Rodolfo "Rudy" Reyes (born December 3, 1970, in

Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base Richards-Gebaur Memorial Airport is a former airport that operated alongside Richards-Gebaur Air Reserve Station (also Richards-Gebaur Air Force Station) until the base's closure in 1994, and until it was closed in 1999. Formerly, it was oper ...

, Kansas City, Missouri) is an American conservationist, martial arts instructor,

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

, and former

active duty Active duty, in contrast to reserve duty, is a full-time occupation as part of a military force. In the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth of Nations, the equivalent term is active service. India The Indian Armed Forces are considered to be o ...

United States Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

. He is best known for portraying himself in the HBO TV miniseries ''

Generation Kill ''Generation Kill'' is a 2004 book written by ''Rolling Stone'' journalist Evan Wright chronicling his experience as an embedded reporter with the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion of the United States Marine Corps, during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ...

''.

Early years

Reyes was born in 1970 to a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Marine father en route to

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. Reyes was raised by his grandparents until 1976 when both his grandmother and grandfather died in the same year. He spent the next few years being shuffled between relatives and eventually the Omaha Home for Boys. At 15 Reyes started studying

kung fu Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (), are multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. These fighting styles are often classified according to commo ...

. At 17, Reyes emancipated himself and took custody of his two younger brothers, after which he moved to Kansas City, Missouri. There, he continued to study and teach kung fu with his brothers. Both Rudy and one of his younger brothers, Michael, worked at Lucille's Restaurant in Westport, Kansas City, Missouri, in the 1990s.

Military career

In 1998, Reyes joined the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

and was ultimately selected for (and passed) Marine Recon training. He served in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

and took part in the

Iraq war {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...

. Reyes served on the USS ''Dubuque'' and often led platoon PT sessions on ship. During the

2003 invasion of Iraq The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including 26 ...

, Reyes was a team leader within the

1st Reconnaissance Battalion 1st Reconnaissance Battalion (abbreviated as 1st Recon Bn) is a reconnaissance battalion in the United States Marine Corps. It is a stand-alone battalion with no parent regiment. Instead, it falls directly under the command of the 1st Marine ...

, which became the tip of the spear as the

1st Marine Division The 1st Marine Division (1st MARDIV) is a Marine division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the ground combat element of the I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). It is th ...

advanced on Baghdad; journalist Evan Wright embedded within Reyes' platoon and later wrote ''Generation Kill'', a book depicting the events of the invasion from the perspective of the Recon Marines.

Trainer, actor, and writer

After leaving the military in 2005, Reyes became a fitness trainer at a gym in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

. His acting roles included playing himself in ''

'' (2008) and the TV series '' Apocalypse Man'', '' Ultimate Survival Alaska'', and ''

Spartan Race Spartan Race is a series of obstacle races of varying distance and difficulty ranging from 3 miles to marathon distances. These races are held in the United States and have been franchised to 30 countries, including Canada, South Korea, Austra ...

''. He is also one of the interviewees of the 2020 documentary series ''

Once Upon a Time in Iraq ''Once Upon a Time in Iraq'' is a 2020 British documentary television miniseries, directed by James Bluemel and narrated by British-Iraqi Andy Serkis. Composed of five episodes, it features interviews with Iraqi citizens, as well as American m ...

''. He played "Solomon Goodblood" in a 2021 film '' The Secret of Sinchanee''. In 2022, he became lead instructor on '' SAS: Who Dares Wins''. He also portrays the playable character "Enzo Reyes" in the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II multiplayer. Reyes wrote the book, ''Hero Living: Seven Strides to Awaken Your Infinite Power'' (2009), with Angela Smith. He has also authored articles for '' OFFGRID'' magazine.

Conservationist

In 2016, Rudy Reyes founded the Force Blue Team, taking special operators- SEALS, Recon Marines, Pararescuemen, Special Forces and teamed them up with scientists to rebuild and restore coral reefs.

Sunga Life Model

In 2019, Rudy began modeling for Navy SEAL founded swimwear and athleisure brand Sunga Life, promoting which sells items such as

sungas The Shunga Empire (IAST: ') was an ancient Indian dynasty from Magadha that controlled areas of the most of the northern Indian subcontinent from around 185 to 73 BCE. The dynasty was established by Pushyamitra, after taking the throne of the M ...

, silkies, and performance board shorts.

References

External links

Rudy Reyes' Personal WebsiteRudy Reyes
on

IMDb IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

Force Blue TeamRudy Reyes Sunga Life Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reyes, Rudy 1971 births Living people United States Marines Male actors from Kansas City, Missouri American male actors of Mexican descent United States Marine Corps personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) United States Marine Corps personnel of the Iraq War