The latest actor to be cast in the Highlander reboot shouldn’t really come as much of a surprise. The name ‘Dave Bautista’ has been a fan-favourite for some time. Though – as with the all cast announced to date – the name of the character he is to play hasn’t been formally confirmed, he’s been considered a strong contender for the role of Connor MacLeod’s nemesis The Kurgan ever since the reboot was originally announced and even through some of the creative changes since (the film was going to be directed by Cedric Nicholas Trojan at that point). In the original 1986 film, directed by Russell Mulchay, the antagonist’s role was famously played by Clancy Brown.
Bautista, born in 1969, first used his intimidating frame as a nightclub bouncer then a lifeguard before actively taking up professional bodybuilding. Once known as one of the most high profile WWF/WWE professional wrestlers, becoming their World Heavyweight Champion at the WrestleMania 21 event 2015, became one of a number of that stable of stars who managed to transition successfully to the big-screen. He famously essayed the role of Drax the Destroyer in Marvel‘s Guardians of the Galaxy films (also appearing in Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame and Thor: Love and Thunder) as Rabban in 2021’s Dune and its 2024 sequel. Other appearances include My Spy, Blade Runner 2049, Master Z: Ip Man Legacy, Army of the Dead,, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mysteryand Knock at the Cabin.
He has just finished filming The Wrecking Crew , alongside Jason Momoa, for Amazon (who are behind the Highlander reboot) and looks likely to star in a sequel to The Roadhouse reboot – also with Amazon.
