MANILA, Philippines — Japanese-South Korean actress Yuri Nakamura, who starred in the 2025 Netflix drama “Romantics Anonymous,” died Sept. 1 after battling rectal cancer, her agency said Monday. She was 44.
Nakamura’s agency, Alpha Agency, announced her death in a statement released Sept. 14.
The agency said Nakamura had battled cancer 13 years ago but kept her diagnosis private with the agency president’s agreement. Her cancer later went into remission, and she continued her acting career while regularly undergoing medical screenings.
Doctors detected the cancer again in January 2025. Although surgery initially succeeded, doctors later found metastasis. Nakamura then chose treatments that focused on managing her condition after doctors determined that complete remission would be difficult.
Health forced her to leave NHK drama
Nakamura developed an intestinal obstruction in August 2026, prompting her to withdraw from an upcoming NHK drama scheduled to premiere in January 2027.
Her agency said Nakamura spent her final moments with her family. Her funeral took place with close relatives and colleagues from Alpha Agency in attendance.
Acting career
Nakamura was born in Osaka, Japan. Her father was a third-generation Zainichi Korean, while her mother was born in South Korea.
She appeared on the Japanese talent-search variety program “Asayan” in 1996 and made her singing debut in 1998 as part of the pop duo Yurimari with Mari Izawa.
Yurimari disbanded in 1999, and Nakamura took a three-year hiatus before beginning her acting career in 2003.
She won the Newcomer Award at the Osaka Cinema Festival in 2007 for her lead role in “Pacchigi! Love & Peace,” a sequel to the 2005 film “Pacchigi!” about a Zainichi Korean family that moved to Tokyo in 1974.
Her other film credits included “Love Letter from Heaven” (2007), “Like Father, Like Son” (2013) and “The 8-Year Engagement” (2017).
Nakamura most recently appeared in “Romantics Anonymous,” a romantic comedy that also starred Japanese actor Shun Oguri, South Korean actress Han Hyo-joo and Japanese singer-actor Jin Akanishi.
