Japanese actor and martial artist Shinichi "Sonny" Chiba has passed away at age 82 from complications related to COVID-19.

Japan's Oricon News reports that the highly respected and influential actor was hospitalized on Aug. 8 for a case of pneumonia, which was further exacerbated by a COVID-19 infection. Chiba, who was a six-time black belt and was once considered an Olympic-contender athlete, was given breathing treatments but ultimately succumbed to the illness.

Born as Sadaho Maeda in Fukuoka, Japan in 1939, Chiba became an actor after a back injury sidelined his career as an Olympic hopeful. After getting his start in the 1960s on early tokusatsu series such as Seven Color Mask, the Kyokushin karate expert became one of the first Japanese actors to crossover into mainstream international success, following New Line Cinema's English-dubbed release of The Street Fighter in 1974. In addition to the more than 100 Japanese films he starred in, Western audiences may recognize him for his appearances in movies such as Kill Bill Volume 1 and The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift. Chiba is also known for founding the Japan Action Club, later renamed to the Japan Action Enterprise (JAE), a talent agency that trains actors in stunt work and the martial arts. The JAE is well known for training actors such as Westworld and Mortal Kombat star Hiroyuki Sanada.

Chiba is survived by his three children, Juri Manase, Gordon Maeda and Mackenyu Arata, who have all followed in their father's footsteps and are active actors in the Japanese film industry.

Source: Oricon News