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Tetsuya Watari
Acting
Biography
He graduated from Aoyama Gakuin University. Watari belonged to the karate club at university. He made his screen debut in 1964, in Isamu Kosugi's Abare Kishidō, and received one of the Elan d'or Awards. At Nikkatsu, Watari appeared in such films as Tokyo Drifter and the Outlaw series.
Watari was mentored at Nikkatsu by Yujiro Ishihara. When Nikkatsu shifted to focusing on Roman Porno films in the early seventies, Watari was one of many actors who left the studio.
Watari was due to play the main role in Kinji Fukasaku’s film Battles Without Honor and Humanity, but because of illness he was not able to appear. In 1974, he was forced to step down from the lead role of Katsu Kaishū in the Taig…
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He graduated from Aoyama Gakuin University. Watari belonged to the karate club at university. He made his screen debut in 1964, in Isamu Kosugi's Abare Kishidō, and received one of the Elan d'or Awards. At Nikkatsu, Watari appeared in such films as Tokyo Drifter and the Outlaw series. Watari was mentored at Nikkatsu by Yujiro Ishihara. When Nikkatsu shifted to focusing on Roman Porno films in the early seventies, Watari was one of many actors who left the studio. Watari was due to play the main role in Kinji Fukasaku’s film Battles Without Honor and Humanity, but because of illness he was not able to appear. In 1974, he was forced to step down from the lead role of Katsu Kaishū in the Taiga drama Katsu Kaishū on NHK, again because of illness, after appearing in only nine episodes. In 1976, Watari won best actor of Blue Ribbon Award for his role in Kinji Fukasaku`s film Yakuza Graveyard. In Japan, Watari is probably still best known for his role as Keisuke Daiomon in the detective series "Seibu Keisatsu" on TV Asahi. He also appeared in the popular detective drama "Taiyō ni Hoero!" as a replacement for Yujiro Ishihara in 1986. Watari became the president of Ishihara Promotion after Yujiro's death in 1987 but in 2011 he resigned due to his declining health. On June 10, 2015 he was hospitalised after suffering a heart attack and underwent surgery. Seven days later it was announced that he was in rehabilitation and would be discharged from hospital in about a month. He had a younger brother, Tsunehiko Watase, who was also an actor. As a singer, Watari is known for his hit song "Kuchinashi no Hana" and he appeared in the Kōhaku Uta Gassen in 1974 and 1993. He died of pneumonia on August 10, 2020, at the age of 78.
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BODY OF WORK
Tetsuya Watari's Filmography
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Villain
as Masato Kogure
Yamato
Lady Joker
as Seizo Monoi
No Poster
Western Police Special
as Keisuke Daimon
Shura Group Part 3
明るいほうへ 明るいほうへ -童謡詩人 金子みすゞ-
Brother
as Jinseikai Boss
It Is a Long Walk
Diary of Early Winter Shower
as Kounosuke Mibu
Abduction
as Hiroshi Tsuba
No Poster
Night Train to the Stars
as Masajiro Miyazawa
Kin chan no Cinema Jack
Sangokushi: The Yangtze Is Burning!
as Cao Cao (voice)
Great Conquest: The Romance of Three Kingdoms
as Cao Cao (voice)
No Poster
The Unruly Ronin's Journey
Goryokaku
as Toshizo Hijikata
Clockwork- Goodbye Winter
Again
Yakuza Graveyard
as Ryu Kuroiwa
Human Revolution II
Conflagration
as Third Officer Inoue
Graveyard of Honor
as Rikio Ishikawa
Wild Cop 2
The Blossom and the Sword
as Seijirô Tanaka
Stray Dog
as Detective Murakami
The Human Revolution
Wild Cop
Flower and Dragon
Rebellion Reward
as Shun Muraki
Theater of Life
Sword and Flower
Chase That Man
Law of the Outlaw
as Goro Takei
Expelled from the Kanto Mob
Challenge at Dawn
Kanto Kanbu-kai
The Earth is Born Again
as Hironosuke Nakadate
Kanto Drifter
Step on the Gas!
as Yuuji Nishigami
Pay Off Your Debt!
Spartan Education
Showdown in Gangland
The Summit of Mt. Fuji
as Yohei Kada
Profile of a Boss' Son
The Cleanup
as Kurasawa
やくざ番外地 抹殺
Showdown at Nagasaki
as Keiji Takama
The Wild Sea
as Yoji Kitami
The Fatal Raid
Ex Convict: Sword Storm
Ruthless Gambler
前科・仮釈放
as Ôhara Ryûji
Yakuza Wanderer: Villainous Livelihood
Outlaw: Kill!
as Goro Fujikawa
Savage Wolf Pack
Exiled to Hell
Outlaw: Black Dagger
as Goro Fujikawa
The Blazing Continent
Outlaw: Goro the Assassin
as Goro Fujikawa
East China Sea
as Naoyoshi
Monument to the Girl's Corps
as Young man
The Final Winner?
Outlaw: Heartless
as Goro Fujikawa
Song of my Life
as Takuya Tsugami
Outlaw: Gangster VIP 2
as Goro Fujikawa
The Code of Man
Outlaw: Gangster VIP
as Goro Fujikawa
The Aftermath of War
My Sweetheart
as Akai
Velvet Hustler
as Goro
No Poster
The Hurricane Drummer
Rusty Pendant
The Debt of Blood
Burning Clouds
The Man of Victory
Dreams Come True at Night
as Makoto Katagiri
The Black Sheep
陽のあたる坂道
Tokyo Drifter 2: The Sea Is Bright Red as the Color of Love
as Tetsu
The Swan Elegy
The Stormy Man
as Shôichi Kokubu
The Heart of Hiroshima
as Yukio Mihara
Your Life
Love Eternal
as Makoto Kanô
Till We Meet Again
Red Glass
as Hiroshi
Tokyo Drifter
as Tetsuya "Phoenix Tetsu" Hondo
In Tears
The Stars and I Decided...
as Saburo Ohinata
Shinkuna umi ga yon deru ze
