Zombies in Hong Kong, dreams of Hollywood and acting in a Jackie Chan movie - Japanese action star Rina Takeda on what’s next, and her goals
- A karate black belt who began making movies in her teens, Rina Takeda hopes to take Japanese film worldwide as Jackie Chan did Hong Kong cinema
- The Warriors Within star, who’s equally at home in dramas, dreams of working with Chan, and in Hollywood, but next up is zombie movie Chungking Mansions
Japanese actress Rina Takeda spent many weekends watching movies with her family. Her father, a karate teacher, was a huge fan of films from the 1980s.
Her all-time favourite is the 1985 adventure comedy The Goonies. Not surprisingly, The Karate Kid (1984) is also a favourite.
“My father is a huge movie buff and encouraged me to watch movies from the ’80s even though they were made before I was born,” she says with a laugh. “He also inspired me to take up karate – my brother also did it so I wanted to be part of that.”
It’s hard not to assume that Takeda’s father has had a major influence on her career.
Now 31, Takeda – a 2nd dan black belt in ryukyu shorin-ryu karate – is one of Japan’s biggest female action stars, who first turned heads when, aged 17, she landed the lead role in Fuyuhiko Nishi’s film High Kick Girl!
