Ryusei Yokohama

From the Fighting Ring to the Film Set

Ryusei Yokohama (Yokohama, 1996) didn't enter the entertainment industry in search of critics' approval. He was all about physical contact and the discipline of the dojo. At age 14, he won the **Kyokushin Karate World Championship** in his weight class, and that mental toughness still defines the way he works today.

In 2011, he made his TV debut, but for a long time nobody took him seriously as a dramatic actor. He went through Toei's superhero series, specifically Ressha Sentai Toqger during 2014. It was the logical path for a guy with a striking look who could perform fight choreography without blinking.

But the body has memory.

His media breakthrough came in 2019 with the premiere of Hajimete Koi o Shita Hi ni Yomu Hanashi. He appeared on screen with bubblegum-pink hair, and suddenly all of Japan knew who he was. That role as a rebellious student brought him massive (and risky) popularity that boxed him into the image of a teen heartthrob for fashion magazines.

It took him three years of risky choices to break out of that box.

In 2020, he starred in Your Eyes Tell, a drama in which he played a boxer with a dark past. It was the first time the industry started looking beyond his face. Director Takahiro Miki drew on his real-life fighting background to shoot combat scenes without stunt doubles or excessive camera tricks.

Dirt Under the Nails

His shift in direction was confirmed when he crossed paths with director Michihito Fujii. In 2023, they filmed The Village together, a movie that steers clear of any commercial glamour to dig into social exclusion in rural Japan. Yokohama agreed to appear gaunt and covered in ash to break away from his own image.

And that dirt suited him well.

His collaboration with Fujii continued in 2024 with the film Beryu. In this project, the actor delved into characters who speak little and observe a lot. Yokohama has learned that silence on screen is often more effective than a desperate scream for conveying pain.

Before filming each scene, he usually isolates himself from the production crew. It's not a matter of ego, but of maintaining the muscle tension that his physical acting method requires. For the boxing film Haru ni Chiru in 2023, he took this commitment to the limit by earning a real **professional boxing license** to lend authenticity to the shots.

The Weight of History in 2025

By 2025, public broadcaster NHK had handed him the keys to his most ambitious project. Yokohama stars in the Taiga Drama Berabou: Tsutajuu Oedo no Yume Banashi. He plays Tsutaya Juzaburo, a key figure in the publishing world of the Edo period.

Productions like this demand shoots lasting more than twelve months and a stamina that few actors of his generation can handle. The series has a budget exceeding **several billion yen** and airs for 50 consecutive weeks without interruption.

Filming officially began in the summer of 2024 under constant media pressure.

Yokohama rarely reads what people write about him on social media. He prefers to focus on rehearsals and on maintaining the exact weight each script demands. In 2023, he had to build muscle mass quickly for one role and then lose it drastically in under eight weeks for the next shoot.

His contract for the 2025 series includes strict clauses about his physical appearance and absolute availability for the network.