Death Note Voice Actor Diagnosed With Lung Cancer

Right now, the anime fandom has cause to rally together behind one of the industry’s beloved talents. In a recent statement, actor Nakamura Shido announced to his fans he was recently diagnosed with lung cancer. The Japanese actor continued, telling fans he would be taking a break from his activities to seek treatment for the disease while it is still in its early stages.

The 44-year-old actor has put a halt on his plans to perform in a kabuki performance in light of his diagnosis. Shido has kept busy with both live-action and anime projects following his popular tenure with Death Note. The actor is the one who brought the shinigami Ryuk to life with his raspy voice.

While Shido’s treatment will be tough, the actor says his doctors are optimistic about his prognosis. In a handwritten statement, Shido told the press his doctors have said he will be able to recover so long as he receives immediate treatment.

“I would like to overcome the illness and definitely (return) in better shape, and work more than ever to deliver good stage performances,” he continued.

Born in Tokyo, Shido has a lengthy acting resume over in Japan. As the son of a kabuki actor, Shido began acting at the age of eight but only starred in his first film in 2002. However, the actor rose to fame when he snagged a role in the romance film Be With You. It was during that project that Shido met Yuko Takeuchi, and the coupled were married for a short time.

In 2006, Shido went on to gain even more success when he was cast in Death Note. The anime’s overseas popularity made him a well-known figure to international audiences, and Shido has continued to voice Ryuk in various Death Note projects since.

You can read up on Viz Media’s synopsis of Death Note below:

“Light Yagami is an ace student with great prospects—and he’s bored out of his mind. But all that changes when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinigami death god. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies, and Light has vowed to use the power of the Death Note to rid the world of evil. But will Light succeed in his noble goal, or will the Death Note turn him into the very thing he fights against?”

[HT] Japan Today