Masi Oka facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Masi Oka
Oka at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con
Born	(1974-12-27) December 27, 1974 (age 50) Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan
Education	Brown University (BS)
Occupation	Actor producer digital effects artist
Years active	1998–present
Japanese name
Kanji	岡 政偉
Kana	おか まさより
Transcriptions Romanization Oka Masayori

Masayori "Masi" Oka (岡 政偉, Oka Masayori, December 27, 1974) is a Japanese-American actor, producer, and digital effects artist. He is well-known for his roles as Hiro Nakamura in the TV show Heroes and as Doctor Max Bergman in Hawaii Five-0. For his role in Heroes, he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.

Early life

Masi Oka was born in Tokyo, Japan, on December 27, 1974. His parents divorced when he was very young, and he was raised by his mother. When he was six years old, he and his mother moved from Japan to Los Angeles, USA.

When he was eight, Masi appeared on a CBS-TV game show called Child's Play. Later, at age 12, he was featured on the cover of Time magazine. This was for an article about talented Asian-American children.

Masi was also very good at math. In 1988, he placed fourth in a big math competition in California. He was one of four students to represent California in the national MATHCOUNTS competition.

Education and first job

Masi Oka went to Brown University. He studied computer science and mathematics and also took theater arts classes. He graduated in 1997.

After college, Masi got his first job at Industrial Light & Magic (ILM). This is a famous company that creates visual effects for movies. It was started by George Lucas, who created Star Wars. Masi hoped to win an Oscar one day for his technical work in films. He worked on the Star Wars prequel movies, helping to create their special effects.

Career

Oka in 2007

Starting acting (2000–2005)

Masi Oka started trying out for acting roles in 2000. He earned his Screen Actors Guild card, which allowed him to work in professional films. He then moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting more seriously.

During this time, Masi got several small roles in movies and TV shows. He appeared in Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002) and an episode of the sitcom Yes, Dear. He also had a recurring role as Franklyn on the NBC comedy Scrubs. He even appeared in a commercial for the PlayStation 2 video game Shinobi.

Becoming famous with Heroes (2006–2010)

In 2006, Masi Oka got a big role as Hiro Nakamura in the NBC TV series Heroes. His character, Hiro, could manipulate time and space. Masi even translated his own lines from English to Japanese for the show.

Heroes became a huge hit, and Masi's performance as Hiro made him very popular. He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Primetime Emmy Award for his acting. He was also named the "Coolest Geek" at the Spike TV Guys' Choice Awards in 2007. He even presented an award with his Heroes co-star Hayden Panettiere at the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.

Even while working on Heroes, Masi continued to work part-time at ILM. He helped create special effects by writing computer programs. He also appeared in the movie Get Smart as a character named Bruce.

Hawaii Five-0 and other projects (2010–present)

Masi Oka joined the cast of CBS's Hawaii Five-0 in 2010. This show was a remake of an older series. He played the character of Dr. Max Bergman, a coroner. He became a main cast member in the second season.

In 2015, Masi returned to his famous role as Hiro Nakamura in the miniseries Heroes Reborn.

Masi has also used his digital effects skills in the world of video games. He started a video game development studio called Mobius Digital. He was a producer for their critically acclaimed game Outer Wilds.

Personal life

Masi Oka is very good at languages. He can speak Japanese, English, and Spanish fluently. He even worked as a translator at the 1992 Summer Olympics.

When he was younger, Masi played chess. He also collects manga, which are Japanese comic books. He helped produce the 2017 American movie Death Note, which was based on a famous manga series.

Masi Oka has a black belt in kendō, which is a Japanese martial art similar to fencing.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Audiobook

Digital effects artist

See also

In Spanish: Masi Oka para niños