Just wondering ...
Is there any celebrity in Japan from non-asian origin?

I'm not sure about actors but Bob Sapp and Mariah Carey are very popular in Japan.

Julie Dreyfus

She was in Kill Bill. Dunno if she's very famous in Japan, but from what I've read she speaks fluent Japanese (also English and French) and was a guest on Iron Chef.

I think they mean, uh, �O�l�^�����g.

KouSeiya315 wrote:

I think they mean, uh, �O�l�^�����g.

gaijin tarento?? what do you mean?? foreign talent? *scratches head*

Anyway, I would think Jean Reno's quite popular in Japan, with him being in Wasabi the film as well as Onimusha 3.
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I responded with that because people are naming a different sort of celebrity than what I was thinking. Maybe I took it the wrong way. I assumed the original question was asking about celebrities in Japan of non-Asian descent, meaning they do well mostly, if not totally, in Japan and probably speak the language (my def. of �O�l�^�����g). We pretty much know celebrities well known abroad are famous in Japan, such as Mariah Carey, as someone mentioned (she's famous everywhere and focuses in the U.S.). Maybe the original poster should clarify, because maybe I misconstrued things.....

Thane Camus -- He was in Sakura, and shows up often on game/variety shows.

His English is American, but I was told that he's the grandson of the French Existentialist philosopher Albert Camus (Myth of Sisyphus).

Won Bin?

BoA?

kinki_txr wrote:

BoA?

non Asian?

Won Bin and BoA are both Korean... I think the person meant non-Asian as totally not Asian at all, not just non-Japanese.

yah the only one i can think of is bob sapp.. -___-

whwhat bout crystal kay?

Crystal Kay is Korean. Most non-Asian people who are famous in Japan show up as odd characters in morning dramas or variety TV shows. There is also a famous newscaster guy (not the one from Sakura, he's just an actor/variety head) with jet blonde hair and stuff that does media talks on some show every week.
There are also 2 other girls who popped into my mind. One is around 20 years old, bright blonde hair and blue eyes and she speaks fluent Japanese--probably because she lived in Japan her whole life--haha, so I would hope she could speak Japanese. Another is some brunette lady in her 30s (yes, these are all Caucasian-appearing people, just so we get it clear) who reminds me of that American celebrity, Anna Nicole Smith. The high-pitched annoying voice and all.

Most of the famous non-Asian celebrities appeared in the morning drama, "Sakura" awhile back in 2002, if anyone has every seen it. (And that's like a good 4 or so people)

There's also that squeeky clean looking singing duo (brother and sister?) who sing American pop classics from the 60's and 70's.

Quote:

Most of the famous non-Asian celebrities appeared in the morning drama, "Sakura" awhile back in 2002, if anyone has every seen it. (And that's like a good 4 or so people)

Leonardo was played by some famous soccer player, right?

How about the other three - Ben, Aisha, and the French woman? Are there any interesting reasons why they are famous? (They didn't appear to be real actors)

yume wrote:

Most non-Asian people who are famous in Japan show up as odd characters in morning dramas or variety TV shows.

Yes there are a handful of them mostly doing variety shows. No real big names. The one who is a real eye opener is the african that usually dressed in his native garb and is VERY opinionated in his eyes, as a foreigner living in JPN. (the name escapes me, however...)

yume wrote:

There are also 2 other girls who popped into my mind...Another is some brunette lady in her 30s (yes, these are all Caucasian-appearing people, just so we get it clear) who reminds me of that American celebrity, Anna Nicole Smith.

She used to be a blond. Actually, her JPNese is very good. (Iforot her name as well) She got into showbiz, if you can call it that, by marrying a big TV producer.
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I saw the lady who played Aisha once, last year, on a talk-show about music across Africa. An interesting fact is that she is French, but she didn't play the French girl in "Sakura" (for obvious reasons that can be easily explained through Japan's conception of foreign countries). The guy who played Ben is quite famous enough, I suppose. He appears often in commercials and ads for the electronic store, DeoDeo, and often makes an appearance on tv variety and talk shows. The girl who played the French woman, no idea who she is.

As I said, the blonde girl's Japanese is probably good because she is probably from Japan. The brunette, no idea. Doesn't matter, she's fluent. Hahaha.

David Beckham!!! j/k
Amemiya Anna??
well i don't know much about that.....
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atheon wrote:

Amemiya Anna??

With her being half JPNese, lived in JPN most of her life and speaking fluently, they don't consider her as gaijin tarento.
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atheon wrote:

Amemiya Anna??

It's Umemiya.