Yusaku Matsuda on AllMovie

Japanese leading man Yusaku Matsuda was as colorful offscreen as he was on. He was first a television star on the popular early-'70s action-detective drama Taiyo Ni Hoero. There he played a maverick detective who didn't always play by the rules, a role he mirrored in real life as he was frequently in the news for his disruptive behavior. Fans admired his offbeat character, but no one really considered Matsuda a serious actor until he performed in the feature-film drama Kagerouza (1981). Shortly thereafter, he earned an award for Japanese Best Actor for playing the ruthless tutor in Kazoku Geimi (The Family Game). In 1989, Matsuda played the villain opposite Michael Douglas in Black Rain.