1. Early life and education
1.1. Birth and family background
Hira was born on July 27, 1974, in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan. His parents are the renowned actors Mikijirō Hira and Yoshiko Sakuma. He is a fraternal twin and has a younger sister named Tomoko, who later became his manager after he established his personal agency. His parents divorced in May 1984. Hira was primarily raised by his mother following the divorce, though he has noted that his father was rarely home even before their separation, so he did not feel a significant sense of loneliness or absence.
1.2. Education
Hira received his early education in Japan, attending Gyosei Elementary School and Gyosei Junior High School. At the age of 15, while enrolled at Gyosei High School, he moved to the United States. He completed his high school education at Moses Brown School in Providence, Rhode Island. Following high school, he pursued higher education at Brown University, where he studied applied mathematics in the Faculty of Science. After graduating from Brown University, he enrolled in a master's program at Columbia University Graduate School but later withdrew.
2. Career
2.1. Early career and debut
Hira made his theatrical debut in 2002 in the stage production of Rokumeikan, a play written by Yukio Mishima. This debut was particularly notable as it marked a joint appearance with both of his parents, Mikijiro Hira and Yoshiko Sakuma. Initially, his mother, Yoshiko Sakuma, was strongly opposed to his decision to pursue acting. She even expressed a willingness to withdraw from the production if her son was cast. However, after witnessing his performance in the debut, she relented, reportedly saying, "I will say no more." Hira also worked closely with his father, Mikijiro Hira, on various stage projects. A significant collaboration included their roles in Othello, where Takehiro played Iago opposite his father's Othello.
2.2. Major Japanese works
Hira gained significant recognition in Japan for his diverse roles across television and film. He notably portrayed the last shogun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, in the 2008 NHK taiga drama Atsuhime. He continued to appear in other Taiga dramas such as Go (2011) as Saji Kazunari and Sanada Maru (2016) as Takeda Katsuyori. He also featured in Asadora series like Dandan (2009) and Doctor Ume (2012).
In film, Hira has collaborated with director Takashi Miike on several projects, including Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai (2011), Ace Attorney (2012), and Lesson of the Evil (2012). He played Natsuka Masaie in the big-budget film The Floating Castle (2012) and Shima Sakon in Sekigahara (2017). Other notable Japanese film appearances include Memories of Tomorrow (2006), Goodbye, Someday (2010), SP: The Motion Picture (2010) and its sequel SP: The Motion Picture II (2011), Aibō: Gekijō-ban II (2010), The Eternal Zero (2013), Mother's Trees (2015), S The Last Policeman - Recovery of Our Future (2015), Foujita (2015), Killing for the Prosecution (2018), Erica 38 (2019), and We Couldn't Become Adults (2021).
2.3. International career
Hira has expanded his acting presence globally, taking on significant roles in British and American productions. In 2005, he appeared in an English stage production of Hamlet, playing the Player Queen, alongside Michael Maloney in the title role. This production toured successfully across the UK for three months.
His breakthrough in international television came with the 2019 British TV series Giri/Haji, where he played the lead role of Kenzo Mori. This Netflix original drama earned him a nomination for Best Actor at the British Academy Television Awards in 2020. He has also had notable parts in several American productions, including the films Lost Girls & Love Hotels (2020) as Kazu, Snake Eyes (2021) as Kenta, and a minor role as Kazunori Yamauchi in Gran Turismo (2023). In television, he appeared in The Swarm (2023) as Riku Sato and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (2023-2024) as Hiroshi Randa. In 2024, Hira starred as Ishido Kazunari in FX's critically acclaimed adaptation of Shōgun, a role for which he received a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series at the Primetime Emmy Awards in 2024. He was also part of the ensemble cast that received a nomination for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series for Shōgun in 2024.
2.4. Voice and radio work
Beyond live-action roles, Hira has lent his voice to animated productions and participated in radio dramas. In 2021, he voiced Oda Nobunaga in the Netflix original anime series Yasuke. He has also appeared in several radio dramas for NHK-FM, including Daikokuya Kōdayū (2003), Miyo, Aoi Sora ni Shiroi Hoshi (2005), and Tozai Nanboku Yume Hanami (2007), where he played Torii Yōzō. He was also a narrator for the J-WAVE radio program SOUNDS OF STORY ~ASADA JIRO LIBRARY~ in 2013.
2.5. Other appearances
Hira has also appeared in various television programs in non-acting capacities, including as a special coverage caster, narrator, and travel show participant. From 2009 to 2010, he served as a special coverage caster for TBS's 総力報道!THE NEWS. He participated in numerous episodes of NHK General's travel show のんびりゆったり 路線バスの旅 from 2011 to 2014, exploring various regions of Japan. In 2012, he was the narrator for the NHK BS Premium documentary Itami Juzo: The Road to "The Funeral". He also served as a navigator for NHK E-tele's TV de Español from April to September 2013 and Journeying Spanish: Takehiro Hira's Northern Spain Challenge from October 2016 to March 2017. In 2013, he appeared in the NHK Special How Far Do You Want to Know the Future? ~Genes of Destiny~.
3. Filmography
Hira's film career spans a variety of genres and roles in both Japanese and international cinema.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Memories of Tomorrow | Yuichi Tominaga | |
| 2007 | Chacha | Gotō Mototsugu | |
| 2010 | Goodbye, Someday | Kasai | |
| 2010 | SP: The Motion Picture | Eiji Takigawa | |
| 2010 | Aibō: Gekijō-ban II | Hideaki Maruyama | |
| 2011 | SP: The Motion Picture II | Eiji Takigawa | |
| 2011 | Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai | Ii Naotaka | |
| 2012 | Lesson of the Evil | Koki Kume | |
| 2012 | Ace Attorney | Mitsurugi Shin / Gregory Edgeworth | |
| 2012 | The Floating Castle | Natsuka Masaie | |
| 2013 | Shundo | Daihachiro Harada | Lead role |
| 2013 | The Eternal Zero | Officer | |
| 2015 | Mother's Trees | Kenjiro | |
| 2015 | S The Last Policeman - Recovery of Our Future | Doctor | |
| 2015 | Foujita | Lieutenant | |
| 2017 | Sekigahara | Shima Sakon | |
| 2018 | Killing for the Prosecution | Kazuki Tanno | |
| 2019 | Erica 38 | Hirasawa | |
| 2020 | Lost Girls & Love Hotels | Kazu | |
| 2021 | Snake Eyes | Kenta | |
| 2021 | We Couldn't Become Adults | Keiichiro Sanai | |
| 2023 | Gran Turismo | Kazunori Yamauchi | |
| 2024 | Rumours | Tatsuro Iwasaki | |
| 2024 | Crosspoint | Shigeru Watanabe | |
| 2025 | Captain America: Brave New World | Prime Minister Ozaki | |
| 2025 | Tornado | Fujin | |
| 2025 | The Amateur | Professor | Post-production |
| TBA | Rental Family | Tada |
4. Television
Hira has appeared in numerous television dramas, both in Japan and internationally, showcasing his versatility across different formats and languages.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Cosmetic | WOWOW | |
| 2003 | Love to be loved | TBS | |
| 2003 | Special Mission Boss | Kato | TV Asahi |
| 2003 | Warsaw no Aki | Nobuyuki Okamura | Kansai TV |
| 2004 | Go Ryoma | Kurata Ike | TV Tokyo |
| 2004 | The Clan of Inugami | Satake Inugami | Fuji TV |
| 2004 | Tange Sazen | NTV | |
| 2004 | Kozure Ōkami Part 3 | Senjuro Himuro | TV Asahi |
| 2004 | Mito Komon | Ukyonosuke Hojo | TBS |
| 2005 | Nada Sousou: Kono Ai ni Ikite | Takashi Matsuno | TBS |
| 2006 | Kemonodachi | Etsuro Kurahara | TV Asahi |
| 2006 | Delicious Proposal | Shigenori Hinohara | TBS |
| 2008 | Atsuhime | Tokugawa Yoshinobu | Taiga drama, NHK |
| 2009 | Lineage of Cop | Shinya Yoshida | TV Asahi |
| 2009 | Dandan | Yuichi Sawada | Asadora, NHK |
| 2009 | Counter Terrorist Police | Gaku Kubota | NHK |
| 2010 | The Chapter of Mountain | Hideo Horisawa | Fuji TV |
| 2010 | Katsura Chizuru Shinsatsu Niroku | Kihee Mikuniya | NHK |
| 2011 | Fake | K (Shinsuke Katsuragi) | NHK |
| 2011 | Woman from Kyoto Police | Takuma Okura | TV Asahi |
| 2011 | Absolute Zero | Tomoki Sawada | Fuji TV |
| 2011 | Go | Saji Kazunari | Taiga drama, NHK |
| 2011 | Tsukahara Bokuden | Samon Yamazaki | NHK BS Premium |
| 2011 | Boyfriend, Husband and Male Friend | Hiroki Yagi | NHK |
| 2011 | Science Investigation | Shoji Kuse | TV Asahi |
| 2011 | The Return from Pearl Harbor | Lieutenant Naoharu Iwasa | NHK |
| 2012 | Pioneers | Morimitsu Shoji | NHK BS Premium |
| 2012 | The Life of Juzo Itami | Juzo Itami | Lead role, NHK BS Premium |
| 2012 | Doctor Ume | Shinkichi Sanada | Asadora, NHK |
| 2012 | Three-Color Cat Holmes' Deduction | Shotaro Katayama | NTV |
| 2012 | Keigo Higashino Mysteries | Yuji Sakurai | Fuji TV |
| 2012 | Naniwa Shonen Tanteidan | Toru Yokota | TBS |
| 2013 | Mottomo Nagai Ginga | Junsuke Seike | TV Asahi |
| 2013 | Ooka Echizen | Shogun Tokugawa Yoshimune | NHK BS Premium |
| 2013 | Tokuso Saizensen 2013 | Sakuma Benitake | TV Asahi |
| 2014 | Shinzanmono | Yasunari Kajita | TBS |
| 2014 | Iryu - Team Medical Dragon - 4 | Shuzo Sakurai (young) | Fuji TV |
| 2014 | Death Note | Yuji Nagumo | TV Asahi |
| 2014 | Kenkaku Shibai | Hyozo Okubo | Fuji TV |
| 2014 | Kindaichi Kōsuke vs. Akechi Kogoro Once More | Natsuhiko Hoshino | Fuji TV |
| 2015 | Aibō season 13 | Yuichi Tobishiro | TV Asahi |
| 2015 | Kaze no Touge | Kakuhee Washizu / Seiemon | NHK |
| 2015 | Keibuho Sugiyama Shintaro | Takeo Yabuki | TBS |
| 2015 | 64 (Rokuyon) | Mitsuyoshi Akama | NHK |
| 2015 | Ishitachi no Renai Jijyo | Izaki | Fuji TV |
| 2015 | Ishino Mayu | Hitoshi Kadowaki | WOWOW |
| 2015 | Cho no Sanmyaku | Yukio Tabuchi | Lead role, NHK BS Premium |
| 2015 | Shitamachi Rocket | Hirohisa Kusaka | TBS |
| 2015 | Onnatachi no Tokuso | Tadayoshi Kiryu | TV Asahi |
| 2016 | Fragile | Hidetoshi Kosaka | Fuji TV |
| 2016 | 99.9 Criminal Lawyer | Koichi Yamashiro | TBS |
| 2016 | Sanada Maru | Takeda Katsuyori | Taiga drama, NHK |
| 2016 | IQ246 | Soichi Kasahara | TBS |
| 2017 | Uso no Senso | Toru Kushima | Kansai TV |
| 2017 | Iryu Sosa Season 4 | Atsushi Kurihara | TV Asahi |
| 2018 | Aragami | Danjo Sotani | NHK BS Premium |
| 2018 | Shitsuji Saionji no Meisuiri | Shinichi Yamana | TV Tokyo |
| 2019 | Innocence, Enzai Bengoshi | Kazuhiko Unzen | NTV |
| 2019 | Giri/Haji | Kenzo Mori | BBC / Netflix |
| 2021 | Yasuke | Oda Nobunaga (voice) | ONA, Netflix |
| 2023 | The Swarm | Riku Sato | Hulu |
| 2023-2024 | Monarch: Legacy of Monsters | Hiroshi Randa | Apple TV+ |
| 2024 | Shōgun | Ishido Kazunari | FX |
5. Stage
Hira has an extensive background in theatre, performing in numerous stage productions both in Japan and internationally.
| Year | Title | Role / Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Rokumeikan | Hisao Kiyohara | Directed by Kazuya Yamada |
| 2002 | King Lear | Edmund | Directed by Mikijiro Hira |
| 2004 | Hamlet | Player Queen | Directed by Yukio Ninagawa, UK tour |
| 2005 | Korikoribanashi | Directed by Shinichi Kamoshita | |
| 2006 | And Then There Were None | Philip Lombart | Directed by Gregg Dale |
| 2006 | Othello | Iago | Directed by Mikijiro Hira |
| 2008 | Genghis Khan | Genghis Khan | Lead role, directed by Enō Ichikawa II |
| 2009 | Gabrielle Chanel | Directed by Keiko Miyata | |
| 2011 | The Film of the Nation | Gustav Fröhlich | Directed by Koki Mitani |
| 2012 | Bouye | Genichiro Akai | Directed by Keishi Nagatsuka |
| 2012 | Harvest | Albert Harrison, Allan, Lewis | Performed three roles, directed by Shintaro Mori |
| 2013 | Pygmalion | Henry Higgins | Directed by Keiko Miyata |
| 2014 | HInoyouni Sabishi Anegaite | Directed by Yukio Ninagawa | |
| 2014 | The Film of the Nation | Gustav Fröhlich | Re-run, directed by Koki Mitani |
| 2015 | Tokaido Yotsuya Kaidan | Yomosuke Sato | Directed by Shintaro Mori |
| 2016 | Kakuonnna | Tosui Hanai | Directed by Ai Nagai |
| 2016-2018 | Super Kabuki II One Piece | Ace | Directed by Ennosuke Ichikawa IV |
| 2017 | Otoko no Hanamichi | Genseki Habu, Koen-sensei | Hakataza |
| 2017 | Yukinojo Henge | ||
| 2017 | Phedre | Hippolyte | Directed by Tamiya Kuriyama |
6. Personal life
6.1. Marriage and family
Takehiro Hira announced his marriage to a non-celebrity woman on July 12, 2016. It was later revealed that his wife was a childhood friend and close confidante of his younger sister, Tomoko. The couple has a daughter. In 2020, Hira made the decision to relocate with his wife and daughter to Hawaii, aiming to expand his professional activities internationally.
7. Awards and nominations
7.1. Major nominations
Hira has received nominations for significant awards in both British and American television.
| Award | Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| British Academy Television Awards | 2020 | Best Actor | Giri/Haji | Nominated |
| Primetime Emmy Awards | 2024 | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | Shōgun | Nominated |
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | 2024 | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Shōgun | Nominated |