Sayaka Akimoto | |
|---|---|
秋元 才加 | |
.jpg) Akimoto in July 2021 | |
| Born | (1988-07-26)26 July 1988 (age 36)[1] |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2006–present |
| Agent | Flave Entertainment (formerly) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | J-pop |
| Years active | 2006–2014 |
| Labels | |
| Formerly of | |
Musical artist | |
| Website | sayaka-akimoto |
Sayaka Akimoto (秋元 才加,Akimoto Sayaka, born July 26, 1988) is a Japanese actress and singer. She was a member ofJapanese idolgirl groupAKB48 and its spin-off unitDiva.
As an actress, Akimoto has appeared in both Japanese and American productions, and made her Hollywood debut inSniper: Assassin's End (2020). She also provides the Japanese dub forMantis in theMarvel Cinematic Universe.
Akimoto was born to a Japanese father and a Filipino mother. In 2012, she ran theTokyo Marathon for the second year in a row and donated the money to the Philippines.[4] Her solo book of photographs is entitledAri no Mama.[5] On June 26, 2014, Akimoto was appointed as the Goodwill Philippine Tourism Ambassador to promote the Philippines as a tourist destination in Japan.[6] She was also assigned as a narrator in the collaboration drama ofPTV-4 andNippon TV entitled "Halo Halo House-Jose's Nippon Diary"[7]
.jpg)
Akimoto began her career inAKB48 as one of the members of the second generation, the Original Team K. On the last day of the Budokan concert on August 23, 2009, during the first team shuffle, Akimoto was officially made captain of Team K. She resigned after a scandal in 2010[8] but after completing theTokyo Marathon in 2011, she was reappointed the position.[citation needed] On August 24, 2012, in the Tokyo Dome~1830m no Yume~ concert,Yuko Oshima replaced her as the captain of Team K via team shuffle.[citation needed]
She has since been involved with sub-unit groupDiva underAvex. She became a regular on the popular noon TV showWaratte Iitomo from 2010 to 2012. She was also featured as one of the members in AKB48's own anime television show alongside other membersMinami Takahashi,Yuko Oshima,Tomomi Itano,Atsuko Maeda and others.
On April 7, 2013, Akimoto announced on her official blog that she would not be participating in AKB48's 2013 general election, and would be graduating from AKB48 to focus on her acting. Her graduation ceremony was held on August 22 at the Tokyo Dome,[9][10] and her final stage performance was held on August 28 at the AKB48 Theater,[11][12] and has been streamed live by Nico Nico Namahousou.[13]
In 2014, she reunited with her sub-unit group DIVA to release their final single "Discovery", an album, and a tour before disbandment.
She composed and sang "Little Witch" which was theNHK 2014 Spring Campaign Theme Song.[14]
Since leaving AKB48 she has starred in four films. She has a recurring role as Bikuu inGaro which led to a solo film spin off in 2015. She sang the theme song of the film entitled "Sengetsu ~Hikari to Yami no Soba de~".[15]
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Akimoto was a co-host for Team Japan in the reality competition showUltimate Beastmaster which was released on Netflix on February 24, 2017.[16][17]
On July 27, 2020, Akimoto marriedmusic producer and singerPUNPEE [ja].[18] She gave birth to their first child on October 4, 2023.[19]
| Year | No. | Title | Role[20] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 1 | "Aitakatta" | A-side | Debut with Team K. Also sang on "Dakedo..." |
| 2007 | 2 | "Seifuku ga Jama o Suru" | A-side | Also sang on "Virgin Love" |
| 3 | "Keibetsu Shiteita Aijō" | A-side | ||
| 4 | "Bingo!" | A-side | Also sang on "Only Today" | |
| 5 | "Boku no Taiyō" | A-side | Also sang on "Mirai no Kajitsu". | |
| 2008 | 7 | "Romance, Irane" | A-side | Also sang on "Ai no moufu". |
| 8 | "Sakura no Hanabiratachi 2008" | A-side | ||
| 9 | "Baby! Baby! Baby!" | A-side | ||
| 10 | "Ōgoe Diamond" | A-side | Also sang on "109". | |
| 2009 | 11 | "10nen Sakura" | A-side | |
| 13 | "Iiwake Maybe" | A-side | Ranked 12th in 2009 General Election. | |
| 14 | "River" | A-side | ||
| 2010 | 15 | "Sakura no Shiori" | A-side[citation needed] | Also sang on "Majisuka Rock 'n' Roll". |
| 16 | "Ponytail to Shushu" | Under Girls | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Nusumareta Kuchibiru" as Under Girls; and "Majijo Teppen Blues" | |
| 17 | "Heavy Rotation" | A-side, Yasai Sisters | Ranked 17th in 2010 General Election. Also sang on "Yasai Sisters". | |
| 18 | "Beginner" | Diva | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Nakeru Basho" as Diva. | |
| 19 | "Chance no Junban" | B-side | Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined byrock-paper-scissors tournament.[21] Sang on "Alive" with Team K. | |
| 2011 | 20 | "Sakura no Ki ni Narō" | Diva | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Area K" as Diva. |
| -- | "Dareka no Tame ni - What can I do for someone?" | -- | Charity single | |
| 21 | "Everyday, Katyusha" | B-side | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Yankee Soul". | |
| 22 | "Flying Get" | A-side | Ranked 17th in 2011 General Election. Also sang on "Seishun to Kizukanai mama"; and "Yasai Uranai" as Yasai Sisters 2011. | |
| 23 | "Kaze wa Fuiteiru" | Under Girls Yurigumi | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Gondola Lift" as Under Girls Yurigumi. | |
| 24 | "Ue kara Mariko" | A-side | Lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament;[22][23] She sang on "Zero-sum Taiyō" as Team K.[citation needed] | |
| 2012 | 25 | "Give Me Five!" | Special Girls B | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Hitsujikai no Tabi" as Special Girls B. |
| 26 | "Manatsu no Sounds Good!" | Special Girls | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Mitsu no Namida" as Special Girls. | |
| 27 | "Gingham Check" | Under Girls | Did not sing on title track. Ranked 20th in 2012 General Election.[24][25] She sang on "Nante Bohemian" as Under Girls.[citation needed] | |
| 28 | "Uza" | New Team K | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Scrap & Build" as New Team K. | |
| 29 | "Eien Pressure" | B-side | Did not sing on title track; lineup was determined by rock-paper-scissors tournament. Sang on "Watashitachi no Reason". | |
| 2013 | 30 | "So Long!" | B-side | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "Yuuhi Marie" as Team K. |
| 31 | "Sayonara Crawl" | B-side | Did not sing on title track. Sang on "How Come?" as Team K.[citation needed] | |
| 2014 | 36 | "Labrador Retriever" | B-side | Did not participate in title song. Participated in "Kyō made no Melody" as graduated member. |
| Year | No. | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 19 | "Chicken Line" | B-side | Sang on "Tabi no Tochū". Participated as graduated member. |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Densen Uta | Shuri Matsuda | [26] | |
| 2009 | Super Gore Girl | Yukie Takashi | Lead role | [27] |
| High Kick Girl! | Rika | [28] | ||
| 2012 | Ultraman Saga | Anna Ozaki | [29] | |
| 2014 | Tokyo Slaves | Eia Arakawa | Lead role | [30] |
| 2015 | Bikuu the Movie | Bikuu | Lead role | [30] |
| Mango and the Red Wheelchair | Ayaka Miyasono | Lead role | [30] | |
| Galaxy Turnpike | Manmo | [30] | ||
| 2020 | Sniper: Assassin's End | Yuki "Lady Death" Mifune | American film | [30] |
| Beautiful Dreamer | Sayaka | [31] | ||
| 2023 | Sniper: Rogue Mission | Yuki "Lady Death" Mifune | American film | [32] |
| 2025 | #Iwilltellyouthetruth | [33] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Good Morning Call | Yukari | [34] | |
| Sumika Sumire | Chiaki Yoshinogo | [35] | ||
| 2021 | Aikatsu Planet! | Izumi Watanuki | [36] | |
| 2022 | The 13 Lords of the Shogun | Tomoe Gozen | Taiga drama | [37] |
| Year | English title | Japanese title | Role | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Oishii Timing | おいしいタイミング | Unknown | [citation needed] |
| 2010 | Space Wars | スペース・ウォーズ | Unknown | [citation needed] |
| 2010 | Act Izumi Kyoka | 音楽劇 「ACT泉鏡花」 | Tomohime (富姫) | [citation needed] |
| 2012 | Roman Holiday | ローマの休日 | Ann Princess (アン王女) | [citation needed] |
| 2014 | Kokumin no Eiga | 国民の映画 | Elsa Veesenmayer (エルザ・フェーゼンマイヤー) | [citation needed] |
| 2018 | Japan's History | 日本の歴史 | Unknown | [citation needed] |
| Year | English title | Japanese title | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | AKB Kagekidan Infinity | AKB歌劇団 「∞・Infinity」 | Muraama Ruka (村雨ルカ) |
| 2010 | Minky Momo: Kagami no Kuni no Princess | ミンキーモモ〜鏡の国のプリンセス〜 | Nightmare (ナイトメアー) |
| 2011 | Super Live Show "Double Heroine" | スーパーLIVEショー「ダブルヒロイン」 | Kinoshita Rachel (木下レイチェル) |
| 2013 | Mozart l'Opéra Rock | ロックオペラ モーツァルト | Constanze (コンスタンツェ) |
| 2015 | Shelock Holmes 2: Bloody Game | シャーロック ホームズ2 ～ブラッディ・ゲーム～ | Maria Clara (マリア・クララ) |
| 2018 | Ghost the Musical | ゴースト | Molly Jensen (モリー・イェンセン) |
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Mujack | Self |
| 2008 | AKB 0ji 59fun | Self |
| 2008–2013 | AKBingo! | Self |
| 2008–2010 | AKB48 Nemosu TV (AKB48ネ申テレビ) | Self |
| 2009–2010 | Shukan AKB48 (週刊AKB) | Self |
| 2009 | Music Fighter | Self |
| 2010 | G.I. Goro | Self |
| 2010–2012 | Waratte Iitomo! | Self |
| 2014 | Couple Kitchen | Self |
| 2017 | Ultimate Beastmaster | Host for Team Japan[16][17] |
| Year | Title | Role | Voice dub for | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Spring Breakers | Faith | Selena Gomez | |
| 2017 | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 | Mantis | Pom Klementieff | [38] |
| 2018 | Avengers: Infinity War | [39] | ||
| 2019 | Avengers: Endgame | [40] | ||
| 2022 | Thor: Love and Thunder | [41] | ||
| 2023 | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 | [42] |
