James FisherIn 'The Wolverine,' Hugh Jackman's character protects Mariko - right, portrayed by Tao Okamoto - from Yakuza gangsters, ninjas and at least one super-powered baddie.
Tao Okamoto remembers the exact date last year when she learned she had won a starring role in "The Wolverine."
That's because looking out over the Hudson River on July 4, "it felt like these fireworks were celebrating just for me," the Japanese model told the Daily News.
After an exhaustive global search, director James Mangold found the perfect beauty to play Mariko, the love interest of the titular superhero, hiding in plain sight in Manhattan.
Quite comfortable with her place at the apex of the fashion world, however, the catwalk regular almost didn't audition for the role - until her agent told her that if she landed the part, she'd get to (SPOILER ALERT) make out with Hugh Jackman in the movie, which opens Friday.
"I remember when I saw 'X-Men' the first time I was living in England as an exchange student and my first boyfriend, who's an Englishman, made me watch the movie ... He was very jealous that I liked Hugh Jackman so much," said the Chiba, Japan-born Okamoto, flashing a smile that could melt the most hardened mutant's heart.
"I'm not in contact with him anymore, but I'm sure he's going to watch me in the theater and scream when I'm kissing Hugh."
"The Wolverine," a spinoff from the "X-Men" film franchise, finds the hairy hero in Japan, trying to save Mariko from a succession of Yakuza gangsters, ninjas and at least one super-powered baddie.
Though it's hard to believe from someone who's been the face of Armani and Tommy Hilfiger campaigns, Okamoto "always had this complex in myself," she said, "because I was always taller than other children and people were pointing out that. I didn't feel like I belonged, and I wanted to know the reason why I was born with this weird figure."
After being discovered by a modeling scout on a Tokyo street at the age of 14, however, Okamoto eventually grew comfortable with her 5-foot-10-inch frame. And that confidence is apparent on camera.
"While Tao may be new in the sense of acting in movies, the experience of camera and lenses and of exploring with self-consciousness while the cameras are clicking is a gigantic asset that many people with a lot more experience as actors would not even begin to understand," says Mangold of his star's first movie role.
That confidence was something she earned.
Her first experience traveling to New York was horrible - a now-former agent threatened to replace her with another Asian model. She returned to Paris, where she was working at the time, feeling like an interchangeable part.
"I almost decided to quit modeling when I was 22, so for my last chance I decided to move back to New York because I had that bad memory here," she said. "I wanted to revenge the bad time.
"And after five years, I feel like this is my home."
esacks@nydailynews.com
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