James Shigeta

James Shigeta

Acting
Born Jun 17, 1929
From Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii, USA
Died Jul 28, 2014

James Saburo Shigeta (June 17, 1929 – July 28, 2014) was an American actor, singer, and musician of Japanese descent. He was noted for his roles in The Crimson Kimono (1959), Walk Like a Dragon (1960), Flower Drum Song (1961), Bridge to the Sun (1961), Die Hard (1988), and Mulan (1998). In 1960, he won the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Male, along with three other actors. In his early career, Shigeta often played romantic male lead roles, which were almost nonexistent for an actor of Asian descent during his time, making him a trailblazer in Asian American representation in media. The Goldsea Asian-American Daily magazine listed him as one of the "Most Inspiring Asian-Americans Of All Time". Before his Hollywood career he found success as a pop singer and performer abroad, especially in Japan and Australia.

Known For

Mulan
7.9

Mulan

General Li (voice)
Die Hard
7.8

Die Hard

Joseph Yoshinobu Takagi
Midway
6.6

Midway

Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo
Brother
7.1

Brother

Sugimoto
Drive
6.1

Drive

Mr. Lau
Cage
3.4

Cage

Tin Lum Yin
The Yakuza
7.1

The Yakuza

Goro
Lost Horizon
5.4

Lost Horizon

Brother To-Lenn
Hollywood Chinese

Hollywood Chinese

Self
Flower Drum Song
6.2

Flower Drum Song

Wang Ta

Filmography — Acting

Mulan
7.9
1998

Mulan

General Li (voice)
Die Hard
7.8
1988

Die Hard

Joseph Yoshinobu Takagi
Midway
6.6
1976

Midway

Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo
Brother
7.1
2000

Brother

Sugimoto
Drive
6.1
1997

Drive

Mr. Lau
Cage
3.4
1989

Cage

Tin Lum Yin
The Yakuza
7.1
1974

The Yakuza

Goro
Lost Horizon
5.4
1973

Lost Horizon

Brother To-Lenn
Hollywood Chinese
2007

Hollywood Chinese

Self
Flower Drum Song
6.2
1961

Flower Drum Song

Wang Ta
Cry for Happy
5.0
1961

Cry for Happy

Suzuki
Bridge to the Sun
6.8
1961

Bridge to the Sun

Hidenari Terasaki
Samurai
1979

Samurai

Takeo Chisato
The Renegades
6.4
1982

The Renegades

Jimmy Lee
Walk Like a Dragon
5.0
1960

Walk Like a Dragon

Cheng Lu
Operation Heartbeat
1969

Operation Heartbeat

Chief Resident
The Slanted Screen
10.0
2006

The Slanted Screen

Himself
China Cry
6.0
1990

China Cry

Dr. Sung
Cage II: The Arena of Death
2.9
1994

Cage II: The Arena of Death

Tin Lum Yin
The Young Lawyers
1969

The Young Lawyers

Lee Ahn
Slaying the Dragon
1988

Slaying the Dragon
The Questor Tapes
5.7
1974

The Questor Tapes

Dr. Chen
Nobody's Perfect
5.5
1968

Nobody's Perfect

Diver Toshi O'Hara
Hart to Hart: Old Friends Never Die
6.8
1994

Hart to Hart: Old Friends Never Die

Det. Whoo
Space Marines
3.2
1996

Space Marines

Ambassador Nakamura
Matt Helm
1975

Matt Helm

Tom McCauley
Paradise, Hawaiian Style
5.2
1966

Paradise, Hawaiian Style

Danny Kohana
Midnight Man
5.2
1995

Midnight Man

Mao Mak
Yorktown: A Time to Heal
2022

Yorktown: A Time to Heal

Admiral Heilachiro Nogura
The Crimson Kimono
6.6
1959

The Crimson Kimono

Detective Joe Kojaku
Carol for Another Christmas
5.8
1964

Carol for Another Christmas

Japanese Doctor
Yellowface: Asian Whitewashing and Racism in Hollywood
5.7
2019

Yellowface: Asian Whitewashing and Racism in Hollywood

(archive footage)
Tomorrow's Child
2.0
1982

Tomorrow's Child

Donald Shibura
Beam Me Up, Sulu
6.0
2025

Beam Me Up, Sulu

Self
The People I've Slept With
4.5
2009

The People I've Slept With

Charles Yang
Manila, Open City
8.2
1968

Manila, Open City

Captain Murakami
Enola Gay: The Men, the Mission, the Atomic Bomb
5.7
1980

Enola Gay: The Men, the Mission, the Atomic Bomb

Field Marshal Abehata
The Killer Who Wouldn't Die
1976

The Killer Who Wouldn't Die

David Lao
Escape to Mindanao
1968

Escape to Mindanao

Lt. Takahashi
Death Walks in Laredo
6.3
1967

Death Walks in Laredo

Lester Koto
6.0
1967

The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Chinese Junk

George Ti Ming
1999

Qigong: Ancient Chinese Healing for the 21st Century

Narrator
1990

Home from the Eastern Sea

Narrator