Tetsuya Watari


Tetsuya Watari is a Japanese film, stage, and television actor.

Profile

He graduated from Aoyama Gakuin University. He made his screen debut in 1964, in Isamu Kosugi's Abare Kishidō and won Elan d'or Awards. In Nikkatsu, Watari appeared such films as Tokyo Drifter and.
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 of their actors who left the studio.
Watari was due to play main role in the Kinji Fukasakus Battles Without Honor and Humanity, but because of his illness he was not able to appear in the film. In 1974, Watari was forced to step down from the role of Katsu Kaishū in the Taiga drama Katsu Kaishū on NHK because of his illness, He appeared only first 9 episodes. In 1976, Watari won best actor of Blue Ribbon Award for his role in Kinji Fukasaku`s film Yakuza Graveyard.
In Japan, he is best known for his role Keisuke Daiomon in the detective television drama "Seibu Keisatsu" series on TV Asahi. He also appeared popular detective television drama "Taiyō ni Hoero!" as a replacemenf for Yujiro Ishihara in 1986.
He was the president of Ishihara Promotion after Yujiro's death in 1987 but in 2011 he resigned due to his health conditions.
On June 10, 2015 he was hospitalised for acute myocardial infarction and underwent surgery. On July 17 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.

Filmography

Films

Television

Video games

Honours