Tadanobu Asano Discusses ‘Ravens’, ‘Shōgun’, ‘Mortal Kombat 2’ & Wanting To Work With Chris Nolan

Ansh Dubey had an opportunity to speak with Tadanobu Asano (Shōgun) for his upcoming film Ravens. 

Attending the Austin Film Festival, Tadanobu Asano spoke with press about his upcoming film, Ravens. He stars as Masahisa Fukase, a real Japanese photographer. The film is described as a dark fantasy love story of legendary Japanese Photographer Masahisa Fukase (Tadanobu Asano) and his wife Yoko (Kumi Takiuchi). It’s a Japanese-language film directed by Mark Gill. The film made its debut to American audiences at the Austin Film Festival in Texas. Read the synopsis here:

“A profound exploration of love and loss, inspired by the life of acclaimed Japanese photographer Masahisa Fukase and his tumultuous relationship with his wife, Yoko. This film offers a deeply emotional experience, capturing the beauty and tragedy of human connection.”

Feature First’s own Ansh Dubey had the pleasure of talking with the actor about his past, present and upcoming projects. 

Thanks to the Austin Film Festival and Tadanobu Asano (TA) for allowing this interview to happen. This interview was conducted with Tadanobu Asano through an interpreter and has been edited for clarity.  

Asano Speaks Up On ‘Ravens, ‘Shōgun’ & More

Were you familiar with the story of Masahisa Fukase going into the movie?

TA: No, I didn’t know anything about it before they approached me for the role.

How did you try to embody him considering he was a real person?

TA: The biggest plus was seeing the pictures he had taken throughout his life. That helped me kind of develop the role.

You were last seen in Shōgun. That was a very Japanese story but a Western production. Did you feel more in touch with your culture or was there any discrepancy?

Justin Marks (Shōgun’s showrunner) was the producer. It was a very Japanese story and based in Japan with a Western player to tell the story. You had to have a producer like that [Justin] to tell the story to the Western world. But obviously, it’s still a very Japanese story. 

We next see you in Mortal Kombat 2 as Lord Raiden. Can you give us some insight into that character and what that experience was like? 

We finished filming part 2 and it was shot in Australia so I’m very eager for everyone to see the movie. 

You’ve worked with so many huge directors like Martin Scorsese, Takashi Miike, Takeshi Kitano—Are there any huge directors you wanna work with?

Christopher Nolan is someone who I’d be very interested in [working with]. 

Are there any directors you want to work with again?

Shinji Sōmai but he already passed away so it’d be hard to work with him again but he is who comes to mind. 

Ravens is written and directed by Mark Gill and stars Tadanobu Asano as Masahisa Fukase, Sôsuke Ikematsu as Morio Shoda, Kumi Takiuchi as Yoko Fukase, Kanji Furutachi as Sukezõ Fukase, and Gô Jibiki as Toshiteru Fukase. The film is set to release on March 1st, 2025 in Japan. 

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