Ryōko Hirosue

Ryōko Hirosue (広末 涼子, Hirosue Ryōko, born 18 July 1980)^[1] is a Japanese actress and singer, best known to international audiences for her roles in the Luc Besson-produced Wasabi and the Academy Award-winning Japanese film Departures. She also starred in the 2008 comedy series Yasuko to Kenji.

Ryōko Hirosue
広末 涼子
Hirosue in 2022
Born	(1980-07-18) 18 July 1980 (age 44) Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
Occupations	Actress singer
Years active	1994–2023, 2024–present
Spouses	Takahiro Okazawa ​ ​ (m. 2003; div. 2008)​ Jun Izutsu ​ ​ (m. 2010; div. 2023)​
Children	3
Musical career
Genres	J-pop
Instrument	Vocals
Labels	Warner Music Japan

Early life

Hirosue was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture and grew up on Kōchi city, Kōchi prefecture, Japan. She joined the "P&G" cosmetic model competition at age 14 and made her television debut the following year singing on the program, TK Music Camp. She made her television drama debut and is well known for her work as a spokesmodel for NTT DoCoMo. She studied at Waseda University but did not graduate.^[2]

Career

1995–2000

Hirosue made her television debut in 1995 at age 15 in Fuji TV's Heart ni S. She was also named "Best Newcomer" at the 10th Television Drama Academy Awards the same year when she starred in Fuji TV's comedy series Shota no Sushi. In 1997, she appeared in the finale of medical drama Hoshi no Kinka and the special episode of Odoru Daisousasen before making her breakthrough performance in Fuji TV's comedy series Beach Boys, where she was awarded "Best Supporting Actress" at the 14th Television Drama Academy Awards. Hirosue also made her film debut in the same year when she appeared in 20-seki Nostalgia which won her critical acclaim. She was awarded the Sponichi Grand Prize New Talent Award at the Mainichi Film Awards, Best New Talent at the Yokohama Film Festival and perhaps most importantly, the Newcomer of the Year award at the 21st Japanese Academy Awards.

In 1998, Hirosue reprised her role in the special episode of Beach Boys while also appearing in four other television dramas in the same year. In 1999, she returned to the big screen in Poppoya and Himitsu. Her performances in both films won her much praise from award-giving bodies of Japan and she received two nominations at the 23rd Japanese Academy Awards for Best Actress (for Himitsu) and Best Supporting Actress (for Poppoya). Her international profile also increased when she received the Best Actress prize for her performance in Himitsu at the 30th Sitges - Catalan International Film Festival.

She returned prominently to television in 2000 playing Yuki Katase in the drama Summer Snow, which won 5 awards at the 26th Television Drama Academy Awards including "Best Supporting Actress" and "Best Drama" before showing off her comedic chops in TBS's Oyaji. The latter role again won her "Best Supporting Actress" at the 27th awards ceremony.

2001–2005

In 2001, Hirosue made her international film debut in the French Film Wasabi written by Luc Besson and directed by Gérard Krawczyk. Not being able to speak French for her role, she had to learn her lines phonetically. She also reunited for the fourth time on television with her frequent co-star Yutaka Takenouchi (they starred together in Long Vacation, Beach Boys and Seikimatsu no Uta) in Fuji TV's romantic comedy series Dekichatta Kekkon, starring as an expectant couple who did not know each other well before their one-night stand leading to the planning of a shotgun wedding. The series also starred Hiroshi Abe who won Best Supporting Actor at the 30th Television Drama Academy Awards.

In 2002, Hirosue appeared in the film Renai Shashin and the low-rated television drama Ai Nante Irane Yo, Natsu before capping the year in the family drama series Otousan. She reunited with her Summer Snow lead co-star, Tsuyoshi Dōmoto, in 2003's romance series Moto Kare. Her portrayal as the initially flippant ex-girlfriend, Makoto Saeki, won her "Best Supporting Actress" yet again at the 38th Television Drama Academy Awards.

Hirosue married model Takahiro Okazawa on 17 January 2004 and gave birth to her son on 10 April 2004. They later divorced in March 2008.^[3] Her marriage and new motherhood decreased her workload and she only made one appearance in 2004 in the film Hana and Alice and one appearance on 2005's Fuji TV's romance drama Slow Dance.

2006–2023

Hirosue returned to film and television in 2006 by appearing in three television dramas, a TV movie and a film. In 2007, she co-starred for the third time with Hiroshi Abe (her fellow actor in Dekichatta Kekkon and Haruka Naru Yakusoku) in the film Bubble Fiction: Boom or Bust. She also appeared in two TV movies, Mama ga Ryori o Tsukuru Wake, broadcast by Fuji TV, and Long Wedding Road!, which was broadcast by TBS. Hirosue also made a guest appearance in the third episode, "Rattles", of the detective series Galileo.

She had a supporting role in NTV's comedy series Yasuko to Kenji in 2008.

She portrayed Mika Kobayashi opposite Masahiro Motoki in the 2008 Japanese film Departures, which won the 81st Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film.^[4]

In 2009, she is starring in the remake of the mystery film Zero Focus^[5] and the adaptation to film of the novel Villon's Wife by Osamu Dazai.^[6]

She co-starred in the 2010 film Flowers with Yū Aoi, Kyōka Suzuki, Yūko Takeuchi, Rena Tanaka and Yukie Nakama.^[7]

In June 2023, in light of her affair incident, she announced that she would be retiring from the entertainment industry.^[8]

2024–present

In February 2024, she resumed her entertainment activities by leaving her agency and going independent.^[9]

Personal life

She married Okazawa Takahiro in December 2003. The marriage ended in early 2008. On 9 October 2010 she married Jun Izutsu, a candle artist. They met in Haiti in March 2010 participating in earthquake relief efforts.^[10][11] Her cousin is a former member of the House of Representatives in Japan.

She has three children. She gave birth to her first son in April 2004. On 10 March 2011 she had her second son.^[12][13] On 17 July 2015, she gave birth to her third child, a daughter.^[14]

In 7 June 2023, Shūkan Bunshun reported that Hirosue was allegedly having an extramarital affair with married Michelin star chef Shusaku Toba after being spotted entering the Cerulean Tower Tokyo Hotel together.^[15] This was later confirmed by Hirosue herself through her official social media account apologizing on the incident.^[16] Her agency announced her divorce with Jun Izutsu on 26 July 2023.^[17] She holds custody of her three children as their guardian.^[17]

Filmography

Film

• 20th Century Nostalgia (1997)
• Poppoya (1999) - Yukiko Sato
• Himitsu (1999) - Monami / Naoko-daughter and Mother
• Zawa-zawa Shimo-Kitazawa (2000) - Flea Market Girl
• Wasabi (2001) - Yumi Yoshimido
• Jam Films (2002) - (segment "Arita")
• Collage of Our Life (2003) - Shizuru Satonaka
• Hana and Alice (2004) - Editor
• Presents Aikagi (2006) - Yukari
• Bubble Fiction: Boom or Bust (2007) - Mayumi Tanaka
• Little DJ (2007) - Tamaki - adult
• Koneko no Namida (2007) - Yuko
• Departures (2008) - Mika Kobayashi
• Goemon (2009) - Chacha
• Villon's Wife (2009) - Akiko
• Zero Focus (2009)
• Flowers (2010) - Kei
• Key of Life (2012) - Kanae Mizushima
• Love: Masao-kun ga Iku! (2012) - Satomi
• Orpheus' Lyre (2013) - Yoko
• Snow on the Blades (2014) - Setsu
• Lingering Spirits (2014)^[18] - Yuko Kasahara
• Nutcracker Fantasy (2014)^[19]
• Hana's Miso Soup (2015)^[20] - Chie Yasutake
• Mixed Doubles (2017) - Yayoi Yoshioka
• Love × Doc (2018) - Reiko
• Life in Overtime (2018)
• We Make Antiques! Kyoto Rendezvous (2020) - Shino
• Step (2020)
• Family Bond (2020)
• The Confidence Man JP: Episode of the Princess (2020)
• The Confidence Man JP: Episode of the Hero (2022)^[21]
• The Hound of the Baskervilles: Sherlock the Movie (2022)^[22]
• 2 Women (2022) - Shōko Shiraki^[23]
• Hard Days (2023) - Misako Kudō^[24]

Television

Year	Title	Network	Role
1995	Sashow Taeko Saigo no Jiken	Fuji TV	Naomi Hayase
	Heart ni S
1996	Konna Watashi ni Dare ga Shita	Fuji TV	Akane Yamashita
	Shota no Sushi		Miharu Sekiguchi
	Long Vacation		Takako Saito
	Maho no Kimochi / Mokuyou no Kaidan
1997	Beach Boys	Fuji TV	Makoto Izumi
	Boku ga Boku de Aru Tame ni		Yako Naruse
1998	Seikimatsu no Uta: Konoyo no Hate de Ai o Utau Shoujo	Fuji TV	Sumire Ogawa
	Sekai de Ichiban Papa ga Suki		Tami Nakamachi
	Seija no Koushin	TBS	Arisu Tsuchiya
1999	Lipstick	Fuji TV	Ai Hayakawa
2000	Oyaji	TBS	Suzu
	Summer Snow		Yuki Katase
2001	Dekichatta Kekkon / Shotgun Marriage	Fuji TV	Chiyo Kotani
2002	Ai Nante Irane Yo, Natsu	TBS	Takazono Ako
	Otousan		Makoto Shindo
2003	Moto Kare	TBS	Makoto Saeki
	Ushinawareta Yakusoku	Fuji TV	Ayako Shinohara
2005	Slow Dance	Fuji TV	Mino Koike
2006	Ai to Shi o Mitsumete	TV Asahi	Miko
2008	Yasuko to Kenji	Nippon TV	Erika Tsubaki
2009	Triangle	Kansai TV	Sachi
	Mr. Brain - Ep.1	TBS
2010	Ryōmaden	NHK	Kao Hirai
2013	Legal High SP	Fuji TV	Beppu Toshiko
	Legal High 2
	Starman – A Love Story (Sutaman-Kono Hoshi no Koi)	Kansai TV	Sawako Uno
2014	Wakamonodachi / All ABout My Siblings 2014 – Ep. 4	Fuji TV	Mizuki Yoshikawa
2015	Ouroboros	TBS	Kashiwaba Yuiko
	The Eternal Zero (TV series, 2015)	TV Tokyo	Keiko Saeki
2016	Naomi and Kanako	Fuji TV	Naomi Oda
2017	Inagakike no Moshu	Wowow	Kyoko Inagaki
	Caution, Hazardous Wife	Nippon TV	Yuri Ōhara
2018	Boku to Shippo to Kagurazaka	TV Asahi	Tokiwa Kase
2019	An Artist of the Floating World	NHK	Setsuko Murakami
2021	Sakura no Tou (Cherry Blossom's Tower)	TV Asahi	Mizuki Sawa
2022	Riding a Unicorn	TBS	Sachi Haneda[25]
2023	Ranman	NHK	Hisa Makino[26]

Theater

Theater performances

Year	Title		Role	Venue	Date	Ref.
	English	Japan
2012	Bring Me My Chariot of Fire	に炎の戦車を	Lee Soon-woo	Tokyo's Akasaka ACT Theater	November 3 to December 1	[27][28]
				Osaka's Umeda Arts Theater in Japan	December 8 to 11
2013				Seoul's Haeoreum Theater of the National Theater of Korea	January 30 to February 3	[29]

Discography

Albums

• Arigato! (1997)
• Private (1999)

Singles

• "Maji de Koisuru Gobyōmae" (1997)
• "Daisuki!" (1997)
• "Wind Prism" (1997)
• "Jeans" (1998) (featuring B-side "Private")
• "Summer Sunset" (1998)
• "Tomorrow" (1999)
• "Kajitsu" (2000)

Compilations and live albums

• Winter Gift 98 (1998)
• RH Singles &... (1999)
• RH Debut Tour 1999 (1999)
• Super Idol Series (Fukada Kyoko vs Hirosue Ryoko) (2000)
• RH Remix (2001)
• Hirosue Ryoko Perfect Collection (2002)

Photobooks

• R (1996)
• H (1996)
• No Make (1998)
• FLaMme (1998)
• Le Secret (1999)
• Relax (1999)
• Ryoko Hirosue CF Special (1999)
• Happy 20th Birthday (2000)
• Teens 1996–2000 (2000)
• Newyork RH Avenue 2003 (2003)
• Triangle Photographs (2009)

Awards

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
1998	20th Century Nostalgia	Awards of the Japanese Academy: Newcomer of the Year	Won
	20th Century Nostalgia	Mainichi Film Concours: Sponichi Grand Prize New Talent Award	Won
	20th Century Nostalgia	Yokohama Film Festival: Best New Talent	Won
	20th Century Nostalgia	Osaka Film Festival: Best New Talent	Won
1999	–	Nikkan Sports Film Awards: Best New Talent[30]	Won
2000	Himitsu	Sitges - Catalan International Film Festival: Best Actress	Won
	Himitsu	Awards of the Japanese Academy: Best Actress	Nominated
	Poppoya	Awards of the Japanese Academy: Best Supporting Actress	Nominated
2008	Departures	Awards of the Japanese Academy: Best Actress	Nominated
	Departures	Yokohama Film Festival: Best Supporting Actress	Won
2009	Zero Focus	Awards of the Japanese Academy: Best Actress	Nominated
2013	Key of Life	Blue Ribbon Awards: Best Supporting Actress	Won
2022	2 Women and The Hound of the Baskervilles	Nikkan Sports Film Awards: Best Supporting Actress[31]	Nominated
	2 Women	Hochi Film Awards: Best Supporting Actress[32]	Nominated
2023		Mainichi Film Awards: Best Supporting Actress[33]	Nominated
	2 Women and The Hound of the Baskervilles	Blue Ribbon Awards: Best Supporting Actress[34]	Pending
	2 Women, The Hound of the Baskervilles and others	Kinema Junpo Awards: Best Supporting Actress[35]	Won

References

1. "FLaMme official website" (in Japanese). Retrieved 7 January 2024.
2. "21年前の広末涼子の早稲田入学の大騒動は何だったのか?". AERA dot. (in Japanese). Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. 19 March 2020. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
3. "Actress Ryoko Hirosue divorces". Mainichi Shimbun. 13 March 2008. Archived from the original on 14 March 2008. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
4. Mondello, Bob (29 May 2009). "From Japan, Elegant (And Eloquent) 'Departures'" (movie review). NPR.
5. 映画「ゼロの焦点」. Zero focus (in Japanese). Toho. 2009. Archived from the original on 6 September 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
6. ヴィヨンの妻 ～桜桃とタンポポ～. Cinema today (in Japanese). Welva. 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
7. Schilling, Mark (25 June 2010). "Flowers". Japan Times.
8. "广末凉子改口认出轨 宣布无限期停工！". 8world. 14 June 2023.
9. "広末涼子、独立を発表 不倫騒動から８か月、近く芸能活動を再開へ". スポーツ報知 (in Japanese). 16 February 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
10. 広末涼子再婚！！ＨＰで発表 お相手はキャンドル・ジュン氏. Chunichi (in Japanese). 10 October 2010. Archived from the original on 12 October 2010.
11. 広末電撃再婚も仕事への影響はなし？. Nikkan sports (in Japanese). 10 October 2010.
12. 広末涼子、妊娠１６週目 所属事務所が発表. Head lines (in Japanese). Yahoo. 22 November 2010. Archived from the original on 24 November 2010.
13. Candle June looks to cast rays of hope in a world of strife (in Japanese). 26 June 2016.
14. 広末涼子、第3子女児出産「決意新たに努力」 (in Japanese). 14 February 2018.
15. "広末涼子の所属事務所、不倫報道でコメント「本人に対して責任を持って行動するように厳重注意」". ORICON NEWS. 14 June 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
16. INC, SANKEI DIGITAL (14 June 2023). "広末涼子さん不倫認め謝罪、無期限謹慎に「女優業を汚してしまった」". 産経ニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 July 2023.
17. "広末涼子、キャンドル・ジュン氏との離婚を発表「ご報告をすべきかどうか、正直とても悩みました」（ENCOUNT）". Yahoo!ニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 July 2023.
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19. 映画『くるみ割り人形』 [Kurumiwari Ningyō Official website] (in Japanese). Sanrio Co., Ltd. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
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21. "「コンフィデンスマンJP」瀬戸康史が国際警察に、真木よう子や徳永えりも初参加". Natalie. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
22. "バスカヴィル家の犬 シャーロック劇場版". eiga.com. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
23. "あちらにいる鬼". eiga.com. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
24. "最後まで行く". eiga.com. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
25. "広末涼子、永野芽郁の"憧れの存在"に 「ユニコーンに乗って」ポスタービジュアルも解禁". Model Press. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
26. "広末涼子「らんまん」で朝ドラ初出演！新キャストに志尊淳、佐久間由衣、笠松将ら". Natalie. Retrieved 26 August 2022.
27. "草なぎ剛×チャ・スンウォン！『ぼくに炎の戦車を』囲み取材＆公開リハーサル | 韓国歌手/俳優イベントレポ". hot-korea.com. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
28. PIA. "草なぎ剛、日韓合作舞台で熱演。「明日への力を与えたい」 | チケットぴあ[演劇 演劇]". ticket.pia.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 July 2023.
29. "'연극데뷔' 차승원 "연기의 원점으로 돌아가고 싶었다"" ['Theatre debut' Cha Seung-won "I wanted to go back to the origin of acting"]. 오마이스타 (in Korean). 30 January 2013. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
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35. "「生きている限り俳優を続けたい」広末涼子がキネ旬助演女優賞に笑顔". eiga.com. Retrieved 1 February 2023.

External links

• Official website (in Japanese)
• Ryoko Hirosue on Warner Music Japan (in Japanese)
• Ryōko Hirosue at IMDb
• Ryōko Hirosue at the Japanese Movie Database (in Japanese)