HONG KONG – Takuya Kimura, one of Japan’s best-known actors, had been set to appear in a Hong Kong film that is soon to start filming but the casting was scrapped, local media reported, amid deteriorating ties between China and its neighbor.
Kimura had agreed to appear in the third installment of the “Twilight of the Warriors” series that has been a hit in Japan, and had received the screenplay, the Sing Tao Daily said Friday. Filming is expected to begin later this month, with another actor joining the cast, it said.
Communist-led China has been taking tough measures against Hong Kong since large-scale protests morphed into a pro-democracy movement in 2019, intensifying censorship and eroding the de facto autonomy of the country’s administrative region.
Tensions between Beijing and Tokyo have been escalating after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi indicated in November at a parliamentary session that Japan’s defense forces could act in the event of an emergency involving Taiwan.
Kimura is one of Japan’s most recognizable entertainers, known since his years in the former pop group SMAP. His drama and film appearances made him a cultural icon, with particularly strong visibility across East Asia.