Mortal Kombat Actor Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa Passes Away At 75

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, whose credits span TV and films like Memoirs of a Geisha, The Man in the High Castle, and 1995’s Mortal Kombat, died yesterday due to complications from a stroke, Deadline reports. He was 75.

Tagawa’s acting career spanned over four decades, with film credits including The Last Emperor, Rising Sun, Memoirs of a Geisha, Planet of the Apes (2000), Balls of Fury, 47 Ronin, and Kubo and the Two Strings. In television, he appeared in series including MacGyver, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Wars: Rebels, and most notably as Nobusuke Tagomi in Amazon Prime’s The Man in the High Castle. Tagawa’s final role was as Master Eiji in the 2023 Netflix animated series Blue Samurai.  

For video game fans, Tagawa was best known for portraying Shang Tsung in the first live-action Mortal Kombat film. His performance as the villainous sorcerer, which featured now-famous lines like “Your soul is mine!” and “It has begun!”, became so beloved that he would reprise the role in various adaptations, such as the 2013 web series Mortal Kombat: Legacy. Tagawa also appeared as Shang Tsung, voice and likeness, in Mortal Kombat 11’s Aftermath story expansion and the mobile action RPG Mortal Kombat: Onslaught.

Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon shared his condolences on X, writing,

We lost a legend today. 

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa played Shang Tsung in the 1995 Mortal Kombat film and sadly passed away at age 75. We had the privilege of his portrayal on the first MK film but also as an amazing voice actor in the Mortal Kombat 11 game.

Cary was one of a kind. He combined danger, swagger and athleticism to his roles and will always be remembered as the man who first brought Shang Tsung to life on film.

Rest in Peace. Your soul is eternal.

While closely tied to Shang Tsung, Tagawa had also portrayed another iconic fighting game villain. He played Heihachi Mishima in the live-action movie Tekken, which was released in the US in 2011, and its 2014 sequel, Tekken 2: Kazuya’s Revenge. Tagawa had voice credits in other video games: World of Warcraft: Legion, Batman: Rise of Sun Tzu, and Soldier Boyz. 

As reported by Deadline, Tagawa’s family confirmed he died Thursday, surrounded by his children.