Tatsuya Nakadai was a renowned Japanese actor whose career in film and theatre spanned over seven decades, with a smaller but notable body of work in anime voice acting. Born in Tokyo on December 13, 1932, he was discovered by director Masaki Kobayashi and became one of Japan's most celebrated actors, frequently collaborating with Kobayashi and Akira Kurosawa on numerous classic films. Nakadai passed away on November 8, 2025, due to pneumonia.

His voice acting roles, while infrequent, were often in distinguished and acclaimed animated productions. One of his earliest and most prominent anime roles was providing the voice of the Devil in the 1973 experimental and erotic animated film Belladonna of Sadness. His performance as the seductive and malevolent spirit was noted for being chilling and sadistic, contributing significantly to the film's dark and psychedelic atmosphere. Decades later, he took on the role of Junpei Senō in the 2012 animated film Giovanni's Island. Another of his later voice acting credits was in the 2013 Studio Ghibli film The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, where he voiced the character Sumiyaki no Rōjin. He also served as the narrator for Final Yamato.

Throughout his life, Nakadai received numerous prestigious awards for his contributions to the arts, including the Medal with Purple Ribbon in 1996, the Order of the Rising Sun in 2003, and he was named a Person of Cultural Merit in 2007. In 2015, he was awarded Japan's Order of Culture. He also founded the Mumeijuku acting school in 1975 to train future generations of performers. His legacy remains that of a giant of Japanese cinema, with his voice roles adding a distinctive dimension to his extensive body of work.