is a Japanese TV and film actress and a former

adult video In Japan, (AV) are sex or nudity themed videos distinguishable from Toei porno feature films, Nikkatsu Roman Porno feature films, indie studio pink films, and less sex-centred 'V-cinema' or other (OV). Adult videos feature sex or nudity, and ...

(AV) star. Early in her career as a model, she also used the names Yukiko Hara and Rika Inoue.

Life and career

Gravure model

Maria Takagi was born in

Chiba Prefecture, Japan is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Chiba Prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Chiba Prefecture borders Ibaraki Prefecture to the north, Saitama ...

on October 25, 1978. Using the name Yukiko Hara (), she released a "gravure" (non-nude) photo album ''

Nishi-Shinjuku is a skyscraper business district in Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan. The region was previously called . History Nishi-Shinjuku was Tokyo's first major foray into building skyscrapers with the first appearing in the 1970s with Keio Plaza Inter-Con ...

Love Story'' () in June 1998. She made an early movie appearance in the August 1998 mainstream film , a love story directed by

pink film refers in Japan to movies produced by independent studios that includes nudity (hence 'pink') or deals with sexual content. This encompasses everything from dramas to action thrillers and exploitation film features. Many pink films would be a ...

director

Shuji Kataoka a.k.a. Yasui Shūchi is a Japanese director and screenwriter primarily known for his work in ''pink films'' but who has also worked in adult videos (AV) and in mainstream film. Life and career Kataoka was born in Hokkaido on November 23, 1950. ...

. In November 1998, under the name Rika Inoue (), she posed for the men's magazine Urecco and as Maria Takagi, issued a photobook of nude pictures titled ''Blue'' in December 2000. The next year, Takagi starred in the erotic fantasy written and directed by Kei Marimura which reached theaters in July 2001. Takagi also had a small part in the

Kyoto Broadcasting System is a commercial broadcasting station headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It is doing business in Kyoto Prefecture as and in Shiga Prefecture as Its radio station serves Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures and is a member of National Radio Network ( ...

TV show directed by

Naoyuki Tomomatsu (born 1967) is a People of Japan, Japanese film director and screenwriter who has worked in the pink film and horror genres. Life and career Tomomatsu was born in Osaka, Japan in 1967. He was interested in manga and film from high school and st ...

and broadcast on January 5, 2002. Later in 2002, she had a role in the erotic drama which premiered in

Ikebukuro is a commercial and entertainment district in Toshima, Tokyo, Japan. Toshima ward offices, Ikebukuro Station, and several shops, restaurants, and department stores are located within city limits. Transportation At the center of Ikebukuro is ...

in September 2002.

AV début

Takagi made her début as an adult video actress with the December 2002 release ''Super-Star'' for the Max-A Calen label. At the time of her début, AllAbout columnist Hiroshi Asuka commented on her reputation as an actress and her star quality. Six months later, the same writer described her as one of the top actresses in the adult field. It was announced in October 2003 that Takagi would play the "other woman" of a married man in the

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as or , is a Japanese television station that serves the Kantō region as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System (FNS). The station is owned-and- ...

drama series but that she would be continuing in her AV career. The Japanese newspaper

Mainichi Shimbun The is one of the major newspapers in Japan, published by In addition to the ''Mainichi Shimbun'', which is printed twice a day in several local editions, Mainichi also operates an English-language news website called , and publishes a bilin ...

reported in 2003 that she was the highest paid AV actress in Japan. In late 2003 Takagi was the winner of five awards at the

Kuki Inc. is a Japanese adult video (AV) company which has its headquarters in Ebisu Minami in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo. The company is involved in the production and distribution of videos, satellite and cable TV, and a large internet site, X CITY. C ...

-owned XCity's Adult Video Grand Prix Awards. The biggest adult site in Japan at that time, XCity conferred upon Takagi both the Best New Actress and Best Actress awards, and the Best Video Title, Best Conversation, and Prettiest Face awards of 2003. In December 2003, Takagi celebrated her first anniversary with the Max-A studio with the video ''Maria Perfect One Year!!''. Her last adult video, ''Fin...Maria Takagi'', was released in February 2004 completing the 15 videos that she had originally contracted for with

Max-A is a Japanese adult video (AV) studio which is especially known for videos made under its Samansa ("Samantha") and Calen ("Karen") labels which produced a number of innovative and quality AVs in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Company informati ...

Television and movies

Takagi's first feature film after her retirement from adult videos was the romantic horror comedy with Saori Takizawa which was first shown in Tokyo theaters in December 2004. The next year, in addition to guest appearances on various TV shows, Takagi appeared in two horror films, the mock documentary '' Noroi'' where she played herself and the

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

-based ''

Tokyo Zombie is a Japanese horror manga written in 1999 by Yusaku Hanakuma. It was subsequently made into a 2005 Japanese film written and directed by Sakichi Sato. The films stars Tadanobu Asano, Show Aikawa, and Erika Okuda. The film was released in ...

'' directed by

Sakichi Sato is a Japanese actor, director, and screenwriter. He has written several screenplay adaptations of manga series including '' Tokyo Zombie'', '' Ichi The Killer'', and '' Gozu''. He also directed ''Miss Boys'' about cross-dressing schoolboys. In th ...

. Takagi was a regular on the

Tokai TV Tōkai ( 東海, literally ''East Sea'') in Japanese may refer to: * Tōkai region, a subregion of Chūbu ** Tōkai proportional representation block * Tōkai, Ibaraki, a village, also known as "Tokaimura" (Tokai-village) * Tōkai, Aichi, a city ...

drama , as the "femme fatale" Keiko Tokumaru, during its July to September 2005 run, and also on the

hospital series playing the part of Nurse Nishi Tomoko from January to March 2006. In September 2007, she played Kasumi in the

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as , and better known as , is a Japanese television station serving the Kanto region as the flagship station of the All-Nippon News Network. It is owned-and-operated by the a subsidiary of , itself controlled by ...

drama , a TV special movie based on the ''Kuroi taiyō'' TV series. Beginning with the fourth installment in July 2007, Takagi has been cast as hotel employee Kozue Morita on the two-hour

mystery movies . The series, part of the TV Asahi , aired its 12th episode in January 2013. In June 2009, Takagi appeared in , part of the long running Japanese

Ju-on is a Japanese horror media franchise, franchise created by Takashi Shimizu. The franchise began in 1998 with the release of the short films Katasumi and 4444444444, ''Katasumi'' and ''4444444444''. Shimizu attended the Film School of Tokyo, w ...

horror film series known in English as ''The Grudge''. Takagi had a major role in the 2015 film ''Shinda Me o Shita Shonen'', a youth drama based on the

of the same name by Tomohiro Koizumi.

Select filmography

* '' Noroi'' (August 2005) * ''

'' (December 2005)

Notes

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Takagi, Maria 1978 births Living people Artists from Chiba Prefecture People from Miyazaki Prefecture 21st-century Japanese actresses Japanese pornographic film actresses Japanese female adult models Japanese women television personalities Year of birth missing (living people)