Japanese actor Masaharu Fukuyama shares rare family photo

Japanese idol Masaharu Fukuyama has shared an old family photo on social media.

This was after the usually private 52-year-old singer-actor took part in NHK reality show Family History, which recounts the history of celebrities and helps them to discover their family stories.

It had previously featured celebrities such as actress Ryoko Hirosue and actor Ennosuke Ichikawa.

On Monday (April 26), Fukuyama shared the photo of himself as a baby together with his parents and elder brother. It was captioned: "Mum, dad, thanks for giving birth to me."

The production unit discovered that the Fukuyama family from the city of Nagasaki was originally from Fukuoka. They later moved to Nagasaki and survived the atomic bombing near the end of World War II.

It was revealed on the show that Fukuyama's father, an operations manager in the real estate industry, was very serious at work. At home, he was easy-going and humorous.

The episode also detailed how his mother juggled work and family, taking care of his lung cancer-stricken father.

Fans said on social media that they were touched by his family history. Some commented that his eyes and mouth resemble his father's, while he took after his mother in the stylishness department.

Fukuyama is married to Japanese actress Kazue Fukiishi, 38, and they have a son. He is filming a movie spin-off of hit television series Galileo, in which he reprises the role of the brilliant physicist and reluctant detective Manabu Yukawa.

Fukuyama has also starred in movies such as Like Father, Like Son (2013) and Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends (2014).