There is something incongruous about seeing Ken Watanabe in a light-brown hoodie. He is synonymous with crisp tailored suits. It is like catching James Bond in jogging bottoms. “Hello!” he beams from a cosy corner of his living room, family photos lining a shelf, dark-mahogany cabinets behind him. “Good evening! Or good morning?” he asks from his home in Karuizawa, a resort town in Honshu, Japan, as we chat over video. He has just finished a photoshoot with his boisterous border collie, Dan, who is yelping nearby, desperate to be included.
Even dressed down, the Japanese actor radiates the same commanding presence that he exudes on screen. He is one of the few modern east Asian stars to cross over successfully to Hollywood, which he did with his role in 2003’s historical epic The Last Samurai. At 62, sporting a smattering of stubble, he still looks remarkably youthful.
