Английская Википедия:Christopher McCombs

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Шаблон:Short description Шаблон:Use mdy dates Шаблон:Infobox person Christopher Brian McCombs (born 25 August 1980) is an American actor and model. He is the creator, star, writer, and producer of the Japanese on demand series The Benza and its spin off series Benza English on Amazon Prime Video. He is known for portraying Michael in the Netflix original series Followers,[1] and for stage roles such as Hoteye in the live action production of Fairy Tail.[2] McCombs is fluent in Japanese, and has won several acting awards for his performances in English and Japanese alike.[3][4]

Early life

McCombs was born in Geneva, Ohio and moved to Cleveland with his mother, teacher Karen Callahan, at a young age. He began acting and modeling professionally in high school at the age of fifteen when his gifted education teacher pushed him into auditioning for shows.[5]

He credits his father, David McCombs, for his interest in the Japanese language. When he was a child, his father bought him and his brother a Super Famicom and he began playing video games in Japanese. This led to his interest in formally studying the language as an adult.[6]

Career

McCombs moved to Tokyo, Japan in 2010[7] after studying Japanese at the College of Southern Nevada and University of Las Vegas.[8] Though he initially went to Tokyo to work as a model, he began working in variety television shows and appeared regularly on MX Television's Go Ji Ni Muchu for a year.[9] In addition, McCombs appeared as a regular cast member on educational television shows like NHK E Television’s EiEiGo!, Shigoto no Kiso Eigo, and Omotenashi no Kiso Eigo.[10]

In 2016, in both the Chinese and Japanese stage production of the manga series Fairy Tail, McCombs portrayed the character Hoteye.[2] In 2020, McCombs played the recurring role of Michael in the Netflix series Followers.[11]

Since 2017, McCombs appears weekly as the host of Television Asahi’s Kodawari Navi.[12] He appears as himself semi-regularly as a guest commentator on NHK1’s Bento Expo.[13] He occasionally works as a reporter for NHK World on JTrip Japan.[14]

McCombs is the creator, writer, and star of The Benza, a Japanese on demand television series which began streaming in 2019. Additionally, he created the spin-off series Benza English in 2020, and wrote the story and dialog for a retro RPG video game based on The Benza, called The Benza RPG.[15]

Tokyo Cowboys

In 2015, McCombs founded the Tokyo-based independent production company Tokyo Cowboys to help create better roles for foreigners wanting to work in entertainment in Japan, regardless of race, gender, or sexual preference. McCombs acts as both producer and head script writer.[16]

Though originally focused on making short films, like the award-winning LGBT short "The Actor and the Model",[17][18] Tokyo Cowboys began making serialized entertainment in 2019 with The Benza on Amazon Prime Video followed by its spin-off series Benza English. In 2023, McCombs executive produced and appeared in Tokyo Cowboy's first non-narrative streaming series "Getting Dirty in Japan" via Amazon Prime Video of Japan.[19]

He is quoted by SoraNews24 as saying, "I had only been here for six years but I had already realized that the quality of roles for foreigners in Japan were not (and are not) very good. Lost gaijin, loud gaijin, rude gaijin...To make matters worse, there is a lot of confusion in Japanese culture as to who is 'talento' [celebrities who often appear on TV as themselves] and who is an 'actor.' So, when you are appearing as an actor and playing the fool, it is often mistaken for 'talento.' People assume you are...a fool."[20]

Filmography

Файл:Christopher McCombs at Tokyo Comic Con 2022.jpg
Christopher McCombs at Tokyo Comic Con 2022

Television

Year Title Role Notes Шаблон:Abbr
2012 Gojinimuchuu (五時に夢中) Self
2015 EieiGo! (エイエイGo) Various Roles
2017 Shigoto No Kiso Eigo (仕事の基礎英語) Various Roles
2017–present Kodawari Navi (こだわりナビ) DJ Chris [12]
2018 Omotenashi No Kiso Eigo (おもてなしの基礎英語) Various Roles
2019–present Bento Expo Self [13]
2019–present The Benza Chris Creator and producer
2020 Benza English Chris Creator and producer
2020 Followers Michael [11]
2021-2023 Onishi Hiroto's Basic English Recipe (大西泰斗の英会話☆定番レシピ) Self Studio commentator [21]
2023 Getting Dirty in Japan (ゲッティング・ダーティ・イン・ジャパン) Self Reporter and executive producer

Film

Year Title Role Notes Шаблон:Abbr
2014 Miracle: Devil Claus' Love and Magic Carlos [22]
2024 Aichaku Lucas Currently in Production [23]

Video games

Year Title Role Notes Шаблон:Abbr
2021 The Benza RPG Chris Writer [15]

Theater

Year Production Theater Role Шаблон:Abbr
2016 Fairy Tail Sunshine Theater Hoteye [24]

Awards

Able to perform in both Japanese and English, McCombs has won several awards for his acting. Most notably, he won Best Actor for his role in the Japanese short film The Actor and the Model at Formosa Festival of International Film in Taiwan as well as the Rising Star award at the 2018 Seoul Webfest in Korea[25] and the Best Actor award at the 2019 edition for his leading role in the television series The Benza.[26]

References

Шаблон:Reflist

External links

Шаблон:Commons category