Dolph Lundgren on screen and stage

Lundgren's breakthrough came in 1985, when he starred in Rocky IV as the imposing Soviet boxer Ivan Drago.

He holds the rank of 4th dan black belt in Kyokushin karate and was European champion in 1980–81.

Jones convinced him to leave the university and move to New York City to be with her and begin acting, where, after a short stint as a model and bouncer at the Manhattan nightclub The Limelight, Lundgren got a small debut role as a KGB henchman in the James Bond film A View to a Kill.

After a long spell performing in direct-to-video films since 1995, Lundgren returned to Hollywood in 2010 with the role of Gunnar Jensen in The Expendables, alongside Sylvester Stallone and an all-action star cast.

Also in 2014, he co-starred in Skin Trade, an action thriller about human trafficking he co-wrote and produced.