"Mortal Kombat's" Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa Dies at 75 - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

JamesG · 12-05-2025, 04:47 AM

Mortal Kombat's Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa Dies at 75
by Ryan Coleman and Oliver Gettell
December 4, 2025

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, the Japanese-American actor known for his work in such films and TV series as "Mortal Kombat", "The Last Emperor", and The Man in the High Castle, died Thursday in Santa Barbara, Calif., from complications of a stroke. He was 75.

Tagawa's publicist, Penny Vizcarra, confirmed the news to Entertainment Weekly.

His is perhaps mostly known as the evil sorcerer Shang Tsung in the 1995 movie "Mortal Kombat" (based on the popular video game series) and Trade Minister Nobusuke Tagomi in the Prime Video TV series "The Man in the High Castle" (based on the Philip K. Dick novel).

Sally Phillips, his former wife of 30 years and mother to their two children, shared in a statement that Tagawa "came to L.A. and began teaching his own style of martial arts called Chu Shin. He was discovered by [Bernardo] Bertolucci and cast him in his first film, The Last Emperor. From there, he became a high-profile Asian actor in more than 30 films and in the series The Man in the High Castle."

His numerous television credits include "Revenge", "Heroes", and "Nash Bridges".

https://ew.com/cary-hiroyuki-tagawa-...ar-75-11862663

Mitty · 12-07-2025, 03:37 PM

Wonderful character actor. Not at his best in this, but as always, very memorable.

Dude111 · 12-17-2025, 08:30 PM

Very sad he was involved in such an evil hatefull movie!!

12-05-2025, 04:47 AM	#1
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 57,153	"Mortal Kombat's" Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa Dies at 75 Mortal Kombat's Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa Dies at 75 by Ryan Coleman and Oliver Gettell December 4, 2025 Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, the Japanese-American actor known for his work in such films and TV series as "Mortal Kombat", "The Last Emperor", and The Man in the High Castle, died Thursday in Santa Barbara, Calif., from complications of a stroke. He was 75. Tagawa's publicist, Penny Vizcarra, confirmed the news to Entertainment Weekly. His is perhaps mostly known as the evil sorcerer Shang Tsung in the 1995 movie "Mortal Kombat" (based on the popular video game series) and Trade Minister Nobusuke Tagomi in the Prime Video TV series "The Man in the High Castle" (based on the Philip K. Dick novel). Sally Phillips, his former wife of 30 years and mother to their two children, shared in a statement that Tagawa "came to L.A. and began teaching his own style of martial arts called Chu Shin. He was discovered by [Bernardo] Bertolucci and cast him in his first film, The Last Emperor. From there, he became a high-profile Asian actor in more than 30 films and in the series The Man in the High Castle." His numerous television credits include "Revenge", "Heroes", and "Nash Bridges". https://ew.com/cary-hiroyuki-tagawa-...ar-75-11862663 Attached Images

12-07-2025, 03:37 PM	#2
Mitty Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Nov 19, 2025 Location: Loma Linda Posts: 188	Wonderful character actor. Not at his best in this, but as always, very memorable. Attached Images

12-17-2025, 08:30 PM	#3
Dude111 Forum Legend Join Date: Nov 05, 2013 Posts: 36,486	Very sad he was involved in such an evil hatefull movie!!