| Keiko Kitagawa | |
| Native Name: | 北川 景子 |
| Native Name Lang: | ja |
| Birth Date: | 22 August 1986 |
| Birth Place: | Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan |
| Alma Mater: | Meiji University |
| Occupation: | Actress |
| Years Active: | 2003–present |
| Agent: | Stardust Promotion |
| Children: | 2 |
is a Japanese actress and former model. She was an exclusive model for the Japanese Seventeen magazine from late 2003 to mid-2006, and quit modeling when she left the magazine. Her first acting role was Sailor Mars in the Sailor Moon live action show Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (2003–2004), and after her role in the film Mamiya Kyōdai, she left modeling to concentrate on acting. She has appeared in several films, including (2006) and Handsome Suit (2008), and has played leading roles in the TV Dramas Mop Girl (2007), Homeroom on the Beachside (2008), Buzzer Beat (2009), Lady Saigo no Hanzai Profile (2011),[1] and Akumu-chan (2012).
Kitagawa was born on August 22, 1986, in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan.[2] She grew up in Kobe, and lost many friends in the Great Hanshin earthquake in 1995.[3] As a child, she wanted to be a doctor, but by the time she reached high school she was uncertain of what to do in the future.[4] Around this time, she was scouted by a talent agency, and decided to try the entertainment world. Her parents were initially opposed, but they gave their permission on two conditions: that she give up if she was making no progress within a year, and that she put her studies first and graduate from university.[5] She graduated from Meiji University in Tokyo in March 2009.[6]
Within a week of joining an agency, Kitagawa was selected as a model and an actress.[7] She was chosen as Miss Seventeen in 2003,[8] which led to her working as a model with the Japanese Seventeen until she graduated from the magazine in September 2006.[9] In the latter part of the run, she had her regular feature, "Keiko's Beauty Honey".[10]
As an actress, Kitagawa was given the role of Rei Hino in the live action television series of Sailor Moon, which began her acting career. Her first significant film role was in Mamiya Kyōdai, and as result of the influence of the director, Yoshimitsu Morita, she decided to concentrate on acting rather than modeling. She initially concentrated on films, including the leading roles in Cherry Pie and Dear Friends. In late 2007, she had her first leading role in a TV drama, in the late-night drama Mop Girl. In 2008, she was given the role of the heroine in Homeroom on the Beachside, Fuji Television's Monday 9pm drama for the summer season.
Kitagawa moved to Tokyo when she started working as an actress and model, and has lived there since. She traveled to California to film , and returned there to study English for a couple of months early in 2006.[11] From May to December 2007, she wrote a column entitled "Keytan Hakusho" for the Japanese weekly television listings magazine Weekly The Television.
Kitagawa has described herself as a stay-at-home person who likes watching DVDs, listening to music, and reading books. When asked what she would do if the world were going to end tomorrow, she said "read books". She is managed by Stardust Promotion.
She has appeared in the films Mizu ni Sumu Hana (2006), Mamiya Kyōdai (2006), (2006), Cherry Pie (lead role) (2006), Dear Friends (lead role) (2007), Sono Toki ha Kare ni Yoroshiku (2007), Southbound (2007), Heat Island (2007), Handsome Suit (2008), Orion in Midsummer (2009), I'll Pay (2009), After the Flowers (lead role) (2010), and Matataki (lead role) (2010), and Elevator to the Scaffold (2010).
She appeared in the TV dramas Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (2003–4), Mop Girl (lead role) (2007), Homeroom on the Beachside (2008), Buzzer Beat (2009),[12] and Moon Lovers (2010),[13] The After-Dinner Mysteries (2011), Hero (2014), and Detective versus Detectives (2015).
In 2016, Kitagawa married singer-songwriter Daigo.[14] The same year, Kitagawa won the Japanese Television Academy Award for Best Actress for Ie Uru Onna.[15]
On April 22, 2020, she announced her first pregnancy. On September 7, she gave birth to her daughter.[16] [17] On September 25, 2023, Kitagawa and her husband jointly announced through their agency that they are expecting their second child.[18] On January 31, 2024, she gave birth to a son.[19] [20]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | The Mamiya Brothers | Yumi Honma | ||
| Mizu ni Sumu Hana | Rikka Mizuchi | |||
| Reiko | American film | |||
| Cherry Pie | Kiyohara | Lead role | ||
| 2007 | Dear Friends | Rina Takahashi | Lead role | |
| Say Hello for Me | Momoka Katsuragi | |||
| Southbound | Youko Uehara | |||
| Heat Island | Nao | |||
| 2008 | The Handsome Suit | Hiroko Hoshino | ||
| 2009 | Last Operations Under the Orion | Shitsuko Arisawa/Izumi Kuramoto | ||
| It's On Me | reporter | Cameo | ||
| 2010 | After the Flowers | Ito | Lead role | |
| Elevator to the Gallows | Mikayo Matsumoto | |||
| Piecing Me Back Together | Izumi Sonoda | Lead role | ||
| 2011 | Paradise Kiss | Yukari Hayasaka | Lead role | |
| 2012 | Magic Tree House | Jack (voice) | ||
| 2013 | The After-Dinner Mysteries | Hosho Reiko | Lead role | |
| Roommate | Harumi Hagiwara | Lead role | ||
| 2014 | Judge! | Hikari Ota | ||
| I Just Wanna Hug You | Tsukasa Yamamoto | Lead role | ||
| Akumu-chan The Movie | Ayami Mutoi | Lead role | ||
| 2015 | The Pearls of the Stone Man | Satoko Kobayashi | ||
| Something Like, Something Like It | Yumi | |||
| Hero | Chika Asagi | |||
| 2017 | Hamon: Yakuza Boogie | Yuki | ||
| Let Me Eat Your Pancreas | Kyōko (present days) | |||
| The Last Shot in the Bar | Mari Misaki | |||
| 2018 | Punk Samurai Slash Down | Ron | ||
| Hibiki | Fumi Hanai | [21] | ||
| Stolen Identity | Asami Inaba | Lead role | ||
| My Teacher, My Love | Cameo | |||
| 2019 | The Hikita's Are Expecting! | Sachi Hikita | ||
| 2020 | Stolen Identity 2 | Asami Inaba | Special appearance | |
| The Legacy of Dr. Death: Black File | Asuka Takachiho | [22] | ||
| The Promised Neverland | Mom Isabella | [23] | ||
| 2021 | First Love | Yuki Makabe | Lead role | [24] |
| It's a Flickering Life | Sonoko Katsura | [25] | ||
| The Night Beyond the Tricornered Window | Keiko | [26] | ||
| 2022 | Dreaming of the Meridian Arc | Eimi Kobayashi / Ei | [27] | |
| Anpanman: Dororin and the Transforming Carnival | Dororin (voice) | [28] | ||
| Fragments of the Last Will | Mojimi Yamamoto | [29] | ||
| 2023 | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Cosmos The Movie | Sailor Cosmos (voice) | [30] | |
| Year | Title | Network | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003-2004 | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon | CBS/TBS | Sailor Mars/Rei Hino | Tokusatsu drama based on the manga/anime Sailor Moon | |
| 2007 | Mop Girl | TV Asahi | Momoko Hasegawa | Lead role | |
| 2008 | Taiyo to Umi no Kyoshitsu | Fuji TV | Enokido Wakaba | ||
| 2009 | Buzzer Beat | Fuji TV | Riko Shirakawa | Lead role | |
| 2010 | Hostess with a Pen | MBS/TBS | Rie Saito | Lead role; TV movie; based on a true story of Rie Saito | |
| Tsuki no Koibito | Fuji TV | Ōnuki Yuzuki | |||
| 2011 | Lady: Saigo no Hanzai Profile | TBS | Kazuki Shōko | Lead role | |
| The After-Dinner Mysteries | Fuji TV | Reiko Hosho | Lead role | ||
| Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni | NTV | Suzu | Lead role; TV movie | ||
| 2012 | The After-Dinner Mysteries SP | Fuji TV | Reiko Hosho | Lead role | |
| My Little Nightmare | NTV | Mutoi Ayami | Lead role | ||
| Mi o Tsukushi Ryoricho | TV Asahi | Mio | Lead role | ||
| 2013 | A Swinging Single | Fuji TV | Haruno Yuki | ||
| 2014 | Mi o Tsukushi Ryoricho 2 | TV Asahi | Mio | Lead role | |
| Hero | Fuji TV | Chika Asagi | |||
| 2015 | Detective versus Detectives | Fuji TV | Rena Sasaki | Lead role | [31] |
| 2016 | Kuroi Jukai | TV Asahi | Shōko Kasahara | Lead role; TV movie | |
| Your Home is My Business! | NTV | Machi Sangen'ya | Lead role | ||
| Hippocratic Oath | Wowow | Makoto Tsugano | Lead role; Mini-series | ||
| 2017 | Happiness's Memory (literal title) | TBS, MBS | Nanami Tsushima | TV movie | [32] |
| Your Home is My Business! Returns | NTV | Machi Sangen'ya | Lead role | ||
| Honto ni Atta Kowai Hanashi | Fuji TV | Fukagawa Kyoka | Lead role | ||
| 2018 | Segodon | NHK | Atsuhime | Taiga drama | [33] |
| Shitei Bengoshi | TV Asahi | Yui Hitotsugi | Lead role; TV movie | [34] | |
| Fake News | NHK | Itsuki Shinonome | Lead role; Mini-series | ||
| 2019 | Your Home is My Business! 2nd Attack | NTV | Machi Sangen'ya | Lead role | |
| 2021 | How to Get a Divorce for the Whole Family! | TBS | Saki Mizuguchi | Lead role | [35] |
| 2023 | What Will You Do, Ieyasu? | NHK | Oichi and Yodo-dono | Taiga drama | [36] |
| Themis's Law School Classroom | Fuji TV | Shizuku Hiiragi | Lead role | [37] | |
| Sunset | Wowow | Kaori Hasebe | Lead role; Mini-series | [38] | |
| Year | Title | Network | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Kagayaku On'na `Kitagawa Keiko | NHK BS Premium | |
| 2013 | Kitagawa Keiko × Chichūkai Megami-tachi o Sagashite | NHK BS Premium | in 2 parts |
| 2014 | Kitagawa Keiko Yuukyuu No Miyako Turkey Istanbul -futari No Kougou Ai No Kiseki Wo Tadoru- | BS Fuji | |
| 2015 | The Premium Kitagawa Keiko Suichoku Time Travel in Rome | NHK BS Premium | in 2 parts |
| 2018 | Iyoiyo start! BS4K BS8K Kaikyoku Special | NHK | Broadcast in Rome |
| 2019 | Nihon ni koi shita Van Gogh ~ Kitagawa Keiko ga Aruku Tensai Gaka no Tabiji ~ | BS Nippon Television | |
| 2020 | NHK Special: `Ano Ni~Tsu kara 25-nen Daishinsai no Kodomo-tachi | NHK | |