Jeremy O. Harris detained in Japan after arrest for alleged drug smuggling

Playwright and actor Jeremy O. Harris has been in custody in Japan for almost three weeks after being arrested for alleged drug smuggling.

The Slave Play writer and Emily in Paris actor was arrested on 16 November at Naha Airport on the Japanese island of Okinawa on suspicion of attempting to smuggle illegal drugs into the country.

An Okinawa Regional Customs spokesperson told Reuters on Thursday that a customs official allegedly found less than a gram of MDMA in the American's tote bag.

The 36-year-old flew from the U.K., with a layover in Taiwan, before arriving in Okinawa for tourism purposes, the spokesperson added.

He was arrested on suspicion of violating Japan's strict narcotics laws and has been in custody ever since, an official at a police station in Tomigusuku, Okinawa confirmed to the news agency. They declined to comment on whether Harris has admitted to the allegations.

Local prosecutors received a criminal complaint from Okinawa customs officials on Thursday, beginning the process of formally charging Harris.

Japan has some of the strictest drug laws among developed countries, and prosecutors hand out serious penalties for possession and smuggling offences, even for small quantities.

Harris is best known to TV audiences for playing fashion designer Grégory Elliot Duprée in the Netflix TV series Emily in Paris, as well as brief appearances in the Gossip Girl reboot and What We Do in the Shadows.

He first gained prominence in 2018 with Slave Play, which was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play. He also produced four episodes of Euphoria in 2022 and co-wrote the 2021 movie Zola.