Dolph Lundgren (born Hans Lundgren, November 3, 1957 ) is a Swedish actor, director and karateka. Well known for his tall stature and level of fitness, Lundgren stood around 6 ft 5 inches (195cm) and over 240 pounds at his peak.

His breakthrough came when he starred in Rocky IV in 1985 as the imposing Russian boxer Ivan Drago. Since then, he starred in more than 30 pictures, mostly action movies, although his career was at its peak in the late 1980s and early 1990s when he appeared in films such as Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991) opposite Brandon Lee and Universal Soldier (1992). Dolph belongs to a generation of film actors who epitomise the movie action hero including Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris, many of whom he has worked with throughout his career.

Dolph Lundgren attended the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. He received a master's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, in 1982, and the next year was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to MIT. In New York City, he met drama coach Warren Robertson and decided to try his luck as an actor in action movies. His film Shooter, The (1995) was shot mainly in Prague, Czech Republic. Lundgren has a second-degree black belt in karate and is aiming for his third-degree black belt.

Dolph Lundgren was born and raised in Stockholm, Sweden. Despite an early interest in music and the fine arts, Dolph decided to follow in his father's footsteps and pursue an Engineering degree. After having completed his military service he enrolled at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. It was in the military when Dolph first came in contact with the martial arts. Five years later, Dolph had become a World-Class competitor in Japanese Karate and was deeply involved with a discipline that was to become an important part of his life. After graduating High School, Dolph spent considerable time studying in the Unite States and abroad on various academic scholarships. He attended Washington State University and Clemson University in South Carolina. In 1982, he received a scholarship to complete his Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering at the University of Sydney, Australia. In 1983 he was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, one of the world's top engineering schools. That same year, Dolph decided to move to New York City and take up acting. He started studying drama at the Warren Robertson Theatre Workshop in Manhattan, not knowing how quickly his life was about to change. Dolph's motion picture debut came in the James Bond feature View to a Kill, A (1985). However, it was his performance in _Rocky IV (1988)_ 8qv) later that year that definitely got him noticed. After a 9-month audition process among 5,000 hopefuls, he was cast opposite writer-director Sylvester Stallone, as his Russian opponent, Ivan Drago. Following the success of Rocky IV (1985), Lundgren moved to Los Angeles and has since starred in more than thirty feature films. Lundgren portrayed the classic action-heroic lead in such films as Gary Goddard (I)'s Masters of the Universe (1987), Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991) co-starring Brandon Lee (I), and Blackjack (1998) (TV) by Hong-Kong action legend John Woo (I). Lundgren has also continued to turning memorable performances as the main adversary to other action-stars, most notably in Universal Soldier (1992) opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme, directed by Roland Emmerich, as well as Robert Longo (I)'s Johnny Mnemonic (1995) opposite Keanu Reeves. In February 2004, Dolph Lundgren directed his first feature film, the thriller Defender, The (2004) in which he also starred. In 2005, he directed and starred in yet another feature, Mechanik, The (2005) (a.k.a "The Russian Specialist"). In January 2006, he finished principal photography of Inchiesta, L' (2006), an Italian/American/Spanish co-production, directed by Giulio Base in which he played against, amongst others, Daniele Liotti, Max von Sydow (I), and F. Murray Abraham. In the fall 2006, Lundgren starred in Diamond Dogs (2007) , a Chinese/American co-production filmed on location in Mongolia, and he just completed principal photography on a new picture as a director, Missionary Man (2007) a modern day western shot in Texas. Dolph has managed to not let his Hollywood career stand in the way of his athletic background. He has been awarded his Third Degree Black Belt by the World Karate Organization in Tokyo. His accomplishments include being the Captain of the Swedish National Karate Team, as well as a Champion of the Swedish, European and Australian Heavyweight Division titles. Lundgren still regularly performs Karate exhibitions at international tournaments worldwide. In addition to his Karate expertise, Dolph was selected by the U.S. Olympic Committee to serve as the Team Leader of the 1996 U.S. Olympic Pentathlon Team during the Atlanta Games. He is actively involved in promoting the image of this sport. Lundgren's production company, Thor Pictures, is developing several projects in which he will produce, star and/or direct. He is also a founding member of "Group of Eight", a New York theater group started in 1994. Lundgren has also been working on a fitness book and sports wear line for men, the creation and launch of a new Dolph Lundgren brand, a licensing, media and publishing program and the development of future entertainment and media projects. Lundgren is married to Anette, an interior decorator and fashion designer. The couple, along with their two daughters, currently resides in London, England.