# Kentaro Ito (actor, born 1997)

Kentaro Ito (伊藤 健太郎, Itō Kentarō, born June 30, 1997) is a Japanese actor and model. Previously known mononymously as Kentaro, began his career as a model and transitioned into acting in 2014 with his acting debut in Fuji TV's Hirugao: Love Affairs in the Afternoon as Keita Kinoshita. He has since starred in multiple television dramas, such as Tokyo Love Story, Peanut Butter Sandwich, and Is This Love a Sin!?.

## Career

Ito first started out as a model, previously known simply as Kentaro, and appeared mainly in magazines and advertisements. He made his acting debut in the afternoon television drama Hirugao: Love Affairs in the Afternoon, since then he has continuously appeared in many shows such as Gakkō no Kaidan, My Love Story!, Transit Girls, and as a former studio regular in Terrace House among others.
During the beginning of his burgeoning career in acting, he had begun thinking about giving himself a surname for some time, and when his character's name in the television drama From Today, It's Me!! , was the same as his real surname, "Ito." He felt it was fate, and on his 21st birthday, June 30, 2018, he announced that he would change his stage name to his full name, Kentaro Ito.

### Rising popularity and temporary hiatus

In 2019, he appeared in the drama Scarlet as Takeshi, the son of Kimiko Kawahara portrayed by Erika Toda, marking his first appearance in NHK's morning drama series, Asadora.
On July 21, 2020, Ito was set to co-star with Ryusei Yokohama in the play Ganryujima; however, it was reported that Yokohama had been infected with COVID-19, and the Tokyo stage performance was effectively canceled. Ito also took a PCR test, but it came back negative. However, as a close contact to Yokohama, he was asked to self-isolate at home for two weeks, until August 4, 2020.
On September 10 of the same year, he announced that he would be leaving Aoao Inc. and rejoin his former company, Image Entertainment.
On October 28, 2020, Ito was arrested for a vehicular accident after he collided with a motorcycle while driving a passenger car and then leaving the scene. He was later released and was not charged. He took a short break from his career after the accident due to receiving much backlash for fleeing the scene in the first place.

### 2022–present: Resumption of activities and restitution

On June 30, 2021, Ito launched his official website "GOLONDRINAS".
On May 15, 2022, he starred in the film Winter Rose. Set in a port town, he plays a young delinquent who later gets involved in uncovering the truth behind what happened to one of his friends who had been brutally attacked by an unknown assailant. The film was directed by Junji Sakamoto.
In May 2023, he played the lead role in the film The Quiet Don as Kondo Shizuka, the third leader of the Shinsengumi. In December of the same year, he appeared in the movie Till We Meet Again on the Lily Hill as the protagonist's best friend; for this role, he was nominated for the Best Supporting Actor award at the Japan Academy Award ceremony.

## Car accident and public image

On the night of October 28, 2020, Ito drove a passenger car and collided with a motorcycle, critically injuring two men and women. On the following day, the Metropolitan Police Department arrested him on suspicion of violating the Automobile Driving Punishment Act and the Road Traffic Act for leaving the scene of the accident.
Following the police reports, Ito's works and other television appearances were either removed, suspended or cancelled. He was removed from the cast of the NHK evening drama Ucchan that was scheduled to air in December 2020, and the on-demand streaming of his dramas was also suspended. Fuji TV replaced the programs scheduled to air from October 29 to 31. Ito's film Tonkatsu DJ Agetarō was released as scheduled on October 30, but his greeting appearance on the opening day was canceled. He was selected as the "Face of 2020" by the magazine Nikkei Trendy but was absent from the announcement held on November 3. And his appearance in the morning information program ZIP! [ja] had also been suspended from November.
On March 25, 2021, in court hearings, the charges of negligent driving resulting in injury were dropped as a settlement was reached with the victims, and the charges of hit-and-run were not indicted due to insufficient evidence to prove criminal intent. Ito posted a handwritten apology on his social media account regarding the accident.
After dealing with the lawsuits, he faced much criticism from citizens, as he had received no legal consequences from the act. Due to all the hate, at one point, he considered retiring from acting.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2015 | My Love Story!! | Osamu Kurihara | |
| 2016 | Luna | Shunsuke | Short-film; Lead role |
| 2016 | Museum | Hisashi Sawamura (teen) | |
| 2016 | 14 Nights | Kaneda | |
| 2017 | Cheer☆Dance | Hiroshi Yashiro | |
| 2017 | Sagrada Reset | Tomoki Nakano | Lead role |
| 2017 | My Teacher | Yusuke Fujioka | |
| 2017 | Demekin | Masaki Sada | Lead role |
| 2018 | Room Laundering | Akito Nijikawa | |
| 2018 | Before the Coffee Gets Cold | Ryosuke Shintani | |
| 2018 | Are You Ready, Girl? | Ritsu Niimi | |
| 2018 | We Love You | Kazuma Saeki | |
| 2019 | The Flowers of Evil | Takao Kasuga | Lead role |
| 2019 | Ride Your Wave | Wasabi Kawamura (voice) | |
| 2019 | Shinkansen Henkei Robo Shinkalion | Nahane (voice) | |
| 2020 | Noboru Kodera-san | Kondo | |
| 2020 | Starting Today, It's My Turn!! | Shinji Ito | |
| 2020 | Yowamushi Pedal: Up the Road | Shunsuke Imaizumi | |
| 2020 | The Brightest Roof in the Universe | Toru Asakura | |
| 2020 | Tonkatsu DJ Agetaro | Yashiki Kurando | |
| 2020 | The Devil in a Twelve-Layered Robe: A Tale of Genji | Rai Ito | Lead role |
| 2022 | Winter Rose | Jun Toguchi | Lead role |
| 2022 | Welcome Home | Yudai Kato | Short-film |
| 2023 | Shisu in Zagin!? | | Lead role |
| 2023 | Shizukanaru Don – Yakuza Side Story | Shizuka Kondo | Lead role |
| 2023 | Till We Meet Again on the Lily Hill | Ishimaru | |
| 2025 | #Iwilltellyouthetruth | Kiriyama's friend | |
| 2025 | The Boy and the Dog | Tadashi Numaguchi | |

### Television drama

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2014 | Hirugao: Love Affairs in the Afternoon | Keita Kinoshita | |
| 2015 | The Girl's Speech | Haru Senzaki | |
| 2015 | Matsumoto Seicho Suspense: Shadow Zone | Keisuke Tashiro | |
| 2015 | Transit Girls | Nao Fukuzawa | |
| 2016 | It's Not That I Can't Get Married, It's That I Won't | Yosuke Sakurai | |
| 2016 | Aogeba Totoshi | Hirotatsu Igawa | |
| 2016 | Cold Case: The Door to Truth | Tsutomu Arikawa | Episode 5 |
| 2017 | Rental Love | Hayato Tachibana | |
| 2017 | Crime Syndrome | Tomoki Ichihara | Season 2 |
| 2017 | Slacker Office Worker Kantaro Ameya | Yutaka Takarabe | Episodes 4 & 11 |
| 2017 | Ashi-Girl | Tadakiyo Hagikuhachirō | Lead role |
| 2018 | AIBOU: Tokyo Detective Duo | Kamijo Takaki | Episodes 10 & 16 |
| 2018 | BG ~Personal Bodyguard~ | Takashi Shinkawa | |
| 2018 | Are You Ready, Girls? | Ritsu Niimi | |
| 2018 | From Today, It's My Turn!!! | Shinji Ito | |
| 2018 | Room Laundering | Akito Nijikawa | |
| 2018 | Is This Love a Sin!? | Taiga Kohinata | Lead role |
| 2018 | LIFE! ~A comedy dedicated to life~ | Kazuma | |
| 2019 | LIFE! presents Shinobi! Uzaemon ~THE SKY ATTACK~ | Kazuma | Semi-regular cast member |
| 2019 | Hissatsu Shigotonin | Yayoshi/ Ebisawa Kichiemon | |
| 2019 | Everyone's Paralympics "Memories of 1964" | | |
| 2020 | Kyojo 2 | Cameo | |
| 2020 | Scarlet | Takeshi Kawahara | |
| 2020 | Five Hells "The Woman Who Clings" | Makoto Tazaki | |
| 2020 | Peanut Butter Sandwich | Ren Kobayashi | Lead role |
| 2020 | Unsolved Woman: Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department Document Investigator | Reiichi Karakita | Season 2; Episode 3 |
| 2020 | Doting Parents | Cameo | Episode 5 |
| 2020 | Suits | Shingo Satake | Season 2; Episode 11 |
| 2021 | Tokyo Love Story | Kanji Nagao | Lead role |
| 2022 | Pension Metza | | Episode 4 |
| 2024 | The Guys Who Illuminate the Streets | Koichi Omura | |
| 2024 | Dear Radiance | Sōjumaru | Taiga drama |
| 2025 | Unloved: Hidden Loners | Kento Takasaka | Lead role |

## Awards and nominations

Year presented, name of the award ceremony, category, nominee(s) of the award, and the result of the nomination :
| Year | Award ceremony | Category | Nominated work(s) | Result |
| 2019 | 42nd Japan Academy Film Prize | Newcomer of the Year | Before the Coffee Gets Cold | Won |
| 2019 | Forbes Japan 30 UNDER 30 | Montblanc Special Award | Himself | Won |
| 2020 | Nikkei Trendy | 2020 Face of the Year | Himself | Won |
| 2024 | 47th Japan Academy Film Prize | Best Supporting Actor | Till We Meet Again on the Lily Hill | Nominated |