"The Ultraman Series are all masterpieces and I think there are many fans, but I would like you to see Ultraman Tiga as well. It's a very important work for me, so I'd be very happy if you could cherish it in your heart."
- ―Hiroshi Nagano, Ultra Tokusatsu Perfect Mook Vol. 3
Hiroshi Nagano is a Japanese actor and pop singer known for playing Daigo Madoka, the human host of Ultraman Tiga in his eponymous series. He is formerly a member of the boy band V6 and currently a member of 20th Century. He is affiliated with SMILE-UP (formerly Johnny's Office).
Career[]
Hiroshi Nagano is among the first who joined Johnny & Associates in 1986, at the age of 14. He quit Johnny's Jr in 1990 to continue his studies but rejoined in mid-1992. He is well-known for playing the lead role of Ultraman Tiga, reprising the role in subsequent movies and spin-offs until 2008's Great Decisive Battle! The Super 8 Ultra Brothers.
Due to his agency's strict rules, Nagano was cut from Ultraman Series media shown during Ultraman Chronicle Z: Heroes' Odyssey and Ultraman Chronicle D. The grunts he voiced for Tiga are also replaced with Yuji Machi's.
On November 1, 2021, with the dissolution of V6, Nagano's activities shifted to 20 Century and the individual domain. In 2023, due to the restructuring of Johnny's Office into SMILE-UP, Nagano also moved to this agency.
Personal Life[]
On November 29, 2016, Hiroshi Nagano announced that he was married to an actress named Miho Shiraishi through a fan club newsletter. They have two children.[1]
Roles[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Ultraman Tiga | Daigo Madoka | |
| Nagano | Episode 49 "The Ultra Star" | ||
| 1998 | Ultraman Dyna | Daigo Madoka | Episode 50 "Final Chapter II: Solar System Annihilation" Episode 51 "Final Chapter III: Toward Tomorrow..." |
| 2000 | Ultraman Tiga: The Final Odyssey | Daigo Madoka/Ultraman Tiga | Voice (Ultraman Tiga) |
| 2008 | Great Decisive Battle! The Super 8 Ultra Brothers | Daigo Madoka/Ultraman Tiga |
Stock grunts[]
This section refers to Nagano's grunts being reused per stock audio in other Ultraman Series media:
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Ultraman Tiga: The Final Odyssey | Ultra-Ancient Giants of Light | |
| 2011 | Ultraman Retsuden | Ultraman Tiga |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- According to an interview with the then-president of Tsuburaya Productions, Kazuo Tsuburaya, the decision to appoint Hiroshi Nagano as the main character was to invoke the image of a youthful protagonist. The character's first name, Daigo, was devised by the series' producer, Hiroyasu Shibuya.
- Hiroshi Nagano was meant to reprise his role as Daigo in Ultraman Tiga & Ultraman Dyna: Warriors of the Star of Light and Ultraman Tiga Gaiden: Revival of the Ancient Giant, but was unable to due to scheduling conflicts.
- Nagano was also meant to voice Ultraman Tiga in Revival of the Ancient Giant but this was scrapped for the same reason. However, he named Daigo's son, Tsubasa Madoka.
- Aside from Daigo, the only role that Hiroshi Nagano played was a character named Nagano in episode 49 of Ultraman Tiga, which was meant as a joke. Hiroshi Nagano claimed that if he were offered a role other than Daigo in the Ultraman Series, he would refuse it, saying "I do not want to appear in a role other than Daigo in the Ultraman Series".
- During an interview, Hiroshi Nagano stated that his favorite Ultraman is Ultraman Ace.
- In a magazine interview, Hiroshi Nagano said that Daigo was originally meant to have injured his foot in episode 15 and 16, but after telling staff that he had injured his left hand, the script was changed so Daigo's left hand was injured.
- Similarly, in episode 38, Nagano suffered from hay fever, so the director had Daigo also have hay fever.
- After the shooting of Ultraman Tiga had finished, the staff gave Nagano the Sparklence prop. According to him, it's the only one in the world, and it was reused in Great Decisive Battle! The Super 8 Ultra Brothers. The staff also wanted to give him Sherlock, the car used by GUTS, but he refused, stating that he couldn't use it in real life.
- Nagano likes cars and motorbikes. He obtained a large motorcycle license before 2002.
- Nagano's parents run a bicycle shop and Nagano is a qualified chef and vegetable sommelier. He often appears as a gourmet reporter or a judge during contests for professional chefs.
References[]