Rihito Itagaki

Rihito Itagaki, born January 28, 2002, out in Yamanashi, Japan—yeah, the same place with the killer mountain views and grape fields. This dude’s been on a roll lately, popping up all over the screen, and honestly, it’s kinda wild how fast he’s racked up big projects. He’s the face you might recognize from “Cells at Work!” (2024)—that live-action take on the viral anime. People were curious if he could pull off the quirky, educational weirdness of those characters and, let’s be real, he totally nails it. It’s not every day you see someone jump from flipping through biology textbooks to running around as a personified cell, but here we are. But that’s not all—he’s also in “Hakkenden” (2024), which, if you know your classic Japanese legends, is a modern spin on that old samurai dog-warrior saga. Itagaki handles his role with this mix of youthful bravado and raw emotion that just works, especially since the show’s not afraid to get a little dark. And then there’s “The Yin Yang Master Zero” (2024), which throws him into a supernatural storm of ancient magic and creepy spirits. He brings that same energy—sorta fierce, sorta vulnerable, totally watchable. It’s like, every time he shows up, you know you’re in for something worth sticking around for. At just 22, Rihito’s already making waves, and it’s pretty clear he’s just getting started.