Ryo Yoshizawa


Ryo Yoshizawa is a Japanese actor. His breakthrough roles include Sogo Okita in the Gintama live-action films, King Ei Sei/Hyou in Kingdom and Manjiro "Mikey" Sano in Tokyo Revengers. He is known for his expressive eyes and natural acting style. He is also known for his role in tokusatsu, as Ryusei Sakuta/Kamen Rider Meteor in Kamen Rider Fourze.
WWW artist.amuse.co.jp/artist...𝕏 ryo_staffIG ryoyoshizawa_staff

Early life

Yoshizawa was born on February 1, 1994, in Tokyo, Japan. He is the second of four sons. Yoshizawa is skilled in second dan in kendo, which he has been practicing for over nine years.

Career

Yoshizawa began his acting career after winning the "Right-on" award at Amuse National Audition 2009 THE PUSH! Man held by talent agency Amuse. He competed against 31,514 other applicants. Yoshizawa's mother was the one who encouraged him to join the audition. He was motivated to compete in the audition because of the 1 million yen prize money but then felt disappointed when he only got a special award without monetary reward. A month after audition announcement ceremony, he was contacted by a manager and agreed to sign with Amuse.
In the beginning of 2011, Yoshizawa made his television drama debut in Sign with other Amuse actors like Dori Sakurada and Takuya Uehara. In the second half of that year, he starred in NHK youth drama Kingyo Club. He went on to portray Ryusei Sakuta in Kamen Rider Fourze, making his debut in the seventeenth episode. In an interview related to his role as Ryusei Sakuta, Yoshizawa revealed his inspiration behind his character's split personality and his first experience in ADR recording. Yoshizawa compared his character to that of Light Yagami from Death Note. He also watched Bruce Lee films as a reference, as his character frequently performed the trademark kiai of "Howatchā" when firing punches or kicks.
In 2017, he portrayed the role of Shinsengumi 1st Division Captain Okita Sougo in the 2017 live-action film of the popular manga series Gintama, and reprised the role in the sequel, Gintama 2, in 2018. In 2018 alone, he actively participated in acting, appearing in 8 movies, 2 dramas, and 1 play. Among them, River's Edge, a film of the same name based on Kyoko Okazaki's manga, was submitted to the Panorama section of the 68th Berlin International Film Festival, and appeared on the red carpet at an international film festival for the first time with director Isao Yukisada and actress Fumi Nikaido. In addition, for this work, he won the Best New Actor Award at the 10th Tama Film Festival, the Best New Actor Award at the 40th Yokohama Film Festival, and the Best New Actor Award at the 42nd Japan Academy Awards.
In NHK's 100th serial morning drama, Natsuzora, which aired from April 2019, Yoshizawa played the role of Yamada Tenyo, a character based on the real-life Kanda Nissho, a childhood friend of the protagonist Natsu and a Hokkaido painter. He was selected through an audition of over 2,500 people, and as a leading and supporting actor who has a great influence on the life of the main character, he gave a passionate performance and beautifully portrayed the life of a local painter who loved the soil and lived buried in the soil with transparent acting reminiscent of the great nature of Hokkaido. Since the airing of the 23rd week, in which his character Tenyo last appears, 'Tenyo-kun' has appeared in real-time trends on Twitter, to the point where people are suffering from 'Tenyo-kun aftereffects'. His excellent performance in Natsuzora earned him the honor of the 2019 Elan d'or Awards for Rookie of the Year.
In July 2019, it was announced that Yoshizawa had been selected to play the main character Shibusawa Eiichi in NHK's 60th taiga drama, Reach Beyond the Blue Sky, which is scheduled to air from February until December 2021. Yoshizawa is the first Heisei-born actor to play the lead role in taiga drama, he was selected through an offer from NHK and it was said that there were many recommendations from the production team who worked with him on Natsuzora.
Yoshizawa also attempted voice acting for the first time, performing two roles in his first attempt at Super Peace Busters' new work, Her Blue Sky. With this work, Yoshizawa attended the Sitges Film Festival, where the work was submitted, along with director Tatsuyuki Nagai and actress Riho Yoshioka. He also voiced original character, Rody Soul, for third movie version of the animation series My Hero Academia, which was released on August 6, 2021. Yoshizawa alongside actress Aoi Miyazaki starred in a Netflix mystery & romance comedy movie, In Love and Deep Water, that premiered in November 2023 which Yuji Sakamoto was the screenwriter.
From October 2022, Yoshizawa took on his first lead role in Getsuku drama, PICU: Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, playing the role of Takeshiro Shikota. It is also his first doctor character since his debut and the average viewer rating of the drama was 8.5%. He reprised his role for the special drama and spin-off of PICU: Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, which aired in April 2024.
Yoshizawa was questioned by the police after an incident on December 30, 2024 where he had drunkenly entered a neighbor's unlocked apartment without permission, mistaking the unit as his own, to use their restroom. As a result, Asahi Beer dropped their endorsement deal with him and Shochiku delayed Babanba Banban Vampire movie initially set to release on February 14, 2025. On the other hand, Iris Ohyama announced that it would continue its contract with him, earning praise online.
Yoshizawa stars in Lee Sang-il's 2025 film Kokuho. He plays Kikuo Tachibana, a yakuza's son who performs as a woman in kabuki. The film is based on the novel by Shuichi Yoshida and tells the story of two men from different backgrounds who become rivals in kabuki, one a yakuza's son and the other a kabuki heir, in postwar Japan. Kokuho has been officially selected for the 57th Directors' Fortnight at the 78th Cannes Film Festival.
Following Natsuzora, Yoshizawa was announced to join another morning drama, The Ghost Writer's Wife, as Yuichi Nishikori, an English teacher who will have a major impact on the lives of the heroines Toki Matsuno and Heaven. His second morning drama is scheduled to air in the second half of 2025.

Filmography

TV series

YearTitleRoleOther notes
2011SignYūki Nagi
2011Kingyo ClubShō Yanagihashi
2011–2012Kamen Rider FourzeRyūsei Sakuta/Kamen Rider Meteor
2012Please Do SomethingKeita YabeEpisode 2
20133-in-1 House ShareNegishi
2013BussenShosuke Tamura
2013The Liar and His Lover: SidestoryYuichi Kimijima
2014Lost DaysNatsu Takano
2014The Man with World's Biggest PotentialIkeda
2014Water Polo YankeesShinsuke Kato
2014Hell Teacher NubeKatsuya Kimura
2015HeatKohei Matsuyama
2015IchiroIemochi TokugawaEpisode 1
2015Lady GirlsRyosuke Maekawa
2016Please Love Me!Junta SanoEpisode 1
2016Criminologist Himura and Mystery Writer ArisugawaEisuke HataEpisode 2
2016Is It Real That Teacher Hayako Is Going to Marry?Hayato KitsuregawaEpisodes 4-7
2016BudokanDaichi Mizushima
2016Cold CaseJunichi KudoEpisode 1
2017Tomodachi GameYūichi KatagiriLead role
2017Inside MariIsao Komori
2017Gintama: Mitsuba HenSogo Okita
2017Shimokitazawa Die HardKidnapperEpisode 1
2017Love and Hong KongKenta YamadaLead role; miniseries
2018Survival WeddingYuichi Kashiwagi
2018Gintama of the UnusualSogo OkitaEpisode 1
2018Giver: Revenge's GiverGibaLead role
2019Natsuzora: Natsu's SkyTen'yō YamadaAsadora
2019Les MisérablesJun Baba TV movie
2020Hanzawa Naoki 2: Episode 0Kei KōsakaLead role; TV movie
2020Hanzawa Naoki 2Kei KōsakaEpisode 3; cameo
2021Reach Beyond the Blue SkyShibusawa EiichiLead role; Taiga drama
2022PICUTakeshirō ShikotaLead role
2025-2026The Ghost Writer's WifeYūichi NishikōriAsadora

Films

YearTitleRoleOther notes
2011Kamen Rider × Kamen Rider Fourze & OOO: Movie War Mega MaxRyūsei Sakuta/Kamen Rider MeteorCredited as "Mysterious student"
2012Kamen Rider × Super Sentai: Super Hero TaisenRyūsei Sakuta/Kamen Rider Meteor
2012Kamen Rider Fourze the Movie: Space, Here We Come!Ryūsei Sakuta/Kamen Rider Meteor
2012Toei Hero Next 2: The Future I'm ExecutingRisemanLead role
2012Kamen Rider × Kamen Rider Wizard & Fourze: Movie War UltimatumRyūsei Sakuta/Kamen Rider Meteor
2013The Liar and His LoverYuichi Kimijima
2013Daily Lives of High School BoysHidenori Tabata
2014Blue Spring RideAya Kominato
2016Wolf Girl and Black PrinceYū Kusakabe
2016Dangerous Cops: Final 5 DaysKazunori Kawasumi
2017GintamaSogo Okita
2017Tomodachi Game: The MovieYūichi KatagiriLead role
2017Tomodachi Game: The Movie – FinalYūichi KatagiriLead role
2017Psychic KusuoShun Kaidō
2018River's EdgeIchiro YamadaLead role
2018Anoko no TorikoYori SuzukiLead role
2018Evil and the MaskRyōsuke Itō
2018Marmalade BoyYū MatsuuraLead role
2018ReonTōru Ichijō
2018The Cat in Their ArmsCat YoshioLead role
2018BleachUryū Ishida
2018Gintama 2Sogo Okita
2019KingdomEi Sei/Hyou
2020Not Quite Dead YetMatsuoka
2020SakuraHajime Hasegawa
2020Blue, Painful, FragileKaede TabataLead role
2020AwakeEiichiLead role
2021Tokyo RevengersManjiro "Mikey" Sano
2022Kingdom 2: Far and AwayEi Sei
2022Black Night ParadeMiharu HinoLead role
2023FamiliaManabu
2023In Love and Deep WaterSuguru UbukataLead role
2023Tokyo Revengers 2: Bloody Halloween Part 1Manjiro "Mikey" Sano
2023Tokyo Revengers 2: Bloody Halloween Part 2Manjiro "Mikey" Sano
2023Kingdom 3: The Flame of DestinyEi Sei
2023FamilyMakotoLead role
2024Living in Two WorldsDai IgarashiLead role
2024Kingdom 4: Return of the Great GeneralEi Sei
2025KokuhoKikuo TachibanaLead role
2025Babanba Banban VampireMori RanmaruLead role
2026Kingdom 5Ei Sei

Others

YearTitleRoleNotes
2010-2011Disney 365MC
2012-2013Honoo-no Taiiku-kai TVKendo club member
2014-2017Koin TossPanelistSeason 1-6
2016Good Night PrinceStory teller
2019-2025Futto Word 10Crab-obsessed actorObsessed celebrity segment
2020Zip!Friday personalityNews program
202071st NHK Kōhaku Uta GassenJudge

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryWorkResult
201810th Tama Film AwardsBest Emerging ActorRiver's Edge, Marmalade Boy, and Gintama 2Won
201940th Yokohama Film FestivalBest NewcomerRiver's Edge, Marmalade Boy, and Gintama 2Won
201942nd Japan Academy Film PrizeNewcomer of the YearRiver's EdgeWon
202062nd Blue Ribbon AwardsBest Supporting ActorKingdomWon
202043rd Japan Academy Film PrizeBest Supporting ActorKingdomWon
202044th Elan d'or AwardsNewcomer of the YearNatsuzora, KingdomWon
2021110th The Television Drama Academy AwardsBest ActorReach Beyond the Blue SkyWon
202230th Hashida AwardsNewcomer of the YearReach Beyond the Blue SkyWon
202416th Tama Film AwardsBest ActorLiving in Two Worlds, Kingdom 4: Return of the Great General, FamilyWon
202534th Japan Movie Critics AwardsBest ActorLiving in Two WorldsWon
202517th Tama Film AwardsBest ActorKokuho, Babanba Banban VampireWon
202538th Nikkan Sports Film AwardsBest ActorKokuho, Babanba Banban VampireWon
202550th Hochi Film AwardsBest ActorKokuhoWon
2025GQ Men of The Year 2025Best ActorKokuhoWon
2025Elle Cinema Awards 2025Elle Men AwardKokuhoWon
202647th Yokohama Film FestivalBest ActorKokuhoWon
202680th Mainichi Film AwardsBest Lead Performance KokuhoWon
202668th Blue Ribbon AwardsBest ActorKokuho
202649th Japan Academy Film PrizeBest ActorKokuho
202699th Kinema Junpo AwardsBest ActorKokuho and othersWon