Masayori "Masi" Oka (岡 政偉, Oka Masayori, December 27, 1974)[1][2] is a Japanese[3] actor, producer, and digital effects artist who became widely known for starring in NBC's Heroes as Hiro Nakamura, for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, and in CBS's Hawaii Five-0 as Doctor Max Bergman.[4]
Masi Oka | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Oka at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con | |||||
| Born | December 27, 1974 | ||||
| Education | Brown University (BS) | ||||
| Occupations |
| ||||
| Years active | 1998–present | ||||
| Japanese name | |||||
| Kanji | 岡 政偉 | ||||
| Kana | おか まさより | ||||
| |||||
Early life
editOka was born in Tokyo, Japan, to Setsuko Oka.[1] His parents divorced when he was one month old; he was raised in a single parent family and has never met his father.[5] He was six years old when he and his mother moved to Los Angeles from Japan.[6] At age eight, he appeared on the CBS-TV game show Child's Play. In 1987, a 12-year-old Oka was featured as one of several children on the cover of Time magazine, for the article "Those Asian-American Whiz Kids."[7] Though he was not featured in the article itself, he was acquainted with the photographer who conducted the shoot.[8] In 1988, he placed fourth in the California state MATHCOUNTS competition and was one of the four students to represent the state of California in the national competition.[9]
Oka attended Brown University, where he was musical director of The Bear Necessities all-male a cappella group.[10] He graduated in 1997 with a BS in computer science and mathematics and a minor in theater arts.[11]
Oka landed his first job after graduation at Industrial Light & Magic, George Lucas's motion picture visual special effects company, with the hope of one day earning an Oscar for technical work on a motion picture.[11] He was also featured in the San Francisco Chronicle with ILM co-worker Anthony Shafer in a pre-dot-com article where he echoed his desire to meld acting and technology.[12] He worked on the Star Wars prequel trilogy.[8]
Career
edit
2000–2005: Move to Los Angeles and working actor
editOka first tried acting in 2000. He earned a Screen Actors Guild card by appearing in industry films, then moved to Los Angeles.[13] ILM stipulated in his contract that he could work at its Los Angeles branch but would have to return to their Marin County, California, location if he did not get cast for a recurring role that season. Oka was cast in a television pilot, and although the show was not picked up, it satisfied the contract's requirements, and he was allowed to work in Los Angeles.
During this period, Oka landed several minor roles in film and television, such as Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002) and the "Dances with Couch" episode of the sitcom Yes, Dear. [citation needed] He eventually landed a recurring role as Franklyn on the NBC comedy Scrubs.[14]
He was featured in a North American commercial for Sega's 2002 PlayStation 2 video game, Shinobi, with the catchphrase 'Shinobi's back!' in front of Sega's 1987 Shinobi arcade cabinet.[15]
2006–2010: Heroes and mainstream recognition
editIn 2006, Oka was cast as the time-manipulating Hiro Nakamura in the NBC television series Heroes. Oka translated his own dialogue for the show, from English to Japanese;[16] English subtitles accompanied his Japanese dialogue on the show. Prior to this, he was expecting to forgo acting by the end of that year's pilot season in lieu of pursuing writing and producing. Heroes was a breakout hit, and his portrayal of Nakamura earned him nominations for both a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, the only actor on the show to be nominated on either award shows.[14][17] He was named the Coolest Geek at the Spike TV Guys' Choice Awards on June 13, 2007.[18] In 2007, he presented an award with Heroes co-star Hayden Panettiere on the 20th annual Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.[citation needed]
In addition to his work on the show, he continued to work at ILM up to three days a week as a research and development technical director, writing programs that create special effects.[11]
He played the role of Bruce in the big screen version of Get Smart. He played a real estate broker who is trying to sell to Seann William Scott's character in Steve Conrad's The Promotion.
2010–present: Hawaii Five-0 and other projects
editOka played the coroner Dr. Max Bergman in CBS' Hawaii Five-0, a remake of the original series which aired from 1968 to 1980.[19] He joined the show's main cast in the second series. His character was written as an ethnic Japanese who was adopted at birth by Jewish parents, hence his last name. Oka also made an appearance in the film Friends with Benefits.
In 2015, Oka reprised his role as Hiro Nakamura in NBC's miniseries Heroes Reborn.[20]
Oka has turned his digital effects skills to video game production, founding the video game development studio Mobius Digital, where he was a producer on the critically acclaimed Outer Wilds.[21]
Personal life
editOka is fluent in Japanese, English and Spanish. He worked on the 1992 Summer Olympics as an English, Spanish, and Japanese translator.[22] He played chess in his youth and had an Elo rating of 1800.[23]
Similar to his character Hiro Nakamura, Oka also collects manga.[24] He co-produced the 2017 American adaptation of the manga series Death Note. He also founded the video game studio Mobius Digital Games, mainly known for its game Outer Wilds.[25]
He has earned the rank of black belt in kendō (Japanese fencing).[26][27]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Austin Powers in Goldmember | Japanese Pedestrian | |
| 2003 | Uh-Oh! | Asian Man | |
| 2003 | Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde | Congressional Intern | Uncredited |
| 2004 | Along Came Polly | Wonsuk | |
| 2005 | The Proud Family Movie | Japanese Kid/Announcer | Voice only |
| 2005 | Noroi: The Curse | Self | |
| 2005 | House of the Dead 2 | Stanley Tong | |
| 2006 | One Sung Hero | KJ | Short film |
| 2007 | Balls of Fury | Feng's men's room attendant | |
| 2008 | Get Smart | Bruce | |
| 2008 | Get Smart's Bruce and Lloyd: Out of Control | Direct-to-video | |
| 2008 | The Promotion | Loan Officer | |
| 2009 | Fired Up | Eagle Mascot | |
| 2010 | Searching for Sonny | Sonny Bosco | |
| 2011 | Friends with Benefits | Darin Arturo Morena | |
| 2013 | Jobs | Ken Tanaka | |
| 2017 | Death Note | Detective Sasaki | Also producer |
| 2018 | The Meg | Toshi | |
| 2019 | Spies in Disguise | Katsu Kimura | Voice role |
| 2022 | Bullet Train | Conductor |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Dharma & Greg | Nien-Jin | Episode: "The End of the Innocence: Part 2" |
| 2001 | Citizen Baines | Staffer Dan | Episode: "The Whole Thump-Thump-Thump" |
| 2001 | Gilmore Girls | Philosophy Student | Episode: "The Road Trip to Harvard" |
| 2002 | Yes, Dear | Talking Rock | Episode: "Dances with Couch" |
| 2002 | Sabrina, the Teenage Witch | Male Council Member | Episode: "The Whole Ball of Wax" |
| 2002 | She Spies | Guy | Episode: "Fondles" |
| 2002–2003 | The Jamie Kennedy Experiment | Various | 4 episodes |
| 2002–2004 | Scrubs | Franklyn | 5 episodes |
| 2003 | On the Spot | Japanese Tourist | Episode: "Little Brenda Dynamite" |
| 2003 | Luis | Deng Wu | 9 episodes |
| 2004 | Still Standing | Ronald | Episode: "Still Bill's Dad" |
| 2004 | All of Us | Edwin | Episode: "Home for Christmas?" |
| 2005 | Less Than Perfect | Hideki | Episode: "I Just Don't Like Here" |
| 2005 | Reno 911! | Translator | |
| 2005 | Joey | Arthur | |
| 2005 | God Wears My Underwear | Brother Eo | Voice only |
| 2005 | Punk'd | Translator | Season 5 |
| 2006 | Reba | IRS Agent Phung | Episode: "Don't Mess with Taxes" |
| 2006 | Without a Trace | Wei Fan | Episode: "Check Your Head" |
| 2006 | The Loop | Wang | Episode: "The Year of the Dog" |
| 2006 | The Sarah Silverman Program | Clerk | Episode: "Batteries" |
| 2006–2010 | Heroes | Hiro Nakamura | 66 episodes Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television (2006) Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (2006) Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (2007) Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (2007) Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television (2007) |
| 2007 | Jane Doe: Ties That Bind | Agent Osaka | Television film |
| 2007 | Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip | Himself | Episode: "The Harriet Dinner"; uncredited |
| 2007–2008 | Reno 911! | Foreign Tourist, Japanese Translator | 3 episodes |
| 2007 | Robot Chicken | Japanese Mr. Rogers / Chachi | Voice only |
| 2008 | Discovery Atlas | Narrator | Episode: "Japan Revealed" |
| 2010–2017; 2019 | Hawaii Five-0 | Doctor Max Bergman | Recurring (Season 1); Main (Seasons 2–7); 97 episodes; Guest (Season 10) |
| 2015 | Heroes Reborn | Hiro Nakamura | 3 episodes |
| 2018 | Mozart in the Jungle | Fukumoto | 4 episodes |
| 2021 | Star Wars: Visions | Ethan (voice) | Short film: "The Ninth Jedi": English language dub[28] |
| 2023 | Blue Eye Samurai | Ringo /Muñones | Voice only |
Video games
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Cars Mater-National Championship | Koji | Voice role |
| 2007 | Driver '76 | Jimmy Yip | Voice role[29] |
| 2019 | Outer Wilds | Producer |
Audiobook
edit| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | World War Z | Kondo Tatsumi |
Digital effects artist
edit| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Mighty Joe Young | CG technical assistant: Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) |
| 1999 | Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace | Visual effects production and technical support: ILM |
| 2000 | Mission to Mars | Technical support: ILM |
| The Perfect Storm | Digital artist: ILM | |
| 2002 | Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones | Digital effects artist: ILM |
| 2003 | Hulk | Technical director: ILM |
| Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines | CG artist: ILM | |
| 2005 | Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith | Digital artist: ILM |
| War of the Worlds | Digital artist: ILM | |
| 2006 | Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest | Digital artist: ILM |
References
edit- ^ a b "Masi Oka 1974–". Biography Today. 17 (1). Omnigraphics, Inc.: 99 2007. ISSN 1058-2347.
- ^ Oka, Masi (December 27, 2020). "多くの誕生日祝いコメントありがとうございます！Thank you for the birthday wishes! 2021 is around the corner. Stay safe, everyone". Twitter.
- ^ Masi Oka [@masioka] (October 21, 2020). "I can't vote because I'm not a US citizen. But you can. Use your power. Let your voice be heard. Vote!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ """Heroes'" Masi Oka is super-geeky"". May 14, 2007. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
- ^ Tavis Smiley (April 27, 2007). "Masi Oka". PBS. Archived from the original on May 5, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2007.
- ^ Biography Today, p.100
- ^ "Asian-American Whiz Kids". Time. August 31, 1987. Archived from the original on December 16, 2006. Retrieved December 17, 2008.
- ^ a b ""Heroes" Star: Former "Whiz Kid"". TMZ.com. November 27, 2006. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
- ^ "Masi Oka (star of Heroes) on cover of Time in 1987". November 21, 2006. Archived from the original on February 7, 2009. Retrieved November 11, 2008.
- ^ Rapkin, Mickey (2008). Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate A Cappella Glory, p.11. Penguin Group, London. ISBN 1-59240-376-X, 9781592403769
- ^ a b c Shen, Maxine (October 15, 2006). "Heroes". New York Post. Archived from the original on February 24, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
- ^ Raine, George (June 7, 1998). "Now Hiring". sfgate.com.
- ^ Gaudiosi, John (October 25, 2006). "Masi Oka: Coder, Actor, Hero". Wired. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
- ^ a b Kuhn, Sarah (February 9, 2007). "Airborne at Last!". BackStage.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
- ^ "Early PS2 Ad with Hiro from Heroes "Shinobi's Back!"". YouTube. October 12, 2007.
- ^ Keveney, Bill (November 9, 2006). "'Heroes' star Masi Oka living the dream". USA Today. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
- ^ "Heroes". emmys.com. Television Academy. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
- ^ Casey, Jordan (June 11, 2007). "Spike TV Holds First Annual Guys Choice Awards Show". All Headline News. Archived from the original on February 13, 2008.
- ^ "Heroes' Masi Oka to Play Hawaii Five-0 Coroner". TVGuide.com. Retrieved August 12, 2010.
- ^ "Masi Oka returns as Hiro in 'Heroes Reborn'". cnet.com. March 30, 2015.
- ^ "MEET THE MOBIUS TEAM". mobiusdigitalgames.com. July 21, 2020.
- ^ Biography Today, p.101
- ^ Oka, Masi (January 28, 2021). "Hikaru Nakamura vs Hiro Nakamura (Masi Oka of Heroes)". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 19, 2021. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
- ^ SFX Collection – Special Edition #31: Total Anime, page 15 (UK-based sci-fi magazine)
- ^ "Team – Mobius Digital". Retrieved May 30, 2019.
- ^ Greg David (January 18, 2007). "There goes my Hiro". TV Guide. Archived from the original on February 16, 2007. Retrieved May 10, 2007.
- ^ Heroes Season 1 dvd, stunt special feature
- ^ "Stunning New Star Wars: Visions Trailer Debuts". StarWars.com. August 17, 2021. Retrieved August 17, 2021.
- ^ Sumo Digital; Ubisoft Reflections. Driver 76. Ubisoft. Scene: Ending credits, 2:32:09 in, Voice Actors.
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External links
edit
- Masi Oka at IMDb
- Daily Telegraph Article
- NY Times Article
- Brown University "From Special Effects to Acting, CS Alum Masi Oka is One of the 'Heroes'"
- Brown Daily Herald by Alissa Cerny 9/18/06 "Brown alum snags big role in NBC series 'Heroes'"
- Time magazine cover – August 31, 1987 (Masi Oka is to the farthest left)
- Nichi Bei Times Interview
- San Francisco Chronicle Article