Yuji Okumoto
Yuji Okumoto | |
---|---|
Born | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | April 20, 1959
Nationality | American |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1985-present |
Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
Spouse | Angela (Present) |
Yuji Don Okumoto (雄二・ドン・奥本, Yūji Don Okumoto, born April 20, 1959) is an American actor, filmmaker and Eagle Scout best known for his intimidating movie roles, primarily as a villain, such as Chozen Toguchi in The Karate Kid Part II and Cobra Kai. His other films include Aloha Summer, Nemesis, Pearl Harbor, Contact and The Truman Show, as well as guest roles on television series such as T.J. Hooker, Knots Landing, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and Bones.
Early life
Yuji Okumoto, a third generation Japanese American (Sansei), was born in Los Angeles, California. He attended Hollywood High School, where he played both baseball and basketball and Cal State Fullerton, where he eventually took up acting. Okumoto has also been involved with several theater companies, including the celebrated East West Players, where he appeared in the play, Webster Street Blues.
Career
Okumoto's first feature film role was in the 1985 comedy film Real Genius as Fenton. Later in 1985, he appeared in Better Off Dead as Yee Sook Ree, a Korean immigrant who along with his non-English speaking brother Chen (Brian Imada) frequently challenges Lane Myer (John Cusack) to drag races whenever they are together at a set of traffic lights. Yee Sook Ree learned his English from watching Wide World of Sports and spoke like Howard Cosell.
He is also well known for his convincing portrayal of the venomous, ever-smiling Chozen Toguchi in The Karate Kid Part II. He played a Korean character, Shu Kai Kim, in the 1989 film True Believer alongside James Woods and Robert Downey Jr. Okumoto then played the role of Pete Kapahala in the 1999 Disney Channel original movie Johnny Tsunami and its 2007 sequel Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board. In 2005, he played a role in Lane Nishikawa's film Only the Brave about the Japanese American segregated fighting unit, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team of World War II. He also played alongside Ken Watanabe in Christopher Nolan's 2010 thriller Inception. Okumoto was announced to have joined Nicholas Gyeney's Seattle-based drama, Ultra Low, in February 2017. The film is scheduled to begin production the following March.[1]
Okumoto reprised his role as Chozen Toguchi in Season 3 of Cobra Kai, which was released on January 1, 2021, on Netflix.
Personal life
Okumoto lives in Seattle, Washington, where he and his family own a Hawaiian-themed restaurant, Kona Kitchen/Yuji Lounge.[2][3]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1985 | Real Genius | Fenton | Film |
1985 | Better Off Dead | Yee Sook Ree | Film |
1985 | Crime Killer | Vietnam Soldier | Film |
1986 | The Check Is in the Mail... | Bellboy | Film |
1986 | The Karate Kid Part II | Chozen Toguchi | Film |
1988 | Aloha Summer | Kenzo Konishi | Film |
1989 | True Believer | Shu Kai Kim | Film |
1991 | 3x3 Eyes | Chou / Transvestite #2 | Video (voice: English version) (as Yujii Okumoto) |
1992 | Nemesis | Yoshiro Han | Film |
1993 | Silent Cries | Mickey | Film, Uncredited |
1993 | Robot Wars | Chou-Sing | Film |
1993 | Brainsmasher... A Love Story | Wu | Video |
1993 | American Yakuza | Kazuo | Film |
1994 | Bloodfist V: Human Target | Tommy | Film |
1994 | Blue Tiger | Lieutenant Sakagami | Film |
1994 | Red Sun Rising | Yuji | Film |
1995 | Hard Justice | Jimmy Wong | Video |
1995 | 3x3 Eyes: Legend of the Divine Demon | Naparva | Video (voice: English version) (as Yujii Okumoto) |
1997 | Blast | FBI Agent | Film |
1997 | Mean Guns | Hoss | Film |
1997 | Contact | Electrical | Film |
1997 | The Game | Nikko Hotel Manager | Film |
1998 | The Truman Show | Japanese Family | Film |
1998 | Sorcerers | Secretary | Film |
2000 | Fortress 2: Re-Entry | Sato | Film |
2000 | I'll Remember April | Matsuo Yomma | Film |
2001 | Pearl Harbor | Japanese Shy Bomber | Film |
2001 | Ticker | Embassy Consul | Film |
2005 | The Crow: Wicked Prayer | Pestilence | Film |
2006 | Big Momma's House 2 | Parsons | Film |
2006 | Only the Brave | Sgt. Yukio 'Yuk' Nakajo | Film |
2006 | End Game | Doctor Lee | Film |
2007 | Cookies for Sale | Grumpy Man | Short |
2008 | Touch | Ken | Short |
2009 | Black Coffee | David | Short |
2009 | Anatomy of a Fly | Politician | Short |
2010 | Inception | Saito's Attendant | Film |
2014 | Awesome Asian Bad Guys | Yuji (2013) | |
2015 | Beta Test | The Surgeon | Film |
2017 | Unspoken: Diary of an Assassin | ||
2018 | Driven | Judge Takasugi | |
2018 | Ultra Low | Yuji | Film |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1986 | T. J. Hooker | Howie Kalanuma | Episode: "Blood Sport" |
1987 | Simon & Simon | Masaki | Episode: "Desperately Seeking Dacody" |
1988 | Hunter | Jimmy | 2 episodes |
1990 | Murder in Paradise | n/a | TV movie |
1990 | Only One Survived | Peter Fujko | TV movie |
1990 | Midnight Caller | Lee Minh | Episode: "Home to Roost" |
1991 | American Playhouse | Teruo Kuroda | Episode: "Hot Summer Winds" |
1991-1993 | Knots Landing | Art Nam | 6 Episodes |
1994 | Menendez: A Killing in Beverly Hills | Lester Kuriyama | TV movie |
1995 | Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman | Chen Chow | Episode: "Chi of Steel" |
1995 | Vanishing Son | Nguyen | Episode: "Holy Ghosts" |
1995 | Murder, She Wrote | Kim Huan | Episode: "Murder a la Mode" |
1996 | Kindred: The Embraced | Lieutenant Kwan | 2 episodes |
1996 | Superman | Security Guard | Voice, Episode: "A Little Piece of Home" |
1996 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Chang | Episode: "Higher Power" |
1997 | Players | Mr. Hayashi | Episode: "Rashocon" |
1998 | The Sentinel | Lo | Episode: "Love Kills" |
1998 | JAG | Jiro Kitamura | (1995 TV series) Episode: "Innocence" |
1999 | Just Shoot Me! | Kevin Tanaka | Uncredited, Episode: "Miss Pretty" |
1999 | Johnny Tsunami | Pete | TV movie |
2000 | Martial Law | Mr. Strinc | Episode: "Scorpio Rising" |
2000 | Max Steel | n/a | Voice, Episode: "Seraphim" |
2000 | Guilty as Charged | Davis | TV movie |
2001 | The District | Officer | Episode: "A Southern Town" |
2001 | A Kitty Bobo Show | Graffiti | Voice, TV movie |
2001 | V.I.P. | Morton Zhou | Episode: "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Val" |
2003 | Partners | One Eye | TV movie |
2007 | The Unit | Mr. Michael | Episode: "The Broom Cupboard" |
2007 | Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board | Pete | TV movie |
2008 | Heroes and Villains | Naomasa Ii | documentary, Episode: "Shogun" |
2008 | Mask of the Ninja | Nakano | TV movie |
2009 | Katana | Kenji | Episode: "Pilot" (also producer and writer) |
2009 | Bones | Bruce Takedo | Episode: "The Girl in the Mask" |
2021 | Cobra Kai | Chozen Toguchi | 2 episodes |
Video games
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1995 | Johnny Mnemonic: The Interactive Action Movie | Shinji | Voice, Video Game |
2001 | Throne of Darkness | Swordsman | Voice, Video Game |
2003 | True Crime: Streets of LA | Additional Voices | Voice, Video Game |
See also
References
- ^ N'Duka, Amanda (February 20, 2017). "Lauren Holly To Star In Indie 'Ultra Low'; Mollee Gray Set For 'The Favorite'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
- ^ Baldwin, Kristen (2020-12-18). "Yuji Okumoto on Cobra Kai season 3: 'Chozen has gone through a lot of soul searching'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
- ^ Talbott, Chris (2021-01-04). "In Netflix's 'Cobra Kai,' Seattle restaurateur Yuji Okumoto reprises a role — and a life — he thought he'd left behind". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
External links
- Yuji Okumoto at IMDb