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Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa net worth 2025: How much did late Mortal Kombat star earn?
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, known for playing Shang Tsung in the Mortal Kombat franchise, died on Thursday in Santa Barbara, California.
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, known for playing Shang Tsung in the Mortal Kombat franchise, died on Thursday in Santa Barbara, California. He passed away at the age of 75 due to complications from a stroke, as per Deadline.
He was reportedly surrounded by loved ones when he breathed his last.
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa net worth
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa's net worth as of 2025 is reportedly $20 million, as per Celebrity Net Worth. This mainly comes from the numerous roles he's played. Tagawa has been iconic as the evil sorcerer Shang Tsung in the Mortal Kombat movies, tv shows, and games.
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While Tagawa's earnings from Mortal Kombat franchise is not known, the first movie made over $120 million worldwide, against a rather modest budget, which resulted in handsome returns for everyone involved, including actors.
Apart from the Mortal Kombat franchise, he's been in The Last Emperor, Memoirs of a Geisha, and The Man in the High Castle.
Tagawa was not just an actor. He was a martial artist trained in the Kendo form. While Tagawa was born in Japan, he moved to Bragg in North Carolina, when he was just 5 years old. During a 2010 interview, he opened up about being a Japanese in the South during the 1950s. The actor described the experience as “pretty tough.”
Tagawa has notched almost 150 acting credits, and can be seen in films like Big Trouble in Little China, Tekken, Pearl Harbor, Planet of the Apes, Elektra, Snow Falling on Cedars.
Reactions to Tagawa's death
Several people offered their condolences upon hearing news of Tagawa's demise, while others celebrated what he'd shared with them in terms of work.
“RIP Cary Tagawa. Shang Tsung in the MK 1995 film, MK11, and MK Legacy. Your soul is in a better place,” one X profile noted.
Another added, “RIP Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa. I will never forget your iconic role as Shang Tsung. Mortal Kombat was a big part of many children's lives when I was growing up and your performance was a gift to all of us.”
