Photo: Dick Thomas Johnson from Tokyo, Japan / CC BY 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
If you watch dubbed films in Japan, you already know Hiroki Tochi's voice even if you have never learned his name. A Tokyo native trained in theater at Nihon University's College of Art, he started out mostly in narration and commercials, then the Men in Black dub handed him Will Smith and he has been Smith's near-permanent Japanese voice ever since. That job is harder than it sounds. Smith talks fast and jokes faster, and matching that rhythm in Japanese without losing the lightness takes real craft. Tochi also carries Michael Scofield in Prison Break and Jake Sully in Avatar, then turns around and plays someone as gentle as Heiter in Frieren. Same throat, completely different weather. At sixty he is still working constantly, which tells you the voice itself was never the whole trick.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Hiroki Tōchi
- Name (Japanese)
- 東地宏樹
- Born
- May 26, 1966 (age 60)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Gemini / Horse
- Origin
- Tokyo, Japan
- Occupation
- seiyū / actor
2. Background
- University
- Nihon University
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Hiroki Tōchi born?
Born May 26, 1966 (age 60).
Where is Hiroki Tōchi from?
Hiroki Tōchi is from Tokyo, Japan.
What does Hiroki Tōchi do?
Hiroki Tōchi works as seiyū, actor.
Seiyū — see all → · Actor — see all → · More people from Japan →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-07-26
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.