Nakadai made his breakthrough under director Masaki Kobayashi in “Barefoot Through Hell” (1959). He first appeared briefly in Kurosawa’s “Seven Samurai” (1954) but later became the director’s favorite for male leads after Toshiro Mifune.
He played leading roles in "Kagemusha: The Ghost General" (1980), which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, and in "Ran" (1985), based on Shakespeare's "King Lear." Nakadai also collaborated with Hiroshi Teshigahara and Kon Ichikawa.
In 1975, he founded the Mumeijuku acting school with his wife Yasuko Miyazaki, a school that has trained stars such as Koji Yakusho. Nakadai continued to perform until recently.
