American playwright and actor Jeremy O. Harris has been released from detention in Japan three weeks after his arrest on suspicion of smuggling the psychedelic drug ecstasy. He was detained at Naha Airport in Okinawa with 0.78 grams of MDMA. Police confirmed the release but provided no further details on the case.
Jeremy O. Harris, a 36-year-old American playwright and actor, was arrested on November 16, 2025, at Naha Airport on Japan's southern island of Okinawa. Customs officials discovered 0.78 grams (0.0275 ounces) of crystallized MDMA, known as ecstasy, in a container inside a tote bag he was carrying. Harris had departed London's Heathrow Airport two days earlier, transited through Taiwan's Taoyuan International Airport, and arrived in Naha for sightseeing purposes.
Officers from the Tomishiro police department arrested him on the spot and forwarded the case to prosecutors for investigation and possible indictment. Under Japanese criminal procedures, suspects can be held in custody for up to 23 days before formal charges. Harris was freed from police custody on Monday, as confirmed by the Tomishiro police to The Associated Press on Wednesday. The department declined to disclose whether he was released on bail or had left the country.
The Naha District Public Prosecutors Office refused to confirm if the case has been dropped or remains under investigation. Requests for comment from Harris's U.S. representatives went unanswered. Harris gained prominence with "Slave Play," which he wrote as a graduate student at Yale School of Drama. The play, which premiered off-Broadway in 2018, stirred controversy with its bold exploration of race, class, and sexual taboos, earning a Tony nomination for best play in 2019 but no win. He has also appeared as himself in a cameo on the rebooted "Gossip Girl" and served as a coproducer on episodes of HBO's "Euphoria."
