You’ve probably seen the "ninja" trope done to death. Usually, it’s all flashy smoke bombs and people jumping over skyscrapers in neon-lit Tokyo. But then Netflix dropped House of Ninjas (Shinobi no Ie), and suddenly, the whole genre felt... different. Grounded. Gritty. It’s not just about the fights; it’s about a family trying to survive the mundane misery of everyday life while hiding a lethal heritage.
The secret sauce? The cast of House of Ninjas.
Honestly, the chemistry between these actors is what keeps you glued to the screen when they aren't swinging katanas. They aren't just playing "cool warriors." They’re playing people who are deeply, hilariously, and sometimes tragically frustrated with their roles in a modern world that doesn’t have much room for silent assassins.
Kento Kaku: The Heart and Soul of the Tawara Family
Kento Kaku isn't just the lead actor here. He’s basically the reason this show exists. He serves as an executive producer and actually pitched the original story to Netflix. You can tell. There’s a level of personal investment in his performance as Haru, the second son who refuses to kill.
Haru is a complex dude. He spends his nights working at a vending machine company—yeah, seriously—because he’s haunted by a mission from six years ago that went sideways. Kaku plays him with this simmering, quiet intensity. He doesn't need big monologues. You see the guilt in the way he stares at a can of coffee.
Kaku has been a staple in Japanese TV for years. If you’ve seen From Today, It's My Turn!! (Kyo Kara Ore Wa!!), you know he has incredible comedic timing. In House of Ninjas, he strips most of that away, giving us a protagonist who feels genuinely heavy. It’s a physical performance, too. The way he moves during the fight scenes—stiff yet explosive—perfectly mirrors a guy who is trying to suppress his own nature.
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Yosuke Eguchi and the Weight of Fatherhood
Then you’ve got the legendary Yosuke Eguchi playing Soichi, the father.
If you grew up watching Japanese cinema or dramas like Tokyo Love Story or the Rurouni Kenshin live-action films (where he played the iconic Saito Hajime), seeing him as a suburban dad trying to run a sake brewery is a trip. Soichi is desperately trying to keep his family "normal." He wants them to be ordinary citizens, but he’s failing miserably.
Eguchi brings a weary, slumped-shoulder energy to the role that makes the character so relatable. He’s not a grandmaster sitting on a throne; he’s a guy worried about taxes and his kids not listening to him. But when the "Shinobi" switch flips? Eguchi reminds you exactly why he’s a star. The transition from a bumbling business owner to a lethal shadow is seamless.
Tae Kimura: Not Your Average Housewife
Yoko, the mother, played by Tae Kimura, might be the most fascinating member of the cast of House of Ninjas.
On the surface, she’s the doting mom. But she’s bored out of her mind. She uses her shinobi skills to shoplift—not because she needs the money, but because she needs the adrenaline. Kimura is brilliant here. She captures that "smothered" feeling of a woman whose talents are being wasted on folding laundry and cooking dinner.
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Kimura is often cast in roles that require a certain elegance or fragility, but here she gets to be dangerous. There’s a specific scene involving her and some intruders in her kitchen that is arguably one of the best choreographed moments in the series. She makes domesticity look like a tactical disadvantage for anyone who dares to cross her.
The Supporting Players Who Steal the Show
It’s not just the parents and the lead. The house is crowded.
- Aju Makita as Nagi: The daughter. Makita is a rising star (you might recognize her from Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Shoplifters). She plays Nagi with a rebellious streak that feels earned. She’s mourning her older brother in her own way—by sneaking into museums to "recover" family artifacts.
- Nobuo Kyo as Gaku: The eldest son whose "death" sparked the family’s retirement. His presence looms over every episode like a ghost.
- Tetta Sugimoto: He plays the shadowy government handler. He’s the guy who shows up when the family needs to do the dirty work the police can't handle.
And we have to talk about the grandmother, Taki, played by Nobuko Miyamoto. She is a riot. Miyamoto is a legend of Japanese cinema, famously known for her work in Tampopo. In this show, she’s the one keeping the old ways alive, usually while subtly insulting everyone else’s lack of discipline. She’s the literal link to the Fuma-Hattori rivalry that drives the plot.
The Villainous Turn: Takayuki Yamada
You can't have a ninja show without a formidable antagonist. Enter Takayuki Yamada.
Yamada is a chameleon. Whether he’s the lead in The Naked Director or a gritty warrior in 13 Assassins, he disappears into his roles. In House of Ninjas, he plays the leader of the Fuma clan. He’s eerie. He’s calm. He’s got this cult-leader vibe that makes your skin crawl.
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His interaction with the cast of House of Ninjas raises the stakes because he doesn't feel like a cartoon villain. He feels like a man with a very dark, very specific vision for Japan. The contrast between the Tawara family's messy, emotional lives and his cold, calculated precision is what makes the final episodes so tense.
Why the Casting Works for Global Audiences
The show was directed by Dave Boyle, an American filmmaker who has spent a lot of time working within Japanese themes. This "outsider-in" perspective combined with a purely Japanese cast created something unique. It doesn't feel like a "Westernized" version of Japan, but it’s paced in a way that feels familiar to fans of shows like Succession or The Bear—families in conflict, just with more throwing stars.
The actors don't over-explain things. They trust the audience to pick up on the subtext. When the family sits down for a meal, the silence is deafening. That’s a testament to the actors' ability to convey years of resentment and love without saying a word.
Realism in the Shadows
A lot of people ask if the actors did their own stunts. While there are obviously stunt doubles involved for the high-risk maneuvers, Kento Kaku and the rest of the crew underwent intense training to make the movements look authentic. They focused on "Bujinkan" styles and traditional movement rather than cinematic acrobatics.
This grounded approach is why the cast of House of Ninjas resonates. You believe Haru is tired. You believe Yoko is restless. You believe the stakes are real because the people on screen feel like they have pulses, not just scripts.
What You Should Do Next
If you’ve already binged the series and want more of this specific vibe, you shouldn't just look for "ninja movies." Look into the filmographies of these specific actors to see the range they bring to the table.
- Watch "13 Assassins" to see Takayuki Yamada in a more traditional (but incredibly violent) samurai setting.
- Check out "Shoplifters" to see a different, more dramatic side of Aju Makita.
- Explore the works of Nobuko Miyamoto, particularly Tampopo or A Taxing Woman, to see why she is considered royalty in the Japanese film industry.
- Look for Kento Kaku’s interviews regarding the production of the show; his insights into how they blended "home drama" with "spy thriller" are genuinely interesting for any film buff.
The brilliance of this show isn't just in the action choreography. It’s in the casting director’s ability to find actors who could portray a family first and assassins second. That’s the real "shinobi" trick.