Takuya Kimura facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Takuya Kimura
木村 拓哉
Kimura in 2008
Born	(1972-11-13) November 13, 1972 (age 52) Tokyo, Japan
Occupation	Singer actor
Years active	1987 (1987)–present
Agent	Starto Entertainment
Spouse(s)	Shizuka Kudo ​ (m. 2000)​
Children	Cocomi Kōki
Musical career
Genres	J-pop
Instruments	Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica
Labels	Victor Entertainment
Signature

Takuya Kimura (Japanese: 木村 拓哉, Hepburn: Kimura Takuya, born November 13, 1972) is a famous Japanese actor, singer, and radio host. He is seen as a big star in Japan because of his successful acting career. He was also a very popular member of SMAP, which was one of Asia's best-selling boy bands. Many people in Japan think of him as a heartthrob. In April 1988, a producer named Johnny Kitagawa picked six boys to form the new band "SMAP."

In 2020, Takuya Kimura released his very first solo music album, called "Go with the Flow." This album quickly became number one on the Oricon Albums Chart in Japan. It included songs written for him by famous groups like [ALEXANDROS], Superfly, and Noriyuki Makihara.

A month after his album came out, he went on a four-day concert tour. He performed in Tokyo and Osaka. The concert was later released on Blu-Ray and DVD, and it also became a number one hit on the Oricon Charts.

In May 2021, Takuya Kimura and his two daughters, Cocomi and Kōki, won awards at the Weibo Starlight Awards. They were honored alongside other international stars like Katy Perry and Taylor Swift.

His second solo album, "Next Destination," was released in January 2022. This album featured a special song called "Mojo Drive." It was a collaboration with the well-known artist Tatsuro Yamashita. Yamashita also wrote two other songs for the album. Other artists like Kyōka Suzuki and Man with a Mission also wrote songs for "Next Destination."

From February to March 2022, Takuya Kimura went on another concert tour. This tour, called "TAKUYA KIMURA Live Tour 2022 Next Destination," had eight shows across different cities in Japan. The concert video was released on Blu-Ray and DVD in August 2022 and topped the Oricon charts.

His third solo album, "See You There," came out on August 14, 2024. It has 11 songs written by famous Japanese artists. These include Ryota Yanagisawa from SUPER BEAVER and Toshinobu Kubota. Mariya Takeuchi, known for her global hit song Plastic Love, also wrote a song for the album. She said she wanted Takuya to sing a "boyish, heart-melting love song" even though he is in his 50s.

"See You There" quickly reached number one on the Billboard Japan Weekly Album Sales chart. This means Takuya Kimura has had three number one albums in a row! He started another concert tour, "TAKUYA KIMURA Live Tour 2024 SEE YOU THERE," in September 2024. The tour will continue until December 2024.

Becoming an Actor

In 1988, Takuya Kimura started his acting career in a TV show called Abunai Shonen III. He acted alongside his band members. He gained a lot of attention in 1993 for his role in the popular TV series Asunaro Hakusho.

A scene where he hugged his co-star from behind became very famous in Japan. People even started calling this type of hug "asunaro daki," meaning "asunaro hug." From 1994, many men in Japan began to copy his fashion and style. Clothes and items he wore, like thick, black-rimmed glasses from Asunaro Hakusho, became instant hits. This trend was known as the "Kimutaku syndrome." He won an award for his first movie role in Shoot!.

Big TV Show Success

Takuya Kimura got his first main role in the TV series Long Vacation in 1996. This show was a huge success and became the highest-rated program that year. It was so popular that people said, "women disappear from the city on Mondays," because so many women were watching the show. After he played a young pianist in the show, many young men started taking piano lessons. This big cultural impact was called the "Lonvaca phenomenon." This show also helped Takuya Kimura become a widely recognized actor.

In 2000, he starred in Beautiful Life, which was another massive hit. The final episode had over 40% of households watching it. In 2001, he starred in Hero, which became the highest-rated TV series ever in Japan. Every episode of Hero had over 30% of households watching. Other TV series he starred in, like Good Luck!!, Pride, and Engine, also had very high ratings. Five of his most successful TV shows are among the top ten highest-rated in Japanese history.

Movie Roles

In 2004, Takuya Kimura had a supporting role in the film 2046, which was nominated for an award at the Cannes Festival. He walked the red carpet there for the first time. Also in 2004, he voiced Howl Pendragon, the main character in Studio Ghibli's animated movie Howl's Moving Castle. He was the lead actor in Love and Honor (2006). This film earned a lot of money, becoming the biggest hit for director Yoji Yamada.

In the 2017 movie Blade of the Immortal, director Takashi Miike chose Takuya Kimura for the role. Miike felt that Kimura's popularity would bring in a larger audience. Even though some of Miike's team thought Kimura might not fit the role, Miike believed his acting experience made him perfect. Takuya Kimura said he had to deal with a lot of makeup and action scenes for the movie. He even got a serious injury during filming that made it hard for him to walk for several days. Blade of the Immortal was shown at the Cannes Festival, which was Kimura's second time at the event.

In 2021, it was announced that Takuya Kimura would star in a TV show based on the environmental thriller book, The Swarm.

In 2022, Takuya Kimura was chosen to play the historical figure Oda Nobunaga in the movie The Legend and Butterfly. This film was made to celebrate Toei's 70th Anniversary in 2023. It was the first time in 25 years that Kimura played Nobunaga. The movie was released in January 2023. In November 2022, Kimura appeared dressed as Nobunaga at the annual Gifu Nobunaga Festival. Half a million people came to the festival, hoping to see him.

In 2024, Takuya Kimura returned to his role as Natsuki Obana from the TV series La Grand Maison Tokyo. He starred in its movie sequel, La Grande Maison Paris. This movie will be shown at the upcoming San Sebastián International Film Festival. He was joined by Korean actor Ok Taec-yeon from the K-Pop group 2PM. Taec-yeon said he was very excited to work with Takuya Kimura, whom he admires. For the movie, Kimura even dyed his hair blonde to honor a famous Japanese chef. As part of promoting the movie, Kimura made a surprise appearance at the 2025 Michelin Guide Ceremony in Tokyo.

TV Shows and Radio

As a member of the boy band SMAP, Takuya Kimura co-hosted a weekly variety show called SMAPxSMAP for 20 years. The show ended when the group broke up in 2016. They had many famous guests, including Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga. He has also made guest appearances in other shows and variety programs.

Since 2003, Takuya Kimura has hosted a yearly variety show called Santaku with comedian Sanma Akashiya. This show celebrates the start of the New Year.

Video Games

When the action game Judgment was being made, the creators at Sega wanted a famous actor to play the main character, Takayuki Yagami. They chose Takuya Kimura for the role.

The game's writer, Toshihiro Nagoshi, was worried that people might think the character was made too soft because of Kimura's popularity. However, Takuya Kimura was very open to the team's ideas. He worked closely with the developers to make the character just right. Sega was very happy with Kimura's performance. They noted that he needed very few retakes during recording. Some lines were changed to fit Kimura's way of speaking, but the writers made sure the character's personality stayed the same. Takuya Kimura enjoyed working on the game.

Because of Takuya Kimura's popularity in Judgment, Japanese fans often call the game Kimutaku ga Gotoku. "Kimutaku" is a short way to say Takuya Kimura, and "Gotoku" means "Like a" in Japanese, referring to the Yakuza game series.

Takuya Kimura played Takayuki Yagami again in the sequel to Judgment, called Lost Judgment. This game was released in September 2021. He announced the sequel at an event called "Judgment Day."

Family Life

Takuya Kimura married singer Shizuka Kudo on December 5, 2000. They have two daughters. Their first daughter, Cocomi, was born on May 1, 2001. Their second daughter, Mitsuki, was born on February 5, 2003.

Other Activities

Product Ads

As a member of SMAP, Takuya Kimura and his bandmates used to be spokespeople for the company SoftBank. He is also well known for being the face of the Japanese men's grooming brand GATSBY. Takuya Kimura has been a brand ambassador for many other famous brands, such as Suntory, Levi's, LINE, and Nikon.

He also starred in a series of ads for Toyota with Takeshi Kitano and Hugh Jackman. In these ads, Kimura and Kitano played historical figures, while Jackman played the explorer Marco Polo. Takuya Kimura also worked with Beyoncé as a brand ambassador for the Japanese fashion brand Samantha Thavasa.

Since 2021, Takuya Kimura has been the current brand ambassador for McDonald's in Japan and the car company Nissan. In 2021, he worked with Ray-Ban to create two special lines of sunglasses. His initials are engraved on them by hand.

Filmography

Kimura Takuya's costume in Hero

Movies

TV Shows (as Actor)

TV Shows (as Host)

Radio Shows

Stage Plays

Video Games

Music Albums

Solo albums

• Go with the Flow (2020)
• Next Destination (2022)
• See You There (2024)

Awards and Recognitions

Takuya Kimura has won many awards for his acting and style. Here are some of them:

See also

In Spanish: Takuya Kimura para niños