News
Actor, Director Beat Takeshi Attacked While in Car, Man Arrested
posted on by Adriana Hazra
The Mainichi newspaper reported on Sunday that a man attacked a car carrying Japanese actor and director Beat Takeshi outside Tokyo Broadcasting System Television on Saturday at 11:40 p.m. JST. The police arrested the assailant, who was carrying a pickax. No one was injured in the attack.
Beat Takeshi, also known as Takeshi Kitano, has risen to prominence as both an actor and a director in Japan, and has also served as a comedian and television show host. Kitano has directed such films as Hana-bi, the 2003 Zatōichi film, Boiling Point, Outrage, and Ryuzo and the Seven Henchmen. He starred in DreamWorks and Paramount's live-action Ghost in the Shell film. In July 2016, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences extended an invitation to the director. He more recently guest starred in the final episode of the television anime of Yūji Moritaka and Keiji Adachi's Gurazeni baseball manga in 2018.
The French government awarded Kitano the Legion of Honor (Ordre national de la Légion d'Honneur), the highest French order of merit for military and civilian merits, in October 2016. Kitano received France's Commandeur decoration in the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Letters) in 2010. The Commandeur is the highest recognition in the Order of Arts and Letters, followed by Officier and Chevalier. The Order of Arts and Letters honors individuals who have contributed in art, literature, and other areas.
Sources: The Mainichi, NHK World
