Legendary ‘Godzilla’ Star Dies of Pneumonia: Kenpachiro Satsuma Was 76

Japanese actor Kenpachiro Satsuma, who played the legendary monster Godzilla in several films throughout the ’80s and ’90s, has died. Satsuma passed away on Saturday, Dec. 16 of interstitial pneumonia according to a translated post from Matomedane. He was 76.

Born Yasuaki Maeda in May 1947, per Gizmodo and The Times, Satsuma’s acting career began in the’60s with roles in films like Incident at Blood Pass. He first ventured into the Godzilla franchise in 1971, when he portrayed Godzilla’s rival, Hedorah, also known as the Smog Monster, in the movie Godzilla vs. Hedorah. He went on to portray rival monsters in two more Godzilla films – Gigan in Godzilla vs. Gigan in 1972 and 1973’s Godzilla vs. Megalon, as well as the tokusatsu series Zone Fighter – he donned the legendary Godzilla monster suit in 1984’s The Return of Godzilla. The actor landed the role after original Godzilla actor Haruo Nakajima retired in 1972, with a number of substitutes taking over in the following years.

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Satsuma went on to portray Godzilla in seven more movies through 1995 – Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989), Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah (1991), Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992), Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993), Monster Planet Of Godzilla (1994), Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994), and Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995). His final role in the series in 1995 was notably extremely physically demanding, with Satsuma having passed out four times during filming because of problems with the oxygen supply to the suit and a special effects gimmick that used carbon dioxide.

Paying tribute to Satsuma, the Godzilla X/Twitter account of Toho, the studio that owns the rights to the monster franchise, said it was “deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Kenpachiro Satsuma.” It added: “His image is deeply etched in the hearts of many Godzilla fans.”

Outside of the Godzilla franchise, Satsuma also appeared in titles such as Hong Kil-dong and Japanese Hell. He also notably appeared in the 1985 North Korean kaiju film Pulgasari, based on the lost 1962 film Bulgasari. The film was directed by South Korean filmmaker Shin Sang-ok under the orders of Kim Jong Il after he was kidnapped in 1978 by North Korean intelligence. Satsuma’s final roles were in 2001’s Blind Beast vs. Dwarf and 2002’s Kawana Mariko: Sakuragi no amai mizu, according to his IMDb profile.