Who was Haruma Miura? Five film roles that made the Japanese actor a star
- One of the most promising performers of his generation, in film, television and stage roles, Miura was found dead at his Tokyo apartment at the weekend
- We look back at his career, from his breakthrough role in Koizora to the romantic lead in From Me To You to the young hero in Attack on Titan and a sequel
Japanese actor Haruma Miura was found dead at his Tokyo apartment on July 18, having apparently committed suicide. The 30-year-old was unresponsive when discovered by his manager, and pronounced dead after being rushed to hospital.
Widely regarded as one of the most promising performers of his generation, Miura began acting at just seven years of age, and appeared in a number of commercially and critically acclaimed films, television series, and stage productions.
Miura got his big break in film as the lead in 2007’s Koizora, after which he starred in numerous TV series, including the manga adaptations Gokusen and Bloody Monday, as well as leading roles in Samurai High School and Last Cinderella.
In 2016, Miura featured in a television drama adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s science fiction novel Never Let Me Go. The same year he appeared on stage in a Japanese production of Kinky Boots, the musical penned by 1980s pop star Cindy Lauper. Other notable stage roles included lead roles in both Crime and Punishment and Whistle Down the Wind.
On the big screen, Miura played heroes and villains in both lead roles and supporting turns. He appeared opposite Cecilia Liu Shishi in the China co-production Five Minutes to Tomorrow, and made memorable appearances in Sunny: Our Hearts Beat Together and last year’s Hong Kong-based caper The Confidence Man JP: The Movie .