Sonny Chiba, the Japanese actor and martial arts master who found late-career fame in Hollywood after outspoken admiration from Quentin Tarantino, has died aged 82 from a Covid-related illness.

Chiba died late on Thursday in a hospital near Tokyo where he had been treated for Covid-19 since 8 August, his office Astraia said, adding that he had not been vaccinated.

With an acting career that began in the 1960s with a string of roles in Japanese martial arts films and TV shows and went on to include more than 100 films, Chiba became widely known in the west after being name-checked in True Romance, the 1993 thriller written by Tarantino and directed by Tony Scott. By then, Chiba had become a star in Japan, appearing in titles such as the 1970s Street Fighter trilogy (and its spin-off, Sister Street Fighter), Bullet Train and Champion of Death. He did many of the stunt scenes himself.

American actor Lewis Tan said on Twitter: “A true action legend. Your films are eternal and your energy an inspiration. #SonnyChiba #RIP.”

New York-based writer and director Ted Geoghegan called him “the great Sonny Chiba”, tweeting: “Watch one of his films today,” followed by images of a fist and a broken heart.

Other fans filled Twitter threads with clips of his movies and photos.

The Japanese TV personality and comedian Tsutomu Sekine, who is known for mimicking Chiba’s karate style, was among those who paid tribute to the martial arts legend.

“It was an honour to impersonate Mr Chiba and to be recognised by him personally,” Sekine said, according to the Kyodo news agency, adding that that he had long been a fan of films and TV dramas.

Born Sadaho Maeda in 1939 in Fukuoka, Chiba was a title-winning gymnast in his teens, before turning to karate and earning a black belt in 1965. (He would also achieve black belts in judo and kendo, among other martial arts.) Chiba had already embarked on his acting career, acquiring the nickname “Sonny” after the Street Fighter films proved a cult hit in the US.

In the 80s, Chiba continued his prolific output, many in conjunction with director Kinji Fukasaku, including Virus, Samurai Reincarnation and Legend of the Eight Samurai. Chiba also started working as a stunt director and arranger, and starred in Japanese TV series such as the period drama Tokugawa Buraichō.

Chiba set up the Japan Action Club in 1980 to develop a younger generation of actors, including protege Hiroyuki Sanada, who is among Hollywood’s best-regarded Japanese actors.

Chiba’s elevated profile in Hollywood after True Romance led to his casting in Tarantino’s Kill Bill: Volume 1 in 2003 as a sushi chef and master swordsmith. He also offered instruction to other actors involved in fight scenes, and was subsequently cast as a yakuza boss in 2006’s The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.

In an interview, Chiba described a scene from an episode of the TV detective series Key Hunter, in which he jumped from a moving car to a light airplane as it was taking off, as the most dangerous stunt of his career.

“When I gripped onto the plane, my left leg was stuck in the steering wheel [of the car]. I thought I was going to die,” he said, according to Kyodo.

Chiba is not the only Japanese celebrity to have died of complications from Covid-19. In March last year, Ken Shimura, the veteran comedian and former member of the rock band and comedy group The Drifters, died of pneumonia caused by the virus, aged 70.

Chiba is survived by his three children, Juri Manase, Mackenyu Arata and Gordon Maeda – all actors.

With Associated Press