Akira Watanabe (Japanese: 渡辺 明, Hepburn: Watanabe Akira, May 13, 1908 – 1999) was a Japanese special effects art director who worked on 38 films in a career spanning 25 years.

On April 1, 1929, Watanabe graduating from art school, and joined Shochiku as an assistant director, then transferred to Toho in 1941 upon the recommendation of Eiji Tsuburaya, working on his first film with the company the following year.^[2] He left Toho in 1966 after serving as Tsuburaya's art director on Invasion of Astro-Monster.^[3] With Japanese Special Effects Productions, which was later called Japanese Special Effects Film Co., Ltd., he directed special effects on Gappa: The Triphibian Monster, Nikkatsu's sole Showa kaiju film,^[4] and the Japanese-American co-production The Green Slime.^[5]