| Yoko Shimada | |
| Birth Date: | 17 May 1953 |
| Birth Place: | Kumamoto, Japan |
| Death Place: | Tokyo, Japan |
| Occupation: | Actress |
| Yearsactive: | 1970–2022 |
| Height M: | 1.71 |
| Awards: | Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama 1981: Shōgun |
was a Japanese actress, best known to Western audiences for her portrayal of Mariko in the 1980 miniseries Shōgun.[1]
Shimada was the only female member of Shōguns massive cast of Japanese actors shown speaking English, for which she relied on a dialogue coach, as she was not fluent in the language at the time. Her English improved greatly during the production, however, allowing her to work in a few English language films during the 1980s and 1990s. In 1981, she won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama,[2] [1] and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her work on Shōgun.[3] While the nine-hour long Shōgun was a critical success in the U.S., it flopped in Japan when it was released as a severely truncated theatrical version.[1]
In 1988, Shimada had an affair with singer Yuya Uchida, who was married at the time. She reportedly had resorted to alcoholism and appeared in a nude photo book in 1992[4] in an attempt to clear her personal debts. Though the book was a bestseller, it damaged her reputation as an actress. In 2011, at the age of 58, she starred in an adult video.[1]
Shimada died at a hospital in Tokyo on 25 July 2022, due to complications from colorectal cancer.[5] [6]
| Year | Title | Role | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Go Go Kamen Rider (ゴーゴー仮面ライダー) | Hiromi Nohara (野原ひろみ) | Japan | |
| 1972 | First Love (初めての愛) | Mitsuyo Sakamoto (坂本光代) | Japan | |
| 1973 | Kigeki Nihon Rettō Shindo 0 (喜劇 日本列島震度0) | Earthquake Research Institute staff member (地震研究所所員) | Japan | |
| 1974 | Nagare no Fu Part I: Disturbance, Part II: Dawn (流れの譜 第一部 動乱 第二部 夜明け) | Saeko Kubo (久保冴子) | Japan | |
| 1974 | Castle of Sand (砂の器) | Rieko Takagi (高木理恵子) | Japan | |
| 1975 | I Am a Cat (吾輩は猫である) | Yukie (雪江) | Japan | |
| 1975 | Kyūkei no Kōya (球形の荒野) | Kumiko Nogami (野上久美子) | Japan | |
| 1975 | Yogiri no Hōmon-sha (夜霧の訪問者) | Etsuko Ichiki / Noriko Tazawa (dual roles) (市木江津子・田沢のり子（二役）) | Japan | |
| 1976 | Truck Guys 3: Bōkyō Ichibanboshi (トラック野郎・望郷一番星) | Akiko Mikami (3rd generation Madonna) (三上亜希子（三代目マドンナ）) | Japan | |
| 1976 | The Inugami Family (犬神家の一族) | Tamayo Nonomiya (野々宮珠世) | Japan | |
| 1977 | Village of Eight Gravestones (八つ墓村) | Okisa Tajimi (cameo) (多治見おきさ (カメオ出演)) | Japan | |
| 1979 | Dead Angle (白昼の死角) | Ayaka (綾香) | Japan | |
| 1979 | Dog of Fortune (黄金の犬) | Reiko Kitamori (北守礼子) | Japan | |
| 1980 | Shōgun [theatrical edit] | Mariko Toda (戸田まり子) | U.S. / Japan | |
| 1981 | Little Champion (aka My Champion) (リトルチャンピオン) | Michiko Suwa (Miki Gorman) (諏訪美智子（ミキ・ゴーマン）) | Japan | |
| 1987 | The Man Who Assassinated Ryoma (竜馬を斬った男) | Kozakae (小栄) | Japan | |
| 1988 | Hanazono no Meikyū (花園の迷宮) | Tae Akimoto (秋元多恵) | Japan | |
| 1988 | Hashi (橋) | Umiko Takagi (高樹海子) | Japan | |
| 1991 | Dohten (動天) | Oran (おらん) | Japan | |
| 1991 | Kaze, Slow Down (風、スローダウン) | Bike club manager's wife (バイククラブ監督の妻) | Japan | |
| 1993 | Ring! Ring | Ring! The Champion Belt of Tears (リング・リング・リング 涙のチャンピオンベルト) | Devil Naomi (デビル奈緒美) | Japan |
| 1995 | Police Department Crime Prevention Section 5104 Incident (ゴト師株式会社スペシャル 警視庁防犯課第５１０４号事件) | Ryōko Amachi (天地猟子) | Japan | |
| 1995 | The Hunted | Mieko Takeda (武田美恵子) | U.S. / Japan | |
| 1995 | Crying Freeman | Kimie Hanada (花田君江) | Canada / France / Japan | |
| 2000 | Ane Gokudō Bosatsu no Ryūko (姐極道 菩薩の龍子) | Japan | ||
| 2001 | Hero Zheng Chenggong (aka The Sino-Dutch War 1661) (英雄鄭成功) | Matsu Tagawa (田川マツ) | China | |
| 2002 | Undiscovered Tomb (極地皇陵) | Professor Ivy Chan | Hong Kong | |
| 2005 | The Deep Red (深紅) | Dr. Tanaka (田中医師) | Japan | |
| 2009 | Dear Heart: Furuete Nemure (Dear Heart-震えて眠れ-) | Japan | ||
| 2010 | To Live as an Actress (島田陽子に逢いたい) | Herself (島田陽子) | Japan | |
| 2011 | Secret Affair (aka Yōko Shimada – Assignation) (密会) | Japan | ||
| 2011 | Faithless Love (不貞愛) | Japan | ||
| 2011 | Ashita Naku (明日泣く) | Japan | ||
| 2012 | Kanojo wa Umi e (彼女は海へ) | Nanako (菜々子) | Japan | |
| 2015 | Santa Claus (サンタクロースズ) | Santa Kurosu (黒須三太) | Japan | |
| 2016 | God in Jail (塀の中の神様) | Fusako (房子) | Japan | |
| 2016 | Kanon (カノン) | Sumiko Arai (新井澄子) | Japan | |
| 2022 | Ever Garden (エヴァーガーデン) | Haruko Segara (相楽晴子) | Japan |