Lasarus Ratuere is an Australian actor, known for his portrayal of Ishikawa, in the feature film Ghost in the Shell.
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Early life
Ratuere was born in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia to Fijian parents, but grew up in Brisbane, Queensland. He graduated from the Australian Performing Arts Conservatory in 2012.
Career
Ratuere graced Australian screens in 2011 world war epic The Digger, before making his American television debut in Steven Spielberg’s and 20th Century Fox’s sci-fi series Terra Nova in 2012. That same year, he portrayed Malcolm Mabo in the social and politically-motivated 2012 biopic drama Mabo, alongside Jimi Bani and Deborah Mailman.
In 2014, Ratuere played the role of Josh comedy feature film The Mule, alongside Leigh Whannell and Angus Sampson. The following year, he landed a lead role as Mick in award-winning indigenous teen drama series Ready for This.
Ratuere appeared in season 3 of HBO American supernatural drama series The Leftovers in 2017. That same year, he played the role of Ishikawa, a member of Section 9 alongside Scarlett Johansson in the DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures live-action feature film adaptation of the Ghost in the Shell franchise.
Ratuere appeared in two feature films in 2019. He played Corporal Buddy Lea in war drama Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan alongside Travis Fimmel and Richard Roxburgh. He then played real life rugby captain Michael Leitch, alongside Temuera Morrison, in The Brighton Miracle, a docudrama portraying the lead-up to Japan's unexpected defeat of the Springboks at the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
Ratuere starred in 2021 award-winning black and white short film Nest, which premiered at the 69th Melbourne International Film Festival.. In 2022, Ratuere then appeared as CIA agent Felix Spears opposite Toni Collette in the Netflix thriller Pieces of Her. In 2023, he starred alongside Sheridan Smith as Felix Vatabua in Paramount+ suspense thriller series The Castaways, an adaptation of Lucy Clarke's best-selling novel. He has also been attached to star in a British SAS feature film with the working title Mirbat.
Ratuere's first Sydney theatre role was at Belvoir St Theatre in the Australian play called Kill the Messenger. This earned him a Helpmann Award nomination for his critically acclaimed performance as the troubled lad Paul Witt.
