Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa was a Japanese-American actor whose career in film and television also included a number of notable voice roles in animation and video games, particularly within the genres of science fiction and fantasy. Born in Tokyo in 1950, he moved to the United States at the age of five and began his acting career in the mid-1980s, often appearing in prominent live-action films such as The Last Emperor, Mortal Kombat, and Pearl Harbor. His deep, resonant voice and commanding presence made him a natural fit for voice acting, allowing him to bring a similar gravitas to animated characters.

In the realm of animation, Tagawa contributed his voice to several high-profile projects. He voiced the character Valco in the Star Wars: Visions anthology series, specifically in the episode "The Village Bride," which was produced by Kinema Citrus. His other voice work within the Star Wars universe includes the role of Alrich Wren in the series Star Wars Rebels. He also lent his voice to the Netflix animated series Blue Eye Samurai. Beyond these, his voice acting credits span various other productions, including the role of Akita in the 2017 reboot of DuckTales, Hashi in the critically acclaimed animated film Kubo and the Two Strings, and Brushogun in Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo.

Tagawa's work was not limited to film and television; he was also active in video games. He notably reprised his iconic live-action role as the sorcerer Shang Tsung from the 1995 film Mortal Kombat to voice the character in the 2019 video game Mortal Kombat 11. He also provided the voice for the villain Sin Tzu in the game Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu. Throughout his later career, he continued to work steadily in both live-action and voice acting, with his performance in Blue Eye Samurai being among his final credits before his passing in December 2025.