Tet Wada


Tet Wada is a global actor working in Asia, Europe and North America. Wada was born in Tokyo.

Early life

Wada was born in Minato-ku, Tokyo.
He moved to the United States at the age of 18 and obtained a degree in international marketing from Baruch College in New York City.

Career

After graduating, Wada worked in a marketing role at Donna Karan New York's headquarters. While he was a student, Wada worked as a researcher and house model for leather designer Anton, whose celebrity clients include Aerosmith, Lenny Kravitz, Sting and Alicia Keys. New York-based modeling agency Q Models saw Wada and signed him on as its first Asian model. Wada was initially not interested in modeling and continued to work at Donna Karan, but his strong Asian features and cool persona shot him to modeling fame, and Wada resigned from his marketing job.
Wada became the first Japanese male model to be featured in Vogue Paris. He was cast with top model Daria Werbowy in a widely talked about photograph of the two kissing.
Wada solidified his reputation as a leading Asian fashion artist and collaborated with world-famous photographers including Michael Thompson, Terry Richardson, Markus Klinko and Greg Lotus.
Wada also acted in numerous TV shows and movies in the U.S. and a film he had a leading role in screened at the 2012 New York City Independent Film Festival.
In 2012, Wada formally shifted his career focus to Asia.
After shooting a film in Japan, he spent 3 months in Taiwan as a main cast member of the television series Chocolat.
Wada has appeared in multiple advertisement campaigns for global brands including SONY, Hewlett Packard, Motorola, SK-II, L'Oreal, Subaru, Evian, Bacardi, KOOL Cigarettes, Uniqlo, and GAP. He was booked by Uniqlo at the onset of the brand's expansion into the U.S. and European markets and appeared in its campaigns for four years.
He has appeared in ads for brands in Asia and modeled for the Diane Shampoo series from 2013 to 2015 co-starring with Yuriko Yoshitaka.
He also appeared in ad campaigns for Laundrin with Ai Tominaga and Fine Visual with Harisembon in 2018-19.

Personal life

  • He is fluent in Japanese, English and Spanish and learned Chinese in Taipei after being cast in Chocolat.
  • He is often mistaken for Japanese-American due to living overseas for a long time and because of his toned physique, but he is 100% Japanese. He values living in different countries and learning about their culture and meeting their people.
  • He is big on correspondence and always sends a hand-written note to close friends and family members on their birthdays. He also updates his blogs frequently.
  • He was always interested in English and motorcycles since he was little, and watched English TV programs in earnest. According to his blog, he decided to move to the United States when he was in elementary school after watching the American movie Smokey and the Bandit II.
  • During elementary school, he mastered riding a miniature Yamaha Motocross. He still rides his vintage U.S.-manufactured Honda that he rode in New York that he arranged to send back to Japan. He has said, "A motorcycle is a man's life partner in pursuing his dreams."
  • He is friends with New York-based exotic skin and leather artist Anton, and studied fashion by going to his studio every day. It was Anton who convinced Wada to model for the first time.
  • He worships Bruce Lee's way of life. He has pursued multiple martial art forms including Aikido. He has followed a workout regimen for over 20 years. After reaching a point of doing over 1800 push-ups a day, in 2018, he switched his workout to doing pull-ups.　He has a 4th-level blackbelt of Aikido, the Japanese martial art.

    Filmography

  • 2005 Winter Butterfly
  • 2006 One Night with You
  • 2008 Dungeon
  • 2008 Tenure of Edmond Fontier
  • 2010 Sex and the City II
  • 2010 Wall Street II
  • 2011 Into the New World
  • 2012 Premium Rush
  • 2014 Fuja
  • 2015 S Last Policeman-Recovery of Our Future
  • 2016 Iyana Onna
  • 2017 Kyou no Kirakun
  • 2018 Impossibility Defense

    Television

  • 2008 BLOODY MONDAY TBS Television
  • 2010 Royal Pains
  • 2011 Lights Out
  • 2014 Chocolat
  • 2015 Ashitamokitto, oishii gohan Fuji TV
  • 2016 99.9-Keijisenmon Bengoshi TBS Television
  • 2017 Utsubokazura no Yume Fuji TV
  • 2017 Anatagakokoni Irudakede RKB Mainichi Broadcasting
  • 2018 Boys Over Flowers Season 2 TBS Television
  • 2022 Avataro Sentai Donbrothers TV Asahi
  • 2022 Keishicho Kyokohankakari Higuchi Akira Season 2 TV Tokyo
  • 2022 Kurosagi Season 2 TBS Television
  • 2024 In’nai Keisatsu Season 1 Fuji TV
  • 2025 Private Banker TV Asahi

    Theatre

  • T. Schreiber Studio New York, NY 「Fat Pig」（2014 by Peter Jensen ／Tom ）
  • Stella Adler Studio of Acting New York, NY 「The Performers」（2014. Paul Takacs ／Lee ）
  • Stella Adler Studio of Acting New York, NY 「Lone Star」（2014. Paul Takacs ／Roy ）
  • THE LAST SONG
  • RADIO 311

    Radio

  • Rocky's Music Salad Radio personality Japan FM Network
  • Go Around the World Rainbow Town FM, Tokyo
  • Go Around the World Rainbow Town FM, Tokyo