Mortal Kombat Star Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa Passes Away at 75

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, the legendary actor of the film Mortal Kombat and the series The Man in The High Castle, has passed away. He departed on Thursday, December 4, 2025, in Santa Barbara, California, at the age of 75 due to complications from a stroke.

The news of his passing was confirmed by Penny Vizcarra, the CEO of PV Public Relations and also Tagawa's spokesperson. In a report released by Los Angeles Times, Vizcarra praised Tagawa as a highly talented and extraordinary man. "Our entire team was delighted to work with him and appreciated his treatment of everyone with love and respect," added Vizcarra.

Life History of Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa was born in Tokyo, Japan, on September 27, 1950. His mother was a Japanese actress and his father served in the United States Army.

Citing Entertainment Weekly, the Tagawa family had to move frequently because of his father's military duties. They resided in North Carolina, Louisiana, and Texas for a period before finally settling in South Carolina. It was there that Tagawa began to fall in love with the world of acting while studying at Duarte High School.

Tagawa's parents adopted a slightly different parenting style due to the shadow of Japanese internment policies during World War II. "We knew that the Japanese were not well-received after the war. So, ten years after the war, I grew up in South America," he stated in a 2001 interview note.

Tagawa started practicing Kendo martial arts during middle school before focusing on traditional Japanese karate while attending the University of Southern California. In order to hone his karate skills, he even returned to Japan to study under Master Nakayama at the Japan Karate Association.

These various experiences accustomed Tagawa to facing various difficult situations from an early age. This ultimately shaped his character and led Tagawa to become a consistent action film actor for over four decades.

Contributions in the Film Industry

Tagawa's name skyrocketed when he portrayed the evil sorcerer, Shang Tsung, in the film Mortal Kombat directed by Paul WS Anderson in 1995. He also portrayed the character in the Mortal Kombat: Legacy television series. Still within the same franchise, Tagawa also provided the voice of Tsung in the Mortal Kombat 11 video game.

Aside from the Mortal Kombat franchise, Deadline noted that Tagawa also played important roles in various big-budget films. Some of these films include The Last Emperor, License to Kill, Pearl Harbor, Planet of The Apes, and 47 Ronin.

Of all the films Tagawa starred in, most involved a blend of Asian and Western cultures. The majority of his roles always utilized the actor's martial arts expertise.

CAHYA SAPUTRA

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