# Rinko Kikuchi

Rinko Kikuchi (pronunciation) (菊地 凛子, Kikuchi Rinko, born Yuriko Kikuchi (菊地 百合子, Kikuchi Yuriko), January 6, 1981) is a Japanese actress, and was the first Japanese actress to be nominated for an Academy Award in 50 years, for her work in Babel (2006). Kikuchi's other notable films include Norwegian Wood (2010), which screened in competition at the 67th Venice Film Festival and Guillermo del Toro's science fiction action film Pacific Rim (2013). For her role in the drama film Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (2014), Kikuchi received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Female Lead. She is currently seen in the HBO Max crime drama series Tokyo Vice.

## Early life

Kikuchi was born on January 6, 1981, in Hadano, Kanagawa, the youngest of three children. She was discovered by a talent agent inside the shopping mall Laforet Harajuku at the age of 15.

## Career

Kikuchi made her debut in 1999, under her birth name, Yuriko Kikuchi, with the Kaneto Shindo film Will to Live. Soon after, in 2001, she starred in the celebrated Kazuyoshi Komuri film Sora no Ana (空の穴), which was featured at several international festivals, including the Rotterdam Film Festival. In 2004, Kikuchi appeared in the well-received Katsuhito Ishii film The Taste of Tea, which was selected for the Cannes Film Festival.
In 2006, Kikuchi was chosen by Japanese film producer Yoko Narahashi for the Alejandro González Iñárritu film Babel, where she played Chieko Wataya, a troubled, deaf teenage girl, for which she received international attention. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Kikuchi was the fourth person in Academy Award history to be nominated for a role in which she does not speak. She won several awards, such as the National Board of Review Award for Best Breakthrough Female Performance (tying with Jennifer Hudson) and the Gotham Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Actor. Since her appearance in the movie "Babel," she has been actively involved in numerous films outside of Japan. Under the name Rinbjö (リンビョウ), she also pursues musical activities.
She has appeared in two of Mamoru Oshii's films: The Sky Crawlers (2008) and Assault Girls (2009). Kikuchi starred in Rian Johnson's second film, The Brothers Bloom (2009), which was her first full English-language feature. Though she plays a main character, she only speaks three words; her character is said to only know three words of English.
In 2010, Kikuchi was cast as Naoko in Tran Anh Hung's adaptation of Haruki Murakami's novel Norwegian Wood. In March 2011, she was added to the cast of 47 Ronin, the first English-language adaptation of the Japanese Chushingura legend of samurai loyalty and revenge. Kikuchi described her villain character to the American version of Glamour as "a real bitch." In 2013, she appears in Pacific Rim, having improved her English by watching the American television series The Voice.
In 2014, Kikuchi starred in Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter, directed by David Zellner. Kikuchi was cast in the Season 2 of the HBO science fiction series Westworld.
Kikuchi plays the role of Emi Maruyama, the supervisor of the lead character Jake Adelstein, in the 2022 HBO Max series Tokyo Vice. In August 2022, she portrayed a taxi driver in the music video for Mondo Grosso's "Crypt".
In 2024, she featured on the official poster of 37th Tokyo International Film Festival, created by fashion designer Koshino Junko. She was also appointed festival navigator, who "navigated" the audience at official events as the face of the festival.

## Personal life

From 2010 to 2011, Kikuchi was in a relationship with director Spike Jonze, with whom she briefly resided in New York.
Kikuchi married Japanese actor Shōta Sometani on December 31, 2014. In October 2016, Kikuchi gave birth to their first child. Their second child was born in late 2018.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1999 | Will to Live | | |
| 2000 | By Player | | |
| 2000 | Akai Shibafu | | |
| 2001 | Paradise | | |
| 2001 | Hole in the Sky | Taeko | |
| 2001 | Drug | Mai | |
| 2002 | Mike Yokohama: A Forest with No Name | Number 51 | |
| 2002 | Hachigatsu no Maboroshi | | |
| 2003 | Age 17 : 17-sai | Hitomi | |
| 2004 | Tori | | |
| 2004 | The Taste of Tea | Yuriko Kikuchi | |
| 2004 | 69 | | |
| 2004 | Survive Style 5+ | | |
| 2004 | The Reason | | |
| 2005 | Tagatameni: Portrait of the Wind | | |
| 2006 | Funky Forest: The First Contact | Kikuchi | |
| 2006 | Arch Angels | Nobuko Sakurai | |
| 2006 | Babel | Chieko Wataya | |
| 2006 | Umi de no hanashi | Kaori | |
| 2007 | Zukan ni Nottenai Mushi | Sayoko | |
| 2007 | Genius Party | | Voice |
| 2007 | Tokyo Serendipity | Junda Atsuko | |
| 2008 | The Brothers Bloom | Bang Bang | |
| 2008 | The Sky Crawlers | Suito Kusanagi | Voice |
| 2008 | Kiru – KILL | | |
| 2009 | Map of the Sounds of Tokyo | Ryu | |
| 2009 | Strawberry Seminar | | |
| 2009 | Sideways | Mina Parker | |
| 2009 | Assault Girls | Lucifer | |
| 2009 | 42 One Dream Rush | | |
| 2010 | Shanghai | Sumiko | Uncredited |
| 2010 | Norwegian Wood | Naoko | |
| 2011 | At River's Edge | Tazu | |
| 2011 | Love Strikes! | Naoko Hayashida | |
| 2011 | The Warped Forest | | |
| 2013 | Pacific Rim | Mako Mori | |
| 2013 | 47 Ronin | Witch | |
| 2014 | Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter | Kumiko | |
| 2014 | Last Summer | Naomi | |
| 2015 | Nobody Wants the Night | Allaka | |
| 2015 | Dear Deer | | Cameo |
| 2016 | Terra Formars | Asuka Moriki | |
| 2017 | Highheels: A Fairy Tale Born of Obsession | | Short film |
| 2018 | Pacific Rim Uprising | Mako Mori | |
| 2019 | We Are Little Zombies | Yūko | |
| 2022 | What to Do with the Dead Kaiju? | | |
| 2023 | In Love and Deep Water | Aina Horikawa | |
| 2023 | Yoko | Yoko | |
| 2024 | Ano Hito ga Kieta | Terada | |
| 2025 | Ya Boy Kongming! The Movie | Ayvil Suzuki |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1999 | Bakayaro! Special 2 | | |
| 1999 | Kawaii dakeja Dame kashira | | |
| 2001 | Chura-san | | Asadora |
| 2001 | kokiku | | |
| 2002 | The Private Detective Mike Hama | | |
| 2003 | Uchu ni Ichiban Chikai basho | | |
| 2003 | Ai to Shihonshugi | | |
| 2004 | The Reason | | |
| 2009–10 | Liar Game 2 | Ryo Katsuragi | |
| 2010 | Moteki | Naoko Hayashida | |
| 2014 | Gu-Gu Datte Neko de Aru | Chikako | |
| 2015 | To Give a Dream | Mikiko Abe | |
| 2018 | Westworld | Akane | |
| 2019 | A Butterfly Effect: The Murder Analysis Team | Machiko Aiba | |
| 2021 | Invasion | Hinata | |
| 2022 | PICU: Shoni Shuchu Chiryo Shitsu | Samejima Tatsuki | |
| 2022-24 | Tokyo Vice | Emi | |
| 2022 | The 13 Lords of the Shogun | Noe | Taiga drama |
| 2023–24 | Boogie Woogie | Ritsuko Ibarada | Asadora |
| 2024 | The Tiger and Her Wings | Ritsuko Ibarada | Asadora |
| 2025 | The Hot Spot | Masako Umemoto | |

## Awards

Awards and nominations received by Rinko Kikuchi :
| Organizations | Year | Category | Work | Result |
| Academy Awards | 2007 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Nominated |
| Alliance of Women Film Journalists | 2006 | Best Breakthrough Performance For A Young Actress | Babel | Nominated |
| Asian Film Awards | 2011 | Best Actress | Norwegian Wood | Nominated |
| Asian Film Awards | 2024 | Best Actress | Yoko | Nominated |
| Austin Film Critics Association | 2007 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Won |
| Chicago Film Critics Association | 2006 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Won |
| Chicago Film Critics Association | 2006 | Most Promising Performer | Babel | Nominated |
| Chlotrudis Society for Independent Films | 2010 | Best Supporting Actress | The Brothers Bloom | Nominated |
| Chlotrudis Society for Independent Films | 2016 | Best Actress | Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter | Nominated |
| Columbus Film Critics Association | 2007 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Runner-up |
| Critics' Choice Movie Awards | 2007 | Best Acting Ensemble | Babel | Nominated |
| Critics' Choice Movie Awards | 2007 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Nominated |
| Gold Derby Awards | 2007 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Nominated |
| Gold Derby Awards | 2007 | Best Ensemble Cast | Babel | Nominated |
| Gold Derby Awards | 2018 | Drama Guest Actress | Westworld | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Awards | 2007 | Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture | Babel | Nominated |
| Gotham Awards | 2006 | Best Ensemble Cast | Babel | Won |
| Gotham Awards | 2006 | Breakthrough Actor | Babel | Won |
| Independent Spirit Awards | 2014 | Best Female Lead | Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter | Nominated |
| Mainichi Film Awards | 2024 | Best Actress | Yoko | Nominated |
| National Board of Review | 2007 | Best Breakthrough Performance - Female | Babel | Won |
| Online Film & Television Association | 2007 | Best Brekathrough Performance: Female | Babel | Nominated |
| Online Film & Television Association | 2007 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Nominated |
| Online Film & Television Association | 2018 | Best Guest Actress In A Drama Series | Westworld | Nominated |
| Online Film Critics Society | 2007 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Nominated |
| Online Film Critics Society | 2007 | Breakthrough Performer | Babel | Nominated |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 2007 | Best Ensemble Cast | Babel | Won |
| San Diego Film Critics Society | 2006 | Best Ensemble | Babel | Won |
| Satellite Award | 2006 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Nominated |
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | 2007 | Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role | Babel | Nominated |
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | 2007 | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | Babel | Nominated |
| Shanghai International Film Festival | 2023 | Best Actress | Yoko | Won |
| TAMA Film Awards | 2023 | Best Actress | Yoko | Won |
| Toronto Film Critics Association | 2006 | Best Supporting Actress | Babel | Nominated |
| Utah Film Critics Association | 2006 | Best Supporting Performance by an Actor, Female | Babel | Won |