Chiaki Kuriyama

Chiaki Kuriyama was born on October 10, 1984 in Tsuchiura, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. She is a Japanese actress and model.
Chiaki was one of most popular models of the mid-1990s child model boom in Japan. In 1997, she appeared in her break in the photobooks Girl of Myth and Girl's Residence, photographed by Kishin Shinoyama.

She also posed as a model for the child fashion magazines Nicola (1997-2001) and Puchi Lemon (1996-2001).

In October 2003, hot new talent Chiaki Kuriyama made her American debut in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill Volume 1 as Go Go Yubari, the school girl with perfect hair, impeccable clothes, and a killer personality.

Whereas Chiaki is a full-fledged teen idol in her home country of Japan, her name elicits no recognition from mainstream filmgoers in the West. Nevertheless, she is not a complete stranger to the geeks of international cinema, who can't easily dismiss her stirring performance in Kinji Fukasaku's Battle Royale.

Even though Battle Royale was released only three years ago in 2000, it has easily cemented its cult status worldwide with its shocking portrayal of a class of fourteen year old school kids forced to kill each other to survive a government "game" on a remote island. With the plot so disturbing and the depiction so graphic, no wonder it will never see an official release here in the States.

In addition to Battle Royale and Kill Bill, Chiaki has an excellent body of work behind her with credits in both film and TV. Her most recent film is Kagen no Tsuki (Last Quarter), which opened in Japan on October 9, 2004. Future projects for Chiaki include Azumi 2: Death or Love, a much anticipated sequel to one of the best samurai films and Yôkai Daisensô (The Big Spook War), a Takashi Miike remake of a classic 1968 fantasy film.

With her unique ability to look Hello Kitty cute and dangerously deadly at the same time, Chiaki should have a bright future ahead of her.