He is known for his recurring roles on the soap operas Days of Our Lives (2016–17, as Dr. Lee) and General Hospital (2019–21, as Judge Lowe), and for appearances in films such as Everything Must Go (2010), Dallas Buyers Club (2013), Gone Girl (2014), Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (2016), The Space Between Us (2017), and The Tale (2018).

[2][3] Takeda began his career on-camera as a television news reporter in Pocatello, Idaho in 1990, before transitioning to producing for stations in Toledo, Ohio; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Denver, Colorado.

[12] He appeared in the 2016 film Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, produced by Lorne Michaels, and starring Tina Fey, Margot Robbie, Martin Freeman, Billy Bob Thornton and Alfred Molina.

[1] In 2014, he starred in Working Together, an improv show stylized like a 1990s sitcom that premiered at the Voodoo Comedy Playhouse in Denver, and had a 2015 run at The Box Performance Space in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

[20] In 2016, Takeda and his filmmaking partners at BS Filmworks signed an agreement with ShortsTV for US television distribution of their short film If Not Now.

[29] He did a segment on KUSA-TV's 9News in 2016, showing photos from his Scene Street Story collection and offering photography tips to viewers.