Sei Ashina, Japanese Actress, Dead at 36

Japanese actor Sei Ashina has died. Ashina, who was 36, was found dead in her Tokyo apartment on Monday. Her management confirmed the news to PEOPLE, which reported the news on Tuesday. The Tokyo police reported that Ashina appeared to have died by suicide, per Variety. The outlet said that Ashina’s brother discovered her in her apartment after she had stopped responding to messages and phone calls.

Ashina’s representatives, HoriPro, confirmed the “sad and unfortunate” news in a statement that they released on Monday. Although they did not make any mention of the actor’s cause of death. “The detailed situation is currently under investigation, but we would like to ask the media to consider the deep sorrow of their families and refrain from interviewing them,” the statement noted. “We would like to express our sincere gratitude for the kindness of Ashina during his lifetime and pray for the souls of all of you.”

Ashina originally began her career as a model before transitioning over to acting. She made her acting debut in 2002 in the series The Talk of Happiness, which is known as Shiawase no Shippo in Japanese. She went on to star in a number of film and television projects over the years. The actor also voiced the character of Emily Thorne in the Japanese language version of the 2011 series Revenge, which starred Emily VanCamp as Thorne. Ashina may be best known to American audiences for her role in the 2007 film Silk. The 2007 movie was based on the Italian novel of the same name. It involved a French silkworm smuggler and his wife as they traveled to Japan in the 19th century to pursue silkworms. The smuggler, who was played by Michael Pitt, became interested in the concubine (played by Ashina) of a local baron. The film also starred Keira Knightley.

As Variety reported, Ashina’s death comes as several other Japanese talents have died by suicide. Actor Haruma Miura reportedly died by suicide in July, while Hana Kimura, who appeared in the series Terrace House, died by suicide in May. As of right now, there have been no further details released about the manner of Ashina’s passing.

If you or someone you know are in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741-741.