Shin'ichi Chiba
Biography
Sonny Chiba was a Japanese martial artist and actor who became one of the first stars to gain fame through martial arts skills, first in Japan and later with international audiences. Born in Fukuoka, he was discovered by Toei in a talent search around 1960 and began on television in tokusatsu superhero shows, including Seven Color Mask and Messenger of Allah. After a decade in crime thrillers, his breakthrough came with The Street Fighter (1974), which New Line Cinema released in the West and which established him as a leading Japanese martial arts actor abroad. He went on to appear in The Bullet Train (1975), Message from Space (1978), Shogun's Samurai (1978), G.I. Samurai (1979), Samurai Reincarnation (1981), and Shogun's Shadow (1989), also working as a stunt coordinator. Later roles included Deadly Outlaw: Rekka (2002) and Hattori Hanzo in Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003). He received many awards in Japan for his acting and died in 2021.
82years old at death
- Born Fukuoka
- Died Kimitsu
- Star sign: AquariusThe sign runs January 20 to February 18
- 前田 禎穂 (birth name)Also credited as Sonny Chiba, JJ Sonny Chiba, Sadaho Maeda and 千葉真一
Movie Career
- Films
- 31
- Career span
- 60 years1963 to 2023
Genres
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First role
Chiba's first screen role was as the main character Kotaro Ran, also called Seven Color Mask, in the second half of the Seven Color Mask series, taking over from Susumu Wajima.
Behind the camera
Chiba founded the Japan Action Club, a training school for martial arts film actors and stunt performers, which later became Japan Action Enterprise.
About the name
New Line Cinema founder Robert Shaye gave Chiba the English name Sonny, which he adopted for non-Japanese projects after The Street Fighter became an international hit.
Early training
Chiba studied martial arts under Kyokushin Karate master Masutatsu Oyama, earning a first-degree black belt in 1965 and a fourth-degree in 1984, and later portrayed Oyama in a trilogy of films.
About the name
Chiba was discovered in a Toei talent search called New Face around 1960, and the studio's CEO gave him the stage name Shinichi Chiba.
Behind the camera
Chiba worked as a stunt coordinator on G.I. Samurai, Burning Brave and Shogun's Shadow, and he directed and was executive producer of Yellow Fangs.
Shin'ichi Chiba movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
- Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair2011 Action, Crime, Drama, Thrilleras Hattori Hanzo
IMDb rating 8.759K votes
Most often with
Kinji Fukasaku directed seven of these films, Shigehiro Ozawa four and Quentin Tarantino two. Three actors appear in seven of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Tetsuro Tamba's page
Seizô Fukumoto's page
Etsuko Shihomi's page
Mikio Narita's page
Hiroyuki Sanada's page
Hideo Murota's page
Kinji FukasakuDirector, 7 films, 1973 to 1983
All films by Kinji Fukasaku
Shigehiro OzawaDirector, 4 films, 1964 to 1974
All films by Quentin Tarantino
Also five films together1 more actor
- Masashi IshibashiG.I. Samurai (1979), Dragon Princess (1976), Return of the Street Fighter (1974), Sister Street Fighter (1974) and The Street Fighter (1974)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Awards
Two awards and honors.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other honors | |||
| 1962 | Elan d'or Award for Newcomer of the Year | Won | |
| American Choreography Awards | Won | ||
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.