Starting as a model in Naha, Okinawa, Nikaidō made her film debut in 2009 in Toad's Oil, directed by Kōji Yakusho. She and Shota Sometani received the Premio Marcello Mastroianni Best Young Actor and Actress Award for their work in Shion Sono's Himizu at the 68th Venice International Film Festival in 2011. In 2014, she was introduced in Variety as an "Int'l Star You Should Know" and New York Asian Film Festival awarded her as an "International Rising Star".
