manga of the same name. He also starred in the stage play ''MONSTER MATES'', which ran from February to March 2019, and performed in the Reading·Stage ''Yubi to Bara'' on June 15, 2019. He starred in the 2020
time travel Time travel is the hypothetical activity of traveling into the past or future. Time travel is a concept in philosophy and fiction, particularly science fiction. In fiction, time travel is typically achieved through the use of a device known a ...
-themed film ''Sengoku Girl to Kendo Boy'' opposite Kie Kitano. He also portrayed Makoto Karaki, the protagonist of the
adventure game An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story, driven by exploration and/or puzzle-solving. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based m ...
'' Death Come True'' written and directed by Kazutaka Kodaka.


Personal life

Hongō is known to be an avid fan of ''
Gundam is a Japanese military science fiction media franchise. Created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Sunrise (now Bandai Namco Filmworks), the franchise features giant robots, or mecha, with the name "Gundam". The franchise began on April 7, 1979, with ...
'' and
Gunpla Gundam Plastic models, Gundam Plamo, or are Plastic model kit, model kits depicting the mecha machinery and characters of the fictional ''Gundam'' multiverse by Bandai Spirits. These kits became popular among Mecha anime and manga, mecha anime ...
. In February 2020, during the Gunpla 40th Anniversary Project Presentation, he was invited as a talk show guest, where he stated that he has collected at least a hundred Gunpla kits and that Gunpla is quite useful for communication that "can allow us to connect with older generations". In November 2020, on his 30th birthday, Hongō launched his own
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel entitled . He has said that he became interested in YouTube through Tokai On Air, of which he is a fan and friend, and they have since appeared in several videos together.


Filmography


Film


Television


Web series


Theatre


Radio


Music video appearances


Video games


Books/magazines

* ''Boy Actor'' vol.1 (September 2005 and PIA) * "Nana2" Novelization (2006 and Shueisha Cobalt) * ''Real G'' vol.1 (January 2007 and SDP) * ''Real G'' vol.2 (May 2007 and SDP) * ''Junon Magazine'' (June 2014)


Others

* Concert Costarring "Gackt Live Tour 2003 The Month Of The Upper Chord" * The Radio Play "At Night Of A Big Blackout" – Shota Tazawa


References


External links


Official website



Kanata Hongō
on
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hongo, Kanata 1990 births 21st-century Japanese male actors Japanese male film actors Japanese male models Japanese male stage actors Japanese male television actors Japanese male voice actors Living people People from Sendai Stardust Promotion artists