Tokyo Vice: Does Ansel Elgort speak Japanese?

HBO Max's action-crime series, Tokyo Vice, dropped its second season on February 8, 2024. The show is based on journalist Jake Adelstein's memoir Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan, and follows a rookie American reporter, played by Ansel Elgort, as he gets entangled with the city's criminal underworld.

In the show The Fault in Our Stars fame Ansel Elgort can be seen speaking Japanese almost perfectly in multiple scenes. But the actor not only memorized his lines, he actually learned the language until he became almost fluent, impressing his co-stars and fans alike.

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How did Ansel Elgort learn Japanese?

In an interview with Access Hollywood, the Baby Driver star revealed that initially, he started learning Japanese nine hours a day, which was eventually cut down to four hours. He also stated that being in Tokyo was "an immersive experience." In a behind-the-scenes video clip from HBO Asia, Elgort goes into detail about the learning process:

"We started doing intense classes four hours a day. I had to know the whole hiragana alphabet, I had to be able to write the whole thing. So, I was studying a lot. It was super fun."

Elgort also spoke to Malay Mail, where he shared that he wished to get to the point where he could even improvise in Japanese.

“I wanted to get to the point where I felt comfortable being able to improvise in Japanese because it’s freeing,”

He also spoke of his struggle with learning the language. He said that the process was "challenging" due to the difference in stress words in English and Japanese. He shared

“Those are challenging because the way you put stress on words in English is different in Japanese so it was clearly going to take a lot of work,”

The West Side Story actor eventually managed to gain a good command over the language, impressing his Japanese co-star Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai, Inception), who praised Elgort for his efforts and even gave constructive feedback while shooting.

Viewers of the show were also impressed by the actor's Japanese skills and took to social media to express their opinions.

To prepare for his role, Elgort also studied journalism and went undercover as a reporter. Additionally, he trained in Japanese martial arts aikido, displaying the star's commitment and hard work.

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More about Tokyo Vice

Inspired by real-life events, Tokyo Vice explores the seedy world of the 1990s Japanese yakuza as an American reporter and a veteran Japanese detective attempt to navigate and take down the dangerous crime syndicate.

Tony Award-winning playwright J.T. Rogers, serves as the creator and writer of the acclaimed show, while filmmaker Michael Mann serves as the executive producer. He also directed the pilot of the show.

Packed with action, intrigue, and mystery, the multi-lingual show also stars Rachel Keller (Legion, Fargo), Ella Rumpf (Tiger Girl), and Miki Maya (Suspect X) in notable roles.

Both seasons of Tokyo Vice are currently available to stream on Max.