Skip to content
Motif
Akiko Wakabayashi

Akiko Wakabayashi

Actor · Born December 13, 1939 (86) · Ota, Tokyo Prefecture, Japan

Akiko Wakabayashi (born December 13, 1939 in Ōta, Tokyo) is a Japanese actress, best known in English-speaking countries for her role as Bond girl, Aki in the 1967 James Bond movie You Only Live Twice. Prior to this, she made many movies in her native Japan, especially Toho Studio's monster movies such as Dagora, the Space Monster and Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (both of which were also released under various other titles). When production of You Only Live Twice began, Wakabayashi was originally slated to play the role of Kissy Suzuki whilst her co-star Mie Hama played Suki, one of Tiger Tanaka's top agents. When learning English proved to be a major hurdle to Hama, the women switched roles, with Hama now playing the smaller part of Kissy and Wakabayashi playing the larger part of Suki. Wakabayashi, as Aki in the movie You Only Live Twice. At her suggestion, the character of Suki was renamed to Aki. This is probably partly because[citation needed] in 1966, Woody Allen took the Japanese action film International Secret Police: Key of Keys (in which both Mie Hama and Wakabayashi starred), re-edited, re-dubbed, re-plotted, and renamed it What's Up, Tiger Lily?. In the film, Wakabayashi's character was "Suki Yaki" whereas her You Only Live Twice co-star Hama played "Teri Yaki". Wakabayashi made only one more film (and a guest TV appearance) before disappearing from both the big and small screen. In an interview in G-FAN magazine (No. 76), Wakabayashi said she retired from acting due to injuries sustained while making a movie. Description above from the Wikipedia article Akiko Wakabayashi, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Read more

Biography from TMDB.

Born
December 13, 1939 (86)
From
Ota, Tokyo Prefecture, Japan
Works as
Actor
Titles
6 on Motif · 48 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 39 days to Oct 28Up 40% in 30 days

What are Akiko Wakabayashi's films like?

Across their 5 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Power and Survival.

Themes

share of theme weight
Power
40%
Survival
19%
Society
13%
Ideas
13%
Self
8%
Morality
7%
Greed2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 5 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Wry: How sincerely it treats its story and characters, from ironic to earnest. Browse their wry movies.
Tone · Sincerity
ironicearnest

A split, not a type: Ironic 1 · Wry 1 · Earnest 2

Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 4 · Serious 1 · Dark 0

Heightened: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their heightened movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 0 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 3

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 1 · Charged 2 · Intense 2

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

A split, not a type: Steady 3 · Shifting 1 · Whiplash 1

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 1 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 3

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 0 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 5 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 5 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

1 analyzed role

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Absurd
4
Thrilling
3
Tense
2
Joyful
2
Manic
1

How their films linger

Fun5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy5

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Akiko Wakabayashi's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 3 of their 6 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Akiko Wakabayashi's titles on Motif; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

48 credits, 6 with a Motif page.

  • Shirley's World (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1972)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Diamonds of the Andes (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1968)

    Actor

  • You Only Live Twice(1967)

    as Aki

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • What's Up, Tiger Lily?(1966)

    as Suki Yaki

    Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all films

  • It Started In The Alps (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    Actor

  • Adventure in Kigan Castle (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    as Spuria, Chamberlain's daughter

  • More Than 10,000 Women But... (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    as Satoko (Kyushu woman)

  • The Stranger Within a Woman (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1966)

    as Sayuri Sugimoto

  • Key of Keys (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1965)

    as Bai-Lan

  • Ghidorah: The Three-Headed Monster(1964)

    as Princess Maas Doulina Salno of Selgina

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • A Keg of Powder (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1964)

    as Girl Taken at Haneda

  • Dogora (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1964)

    as Gang Moll

  • Hello, Baby (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1964)

    as Shizuko Nagata

  • Samurai Pirate (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    as Yaya's maid

  • Walleyed Nippon (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    as Riko Arikane

  • Interpol Code 8 (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    as Mie Tsugawa

  • King Kong vs. Godzilla(1963)

    as Tamiye (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films

  • Sensation Seekers (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    Actor

  • A Salaryman's Reckless Family (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    Actor

  • Yes! Yes! 3 Young Girls (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1963)

    Actor

  • Anything For Success (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • The Weed of Crime (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • Sararīman Gonza to Sukejū ren'ai kōsa-ten (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • Youth Season (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • Our Failures (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • King Kong vs. Godzilla(1962)

    as Tamiye

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • Pig and Goldfish (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • Whirlpool of Love (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • The Crimson Sky (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • Kanpai! Sararīman shokun (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1962)

    Actor

  • Ganpā kachō (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1961)

    Actor

  • Bandits on the Wind (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1961)

    Actor

  • Achan's Baby Gang (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1961)

    as Midori

  • Girl from Hong Kong (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1961)

    as Anna Suh

  • Akiko (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1961)

    as Akiko

  • Respect, Flatter, and Love (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1960)

    Actor

  • Reporters from the Sky (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1960)

    Actor

  • New Third Class Executive: Fortune Teller (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1960)

    as Haruko Momoyama

  • The Orientals (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1960)

    Actor

  • Ginza Tomboy (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1960)

    as Woman in Jail A

  • When a Woman Ascends the Stairs(1960)

    as Hostess

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films

  • The Terrible Game (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1959)

    as Mariko's Friend B

  • The Beast Shall Die (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1959)

    as Hostess at the Rollita B

  • The Entrapped Gangster (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1959)

    Actor

  • Female Detective Story: S.O.S Woman (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1958)

    Actor

  • Don't Make a Mistake! (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1958)

    Actor

  • In Self-Defense (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1958)

    Actor

  • Song for a Bride (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1958)

    Actor

Career shape

Star power in the 90th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 48 titles from 1958 to 1972; peak year 1967.

Biggest box office

You Only Live Twice (1967)

$43M worldwide

Highest rated

You Only Live Twice (1967)

Midcredits 72nd

Film career

19581972

Peak 1967 · at the high point of their film career. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting48 of 48: 48 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score58th

By decade

1950s7 · acting1960s40 · acting1970s1 · acting

Billing

usually 7th · top billed in 0% of 6 roles

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on Motif, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.

How do Akiko Wakabayashi's films land?

Their typical Motif film has a Midcredits score in the 58th percentile, the median of all 6; across their 5 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 51st percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

51stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 5

Approval · how many liked their films

44thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 5

Reach · how many have seen their films

88thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 5

Midcredits score across 6 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up1
  • 50th to 74th2
  • 25th to 49th3

Shape of the crowd

None of their 6 titles divides audiences: 2 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Crowd Pleaser2
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed2

Most loved · actor

When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (1960)

Midcredits 98th · 89% liked

Reviewers score the acting 54/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles; fans 63, detractors 32. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on Motif; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their Motif titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Akiko Wakabayashi's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 3 Motif titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Violence & Gore3 titlesmedian 41 · moderateMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity3 titlesmedian 17 · mildMedian of all films: 32
Profanity3 titlesmedian 25 · mildMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs3 titlesmedian 32 · mildMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense3 titlesmedian 36 · moderateMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does Akiko Wakabayashi work with?

People who share at least 2 of Akiko Wakabayashi's Motif titles, grouped by what they did on them; Mie Hama shares the most, 4.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers