Kento Yamazaki

2009–2013: Beginnings

Yamazaki was scouted during his third year of junior high school by his agency, Stardust Promotion, on Takeshita Street, Harajuku while on his way home from a soccer match. He began his career working as a model for the magazine Pichi Lemon from 2009 to 2011.^[1][2]

Yamazaki made his acting debut in 2010 when he was cast in the TV series Atami no Sousakan as a mysterious high school student. This was followed by a supporting role in the TV series Clone Baby, where he played a hacker.^[3]

The following year, Yamazaki made his film debut in Control Tower, which was released in April 2011.^[5] He sang and played the guitar in the film, for which his acting was well received.^{[citation needed]}

In 2012, he appeared in the film The Wings of the Kirin. He also starred as the lead in the horror thriller film Another, working with his Control Tower co-star Ai Hashimoto for a second time. He was subsequently cast in the films The Chasing World 3^[6] and the live-action adaptation of Love for Beginners.

In 2013, he led the LGBTQ-themed television film Sato Family Breakfast. For his participation in the film, he attended the 2nd Taiwan International Queer Film Festival in 2015.^{[citation needed]} In addition to that, he took on a supporting role in the film Jinx!!! and the TV series 35-sai no Koukousei.

2014–2017: Breakthrough and success in manga adaptations

In 2014, Yamazaki made a breakthrough in his career starring in the live-action film adaptation of the highly successful manga L DK, alongside Ayame Goriki.^[7] The film's success garnered him greater public attention. That same year, he acted in three drama series, including Baseball Brainiacs, where he was cast alongside actors Sota Fukushi and Yuto Nakajima.^[8] He also made his stage debut in Satomi Hakkenden as the main lead Inuzuka Shino.

In 2015, he was again cast in a film adaptation of a popular manga with No Longer Heroine, alongside Mirei Kiritani.^[9] He then played the lead role in Orange, alongside Tao Tsuchiya.^[10] Both films were a success, with No Longer Heroine premiering number one at the Japanese box office and earning US$20.5 million. While Orange grossed almost US$28 million, becoming the 9th highest-grossing Japanese film of 2016.^{[11][12][13][14]} For his roles in those two films, he won the Newcomer of the Year award at the 39th Japan Academy Film Prize and was also nominated at the 2016 Hochi Film Awards.^{[citation needed]} That same year, he appeared in the television adaptation of the popular manga series Death Note as L, and the NHK Asadora Mare, led by Tsuchiya Tao.

In 2016, Yamazaki starred in Your Lie in April. He played the lead role of Kosei Arima, a gifted pianist, alongside Suzu Hirose, who portrayed Kaori Miyazono.^[15] For the role, Yamazaki had to learn how to play the piano and practiced for six months prior to the commencement of filming.^[16] Thereafter, he starred in the live-action adaptation of Wolf Girl and Black Prince and the TV series A Girl & Three Sweethearts. That same year, Yamazaki was chosen to star in a special short film to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Yasuhisa Hara's historical manga Kingdom^[17] as the main character, Xin. He would go on to reprise this role in the 2019 live-action feature film, which was released on April 19, 2019.^[18]

In 2017, he co-starred with Haruna Kawaguchi in One Week Friends.^[19] The film received positive ratings from critics, which mostly praised Yamazaki for successfully portraying the cheerful and friendly Yuki Hase.^{[citation needed]} He would then continue to appear in other live-action films throughout the year, including JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable Chapter I, Psychic Kusuo: The Disastrous Life of Saiki K., and Hyouka: Forbidden Secrets. Towards the end of 2017, he starred in the TV series Rikuoh.^[20]

2018–present: Leading roles

In January 2018, Yamazaki secured his first leading role in a television series, playing Ōtarō Dōjima, a top nightclub host, in the NTV winter drama Kiss that Kills,^[21] alongside Mugi Kadowaki, Mackenyu and Masaki Suda. His film A Forest of Wool and Steel was released that same year, where he portrayed a piano tuner.^[22] In preparation for the film, Yamazaki lived in Hokkaido to learn and practice piano tuning. He also met the Emperor and Empress of Japan in a special screening of the film.^[23][24] In the summer of 2018, Yamazaki was cast in the TV series Good Doctor.^[25] Based on the 2013 South Korean drama of the same name, it tells the story of a young autistic man who becomes a pediatric surgeon. The drama received a positive response from viewers, and it was the first time Yamazaki acted as a doctor and took on a more unconventional role. It earned him the Television Drama Academy Award for Best Actor.^[26][27][28]

In 2019, Yamazaki was cast in the Netflix series Alice in Borderland, a live-action adaptation of the manga series of the same name, in the lead role of Ryōhei Arisu.^[29][30] The series premiered on Netflix on December 10, 2020. The show was a success. Within the first few weeks of its release, it "ranked in the top ten most-watched shows" on the platform in nearly 40 territories. On December 24, 2020, Netflix renewed the series for a second season, two weeks after the first one had been released.^[31]

In 2020, Yamazaki also starred in the live-action film adaptation of Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku. He played the lead role of Hirotaka Nifuji, an aloof working adult who is a huge fan of video games. The film was released in February 2020. He also starred in Theatre: A Love Story as a struggling theatre director.^[32]

In 2021, he starred in the sci-fi drama film The Door into Summer, loosely based on the novel of the same name.^[33] In 2022, following the first film's release in 2019, Yamazaki reprised his role as Li Xin in the sequel film Kingdom 2: Far and Away.^[34] He then went on to star in the lead role of Nayuta Azumi, an indie game developer, in the TV series Atom’s Last Shot.^[35] Later that year, the second season of Alice in Borderland premiered worldwide on December 22, 2022.^[36]

On September 27, 2023, Netflix renewed Alice in Borderland for a third season,^[37] which is set to be released in September 2025.^[38][39]

Film

Television

Music video appearances

Photobooks

• Yamazaki Kento "You Are Here"(Genzaichi) (Wani Books, March 27, 2014) ISBN 9784847046292^[95]
• The Kentos (Tokyo News Service, December 17, 2014) ISBN 9784863364462^[96]
• Scene #20 (KADOKAWA, September 26, 2015) ISBN 9784047319813^[97]
• 山﨑賢人写真集「KENTO YAMAZAKI」 (KADOKAWA, April 24, 2019) ISBN 9784048963695^[98]