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Memoirs of a Geisha Movie Cast

This page is intended to help fans learn more about the actors and actresses featured in the motion picture for Memoirs of a Geisha. Only the main characters are noted; minor cast members and crew are not mentioned on this page. For a full listing of all those who participated in the making of this film, please visit this website. Information about the actors and actresses is courtesy of IMDB.com.

Ziyi Zhang as Chiyo/Sayuri

Born on February 9th, 1979, Ziyi Zhang has been a celebrity in China far longer than she has been famous in the United States. She became well-known in America after the release of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in 2000. Her acting career is extensive; she has starred in countless films in both China and America, as well as some films in Japan. While she often stars in Kung Fu movies, Ziyi Zhang herself is not a martial artist of any kind.

Not only is Ziyi Zhang an actress, but she has also done extensive modelling work for companies such as Coca Cola, Mabelline, and other Asian industries. Her older brother is her agent in China and helped her become a star.

She was cast to play the role of Nitta Sayuri by director Rob Reiner. Although many people were outraged that Chinese actresses were selected to portray the star characters in the film, I think Ziyi did an excellent job.

Ken Watanabe as Iwamura Ken/The Chairman

Born on October 21st in 1959, Ken Watanabe (known as Watanabe Ken in Japan) has been an Asian film celebrity for over 20 years. He has recently starred in American films like "Batman Begins" and "The Last Samurai". His acting career is also extensive; he has starred in at least 25 films to date.

After being diagnosed with leukemia in 1994, he still continued his work as an actor. In 2001, his house in Japan was repossessed by tax authorities after his first wife, Yukiyo, mismanaged his money. They were divorced shortly after this announcement. Just after the release of Memoirs of a Geisha in December, he announced his recent marriage to another Japanese actress named Minami Kaho.

Michelle Yeoh as Mameha

Born on August 6th in 1962, Michelle Yeoh (Chinese: Yáng Ziqióng) is a household name in America. Her most famous role for American audiences was probably "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", which she co-starred with Ziyi Zhang in 2000. She is famous for doing her own martial arts stunts. She is Chinese but was born in Malaysia, where in 1983 she won the Miss Malaysia beauty pageant.

She is currently dating the French CEO of the Ferrari company, and there have been rumors of engagement but Yeoh has systematically denied these since they began. Yeoh is the recipient of many awards, most of them similar to the title of "Knight" in Britain. In Malaysia, she was awarded the title "Dato", which is similar to "Knight", and French President Jacques Chirac awarded her the title Knight of Legion of Honor of France in Kuala Lumpur in 2003. You could say she's pretty highly decorated for a martial arts actress.

Suzuka Ohgo as Young Chiyo

Born on August 5th, 1993, 13-year-old Suzuka Ohgo is relatively new to show business. Until 2005, she appeared only in popular TV series in Japan, such as "Dr. Koto Shinryoujo" -- "Dr. Koto's Clinic", in bit parts. In 2005, she starred in Memoirs of a Geisha and played a part in a Japanese film called "Kita no Zero Nen" -- "One Year in the North". In 2006 she is scheduled to be in part of another Japanese film called "Baruto no Gakuen" -- "Baltic Academy".

So far there aren't any other roles scheduled for Suzuka in either acting on the silver screen or on television. However, it seems that Suzuka Ohgo will have a lot more roles coming up, as she became popular in America very quickly after the release of Memoirs of a Geisha.

Kouji Yakusho as Nobu

Born on New Year's Day of 1956 in Nagasaki, Kouji Yakusho has appeared in almost 50 films over the years, all of them Japanese language releases, save for "Memoirs of a Geisha". He is a favorite pick of Kiyoshi Kurosawa, the son of the famous Akira Kurosawa who was behind such hit films as "Yojimbo", "Shichi Nin no Samurai", and "Dreams". While he is a huge film celebrity in Japan with thousands of fans, he is pretty much still unknown outside of Japan.

Here's an interesting fact: in 2006, Kouji Yakusho did the dub voice for the character "RJ" of "Over the Hedge" for the Japanese version of the film. Bruce Willis did the lead voice in the U.S. version, so in celebrity status in their respective countries I would say the two actors are at least equals, if not Kouji being more famous and more popular since he's been around a lot longer.

Youki Kudoh as Pumpkin

While she has appeared in break-out roles before in America (most notably as the heroine of the film "Snow Falling on Cedars"), Youki Kudoh is still somewhat unknown in America. She is not nearly the household name that Ziyi Zhang is. But, her acting career is almost as extensive as Ziyi's.

She has appeared in a few American movies: "Snow Falling on Cedars", "Blood: The Last Vampire", "Heaven's Burning", "The Picture Bride", and others. Before her first appearance in "The Picture Bride", she starred in many Japanese films and played celebrity roles on Japanese television shows.

Interestingly enough, Youki Kudoh is also the younger cousin of the recently deceased JPOP star, Minako Honda. She died of leukemia, the same strain that Ken Watanabe has been fighting on and off for the last decade.

Li Gong as Hatsumomo

Born on December 31st of 1965 in China, Li Gong's first American release was "Memoirs of a Geisha". Before that, she starred in many Chinese films, mainly in historical movies. She is scheduled to appear in many more American films, such as "Miami Vice", "Young Hannibal: Behind the Mask", "Curse of the Golden Flower", and "The Yellow M". Her most famous film is the controversial Chinese film "Farewell my Concubine", which was banned by the Chinese government.

She has been married since 1996, and has appeared as a model for L'Oreal. She has also helped work as a judge in various film festivals around the world. She enrolled in a drama academy in Beijing after she was refused entry into one of China's top music schools. Her husband is a tobacco company executive.

Kaori Momoi as Mother

Born on April 8th, 1952, "Memoirs of a Geisha" was her second American film release. She has starred in Japanese TV and in Japanese cinema for decades, since her debut in 1972. Her acting career is quite extensive, but she is only well-known in Japan, much like Watanabe Ken.

She has starred in over 60 films, almost all of them Japanese language releases exclusively. Her latest releases include "Memoirs of a Geisha" and "The Sun".

On top of being a famous actress in Japan, she is also an accomplished singer. She has released 15 albums to date. She is currently working on releasing a new jewelry line called "Momoi ni Maki", which loosely translates to "Mamoi's Thing".

Tsai Chin as Auntie

Born in 1937 in Shanghai, China, Tsai Chin is a highly accomplished actress both in China and America. Her American releases have included "Titan A.E.", "The Joy Luck Club", and "The Interpreter". She has also appeared in countless cameo roles on American dramas, such as "Grey's Anatomy" and "Chicago Hope". She is also an accomplished voice actress.

She was the first Chinese person to be admitted into the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Her father, Zhou Xinfang, was also a famous actor. Her brother, Michael Chow, is famous for having appeared in movies like "Rush Hour" and "Lethal Weapon".

Zoe Weizenbaum as Young Pumpkin

Born in 1991, this 15-year-old actress is new to the acting business. She has had roles in only three movies: "Memoirs of a Geisha", the Indie-hit "Twelve and Holding", and "Missing in America".

She lives with her family in Massachusetts. Her mother is Jewish (which is where her strange nomenclature for an Asian girl comes from!) and her father is Chinese. She got her "big break" after performing in a play, where a talent agent spotted her and cast her for "Missing in America". Not much else is known about her.

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as The Baron

Born in 1950 in Tokyo, Tagawa first appeared in "The Last Emperor", a smash-hit about the Emperor Piyi's life in the Forbidden City of China in 1987. Since then, he has appeared in: Twins, Bulletproof, Licence to Kill, Showdown in Little Tokyo, Kickboxer 2: The Road Back, Nemesis, Rising Sun, Picture Bride, Mortal Kombat, The Phantom, Top of the World, Danger Zone, Vampires, Johnny Tsunami, Snow Falling on Cedars, The Art of War, Pearl Harbor, Planet of the Apes, and Elektra.

His father was a soldier and his mother was an actress in Tokyo. He is also interested in martial arts, and is developing his own form of martial arts called "Chun Shin". He coaches the actor portraying Shang Tsung in the Mortal Kombat Live Tour. He also spends his free time as a part-time masseur for the University of Hawaii football team.

Kenneth Tsang as The General

Born in 1938 in Hong Kong, Kenneth Tsang is a well-known martial arts actor in China. He has been in few American films, and has mostly starred in Chinese martial arts flicks.

His releases in America to date are: "Second to None", "The Replacement Killers", "Anna and the King", "Rush Hour 2", and "Die Another Day", as well as his appearance in "Memoirs of a Geisha".

He has been acting since 1955 when he appeared in "The Feud". He has also directed three films, all of them Chinese martial arts movies.

Randall Duk Kim as Dr. Crab

Randall Duk Kim is probably best-known to American audiences as the actor who portrayed "The Keymaker" in the movie "The Matrix Reloaded". However, he has also appeared in American hits, like "Anna and the King", "The Thin Red Line", and "The Replacement Killers".

He also appeared on several episodes of the 70's hit show, "Hawaii Five-O". Recently, he has appeared on episodes of "Thief" as the character Uncle Lau.

Ted Levine as Colonel Derricks

Born in 1957, Ted Levine is probably currently best known for his role as Captain Leland Stottlemeyer in the hit TV series "Monk". However, he has also appeared in many popular Hollywood releases, such as "The Manchurian Candidate", "The Fast and the Furious", and "Wild Wild West".

He also has done voice acting for a lot of children's programming, like "Superman: The Animated Series" and "Justice League".

He has appeared in over 50 films. He began his career in 1983, playing a patrolman in "Through Naked Eyes". It seems that he is typically type-cast to play police officers or military men.

Paul Adelstein as Lieutenant Hutchins

Paul Adelstein is mostly seen on television -- in particular, appearing as guest roles on many popular television dramas. He has appeared in shows like "Prison Break", "Scrubs", "Hack", "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit", and "Cupid".

He has also appeared in small roles in a few hit movies, such as "The Grifters", "Bedazzled", "Intolerable Cruelty", and "Collateral".

He is engaged to actress Liza Weil.

Samantha Futerman as Satsu

Born on November 19th, 1987, in South Korea, Samantha Futerman has only appeared in three films: "The Motel", "Memoirs of a Geisha", and "Across the Universe". With the exception of Memoirs of a Geisha, she is an independent film actress. "The Motel" was highly acclaimed at the Sundance Film Festival. Hopefully we'll see more work from her.