Watanabe Ken

lamxlam wrote:Cannot believe...

Ken will play the villainous Ra's Al Ghul, an immortal strategic character in the upcoming BATMAN 5.

You can find a piece of news here:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000442501

That's interesting... I hope Watanabe-san doesn't get typecast into these stereotypical "Evil Asian" roles by Hollywood...

bmwracer wrote:That's interesting... I hope Watanabe-san doesn't get typecast into these stereotypical "Evil Asian" roles by Hollywood...

i don't know, i was thinking the same thing. i did a search on the character Ra's Al Ghul to see what kind of villian he is and it's not definitive that he is of asian descent. does anyone know?

niko2x wrote:i don't know, i was thinking the same thing. i did a search on the character Ra's Al Ghul to see what kind of villian he is and it's not definitive that he is of asian descent. does anyone know?

Hell, I'm skeptical about Batman 5 the movie... :rolleyes: I mean they ran the Superman franchise into the ground, didn't they?? Bleah.

Cherry Blossom wrote:



i can't hear it but i'll keep trying!!

It finally played!! :applaud: He was singing in english "Close to you" by the carpenters and he told a few jokes. :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

I am sooo in love! :love_eyes: :love_eyes:


Congrats to him on his new role....


LAM your site is the bomb baby!!! :D :D

i do not speak the language but any info on Ken's marriage/divorce (in English) will be appreciated. :muack: :muack: :mrgreen:

niko2x wrote:i don't know, i was thinking the same thing. i did a search on the character Ra's Al Ghul to see what kind of villian he is and it's not definitive that he is of asian descent. does anyone know?

Ra's al Ghul is probably Batman's most formidable enemy; if all of Batman's foes had to fight each other to get to the caped crusader Ra's al Ghul (I think it's translated into "Devil's Head") would be the last one standing -- yes, this IS against The Joker, Two-Face, Mr. Freeze, etc. Not bad for a guy centuries old. But he's not a vampire -- Ra's al Ghul benefits from one of your higher-end priced pools known as "The Lazarus Pit." The pit allows Ra's al Ghul to regenerate each time he slips into it (the pit obviously becomes beneficial after every time Bats kicks the villian's oshiri). There is a side effect, however . . . each time Ra's al Ghul uses the pool, he gets more and more mad ("mad" as in "insane," for lack of a better word).

That all having been said . . . from my understanding, The Lazarus Pool will NOT BE FEATURED IN THE UPCOMING Batman: Intimidation, or whatever they're calling it. Say it with me, BOOOOOOOO! :angry:

Ra's al Ghul is, in fact, Oriental in nature . . . and it's implied that he hails from your Middle East part of the world. He looks Caucasian the way he's drawn in the comic books. Also, think the love child of Dracula and Star Trek's Khan and you'll get a better picture. He's one of those villains that'd fit in well in a 007 movie -- you know, has his own private army, goal is to make the world a better place at the cost of human lives. You know, that kinda' cat.

There was a DC series done not too far back about an alternate reality Superman and Batman story that tracked their existence over the same decades in which most of us alive today have lived (this is an anomaly in the sense that the one thing comic books don't do to their main characters is "age" them). Superman doesn't grow old in ANY reality, and, to make a long story short, the way they have Batman manage to live and fight alongside The Man of Steel for as long as he graces the planet is to have (ta-da!) Batman jump into The Lazarus Pit! For some reason, Batman doesn't go insane . . . if I recall, I think the explanation included that his heart and demeanor is benevolent, overall.

Ahem . . . but, to answer the question . . . to folks who know Ra's al Ghul through the comic books (and, just making a statement that can be proved here), it's gonna be funny to see the character tanned and with a Japanese accent. THAT having been said . . . Watanabe, as we all know, IS a great actor and might very well give Ra's al Ghul a look, however revisioned, that redefines the character for the better.

Regardless, I'd rather see Watanabe-san play a more modern and less "stereotypical" role... And that appears to not be possible in Hollywood for the most part... Bleah. :(

Cherry Blossom wrote: i do not speak the language but any info on Ken's marriage/divorce (in English) will be appreciated. :muack: :muack: :mrgreen:

About Ken's news of Divorce...

So far, the first court has been started on 6 Feb 2004. Ken attended the court while his wife did not show up. But send a lawyer to court.

On the court, Ken said that his wife has been started borrowing money from his agency, the religious party they joined, his friends and even the parents of their kids' friends. The amount borrowed is huge. He had no idea what the money for. At the beginning, he though his wife borrow money for his sickness, but in turn he found it was not the reason. He found that he could not further trust his wife and therefore asked for seperation.

While his wife, via her lawyer, said that Ken was having affairs with at least five actresses (with initials announced) so far. And she also said that Ken did not pay for the education fee of their kids.

Next court will be opened in March.

Good luck to Ken and hope that all this could be settled as soon as possible.

bmwracer wrote:Regardless, I'd rather see Watanabe-san play a more modern and less "stereotypical" role... And that appears to not be possible in Hollywood for the most part... Bleah. :(

I hate that too...boo! :mad: There's no equal treatment and opportunity for Asian actors in Hollywood.

Cherry Blossom wrote: i do not speak the language but any info on Ken's marriage/divorce (in English) will be appreciated. :muack: :muack: :mrgreen:

Here's a bio on Watanabe-san from japan-zone.com:


Watanabe Ken (Niigata Prefecture, 1959- ) [image]

Casting Watanabe Ken as the "Last Samurai" in the Hollywood movie of the same name was the perfect choice, as he had firmly established himself in the 1980s as the ideal actor for such roles. But in fact, the critical acclaim and Golden Globe nomination that he earned in the role came, for many people, as an unexpected pinnacle in a career that seemed doomed just a few years before. A battle with disease that was as life-threatening as any on-screen opponent, followed by a struggle to work his way out of serious debt had many people writing him off as an actor with any real future. But Watanabe is a survivor, and a damned fine actor, to boot.

Born in the snowy recesses of Niigata Prefecture, Watanabe came to Tokyo after graduating high school in 1978 looking to be an actor and started studying with the En training studio, which he would belong to for over 20 years. Almost straight away he drew attention in his first starring role in the play Shitaya Mannencho Monogatari, directed by the famous Ninagawa Yukio. His next step was in the TBS drama Michinaru Hanran (Unknown Rebellion) in 1982. His movie debut came in 1984's Setouchi Shonen Yakyudan (MacArthur's Children) about kids learning the meaning of democracy in postwar rural Japan. A handful of other movies came his way in the following years, including Itami Juzo's 1985 classic Tampopo (Dandelion). But Watanabe's reputation was built upon solid acting on the stage and in TV period dramas. His popularity soared during the 1987 NHK "taiga" (weekly period dramas that usually run for a full year) Dokuganryu Masamune (One-eyed Dragon, Masamune), to this day still the most popular taiga ever. Watanabe played the led role of the legendary daimyo (warlord) Date Masamune, easily recognized by his crescent moon helmet decoration, and won over many new fans with his powerful performance. The same year, he received the Ecran d'Or Best New Actor Award from the Japan Film and Television Producers' Society for the film Umi to Dokuyaku (The Sea and Poison).Other major historical works included the classic revenge tale Chushingura and the story of shogun Oda Nobunaga.

In 1989, it was on the Calgary, Alberta set of yet another samurai epic, Kadokawa Haruki's Ten to Chi to (Heaven and Earth), that the big blow came to Watanabe's career. He was diagnosed with acute myelogenic leukemia, a life-threatening disease of the bone marrow, that put an end to his part in the movie. Even though he was able to return to acting after just a couple of years, his battle with the disease continued for much longer, with continued monthly visits to the hospital. At the time, he said in an interview, "When filming, I need to put all my physical and mental energy into acting. So I can forget about the fact that I'm sick. To the extent that people ask me 'Are you okay pushing yourself that hard?'" The answer was "No," and in 1994 he had a relapse. But once again, he fought back and was working within a year.

Following his comeback, he seems to have appeared in more contemporary productions, such as the 1997 comedy Rajio no Jikan (Welcome Back, Mr. McDonald) and Kizuna (1998), co-starring Yakusho Koji, for which he received a Japanese Academy Award. But while the comeback was well underway, domestically things were starting to catch up on him. He had entrusted his financial management to his wife Yumiko while he focussed wholeheartedly on his career. But at a tearful press conference in late 2001, he revealed that his home (bought for \170 million shortly before his illness) had been repossessed by tax authorities and he was heavily in debt. He refused to blame his wife, whom he thanked for her solid support, and vowed to work hard in order to repay his debts. The following year, he quit the En theater group where he had his start and joined the K-Dash agency. He won a second Academy Award for his part in the movie Sennen no Koi, based on the famous historical piece Tale of Genji, said to have been the world's first novel. He also became the TV commercial face of drink maker Yakult.

While on the New Zealand set of The Last Samurai, Watanabe and other staff and crew appeared by satellite hook-up on the 2003 Japanese Academy Awards show. Co-star Sanada Hiroyuki took the Best Actor Award for Tasogare Seibei, and Watanabe got one for his supporting role in Hiwa Mata Noboru (The Sun Will Rise Again).

In The Last Samurai, Tom Cruise plays Nathan Algren, a booze-adled Amercan Civil war veteran who comes to Japan to train the Imperial troops to use modern weapons. Algren's troops take on and lose to the country's sole surviving samurai, led by Katsumoto (Watanabe), who soon wins over the American with his warrior's code of honor. Asked about his experience in the Hollywood epic, he said, "Of course I felt the scale of Hollywood always because the set is amazing. Me and Algren work a lot in the snow temple. No dialogue, it's only montage, very short cuts and the big set we made is so amazing." On the subject of sword fights, "It's a difficult thing because Katsumoto carries two swords. Very different style, and the footwork is so very different. Very difficult choreography."

Along with Sanada and Yakusho, Watanabe is one of Japan's most versatile and talented actors. We can only hope that his hardest trials are behind him and that he can continue to build on his well-earned reputation.

ooh .. Ken is slated to play the nemesis to Batman in the new upcoming Batman movie.

sid wrote:ooh .. Ken is slated to play the nemesis to Batman in the new upcoming Batman movie.

Yep. It was mentioned on the previous page: http://jdorama.com/viewtopic.php?p=61788#61788

lam, thanks sooo much! Wow, I knew he had lost his home and money once because his wife mismanaged the finanaces. apperantly he did a tearful press conference about it. :( :( :( :( This is soo awful for my sweet ken :( :(

OMG @ ken having affairs! :mad: :mad: I hope this is not true. :hehe: :hehe:

lamxlam wrote:

About Ken's news of Divorce...

So far, the first court has been started on 6 Feb 2004. Ken attended the court while his wife did not show up. But send a lawyer to court.

On the court, Ken said that his wife has been started borrowing money from his agency, the religious party they joined, his friends and even the parents of their kids' friends. The amount borrowed is huge. He had no idea what the money for. At the beginning, he though his wife borrow money for his sickness, but in turn he found it was not the reason. He found that he could not further trust his wife and therefore asked for seperation.

While his wife, via her lawyer, said that Ken was having affairs with at least five actresses (with initials announced) so far. And she also said that Ken did not pay for the education fee of their kids.

Next court will be opened in March.

Good luck to Ken and hope that all this could be settled as soon as possible.

He had entrusted his financial management to his wife Yumiko while he focussed wholeheartedly on his career. But at a tearful press conference in late 2001, he revealed that his home (bought for \170 million shortly before his illness) had been repossessed by tax authorities and he was heavily in debt. He refused to blame his wife, whom he thanked for her solid support, and vowed to work hard in order to repay his debts.

Thanks bmw..

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: @ his wife!! :angry: :angry: :angry:

DrGonzo wrote:Yes, do it. I love films with samurai swords and fighters, like those "tiger and dragon" thing. Next movie I wanna see is "Hero". Does anyone have seen it? Is it good?

IMO, "Hero" (you are talking about the Hong Kong one with Jet Li, right?)was the most horrible movie I have ever seen...(or close to it anyways). There must've been a total of 5 lines of dialogue, just way too slow moving for me. Total waste of my time :shakehead:

Watanabe Ken might do well to portray the mid-level Yakuza soldier Sato from Patrick Foss's The Bang Devils: http://www.patrickfoss.com/index.htm. The novel's pretty great, kind of Elmore Leonard-esque (Foss even gives a "tip of the hat" to the crime writer) . . . but I was surprised at how Tarantino-esque the novel read as well. The Bang Devils is about [SPOILER AHEAD IF YOU'RE GONNA READ THE BANG DEVILS] a coupla' transplanted U.S. citizens in Japan, one a bar hostess, the other a bouncer/drifter, planning kidnapping one old man Zeniya, who they assume is a corporate head with lots of money; he turns out to be a Yakuza chief. Foss does well to show his own transplanting in Japan by satirizing J-pop group names, as well as his take on the am/pms, and other Japanese-centric pop culture references.

That old man in Younger Men could play the Yakuza chief in question. The film could even serve to grandfather in a younger Japanese acteur into Hollywood (maybe someone like Tsumabuki Satoshi; how's his English? Anybody? If it's kinda' broken, that's OK because that's how Taro speaks) with the character of Taro.

The entire novel takes place in Japan.

The ending is probably something like you've never seen before.

SPOILER ENDS FOR THE BANG DEVILS NOVEL/TEXT.

I think Ken can do it well.

He is so man and with character on his face. He could surely do well in this kind of characters!

I know that little freak-show sean penn is going to win actor.
And that other freak-show charlize theron is going to win actress.
And that little freak-show Peter Jackson is going to win best actor.
But I have no idea about sup. actor I sure hope Ken Watanabe wins!!
It would be so Kool!!! :nut:
But the Lord of the Rings was such a great movie!!! I think Peter Jackson does deserve it after all those years.

eh -- just thank the dumb academy for being nominated... :mrgreen:

Rony Oka wrote:IAnd that little freak-show Peter Jackson is going to win best actor.
But I have no idea about sup. actor I sure hope Ken Watanabe wins!!
It would be so Kool!!! :nut:
But the Lord of the Rings was such a great movie!!! I think Peter Jackson does deserve it after all those years.

You mean best director right?
Yeah I hope watanabe wins and so does Peter Jackson.