Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa, the American actor of Japanese descent best known for playing Hollywood’s perfect villain — especially as Shang Tsung in the Mortal Kombat franchise — has died in Santa Barbara at age 75.
Recognized for his powerful screen presence, Tagawa became unforgettable for roles in Mortal Kombat, The Last Emperor, and The Man in the High Castle. Despite his intimidating “villain look” on screen, many described him as warm and likable in real life.
Throughout a decades-long career, he appeared in over 150 films and TV shows, including Big Trouble in Little China, License to Kill, Rising Sun, Pearl Harbor, Planet of the Apes, Memoirs of a Geisha, and 47 Ronin, as well as series like MacGyver, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Miami Vice, Nash Bridges, and Blue Eye Samurai.
His iconic portrayal of Shang Tsung extended to films, the Mortal Kombat: Legacy series, and later, the video games Mortal Kombat 11 and Mortal Kombat: Onslaught.
A lifelong martial artist, Tagawa trained in kendo and karate, studied at USC, trained in Japan under Master Nakayama, and eventually developed his own martial arts system, Chun-Shin. He left behind a legacy of unforgettable performances and a lasting influence on action cinema.