NEW YORK - Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, the Japan-born American actor known for his roles in The Last Emperor (1987), The Man In The High Castle (2015 to 2018) and the Mortal Kombat media franchise (1992 to present), died on Dec 4 in Santa Barbara, California. He was 75.

His publicist Penny Vizcarra and manager Margie Weiner confirmed his death and said the cause was complications from a stroke. Tagawa was with his family when he died, Vizcarra added.

Over a career that spanned more than three decades, Tagawa notched dozens of film and television credits. He got a break early in his career when he was cast in The Last Emperor, Bernardo Bertolucci’s Oscar-winning film.

Roles in a number of high-profile projects followed, including the 1989 James Bond film Licence To Kill. Tagawa also played the hotheaded Eddie Sakamura in Rising Sun, the 1993 film adaptation of the Michael Crichton novel with a cast that included Sean Connery and Wesley Snipes.

Later in the 1990s came what Tagawa described as a game-changer for his career: the role of the soul-stealing sorcerer Shang Tsung in the 1995 film adaptation of Mortal Kombat, the hit fighting video game. He reprised the role in subsequent Mortal Kombat films and television shows and also lent his voice to video games in the series.

Tagawa also appeared in Pearl Ha...