Yayan Ruhian (born 19 October 1968) is an Indonesian martial artist and actor. He is known for co-starring in Gareth Evans' films The Raid (2011) as Mad Dog, The Raid 2 (2014) as Prakoso, Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) as Tasu Leech, and Beyond Skyline (2017) as the police chief. He reprised this role in Skylines (2020).
Life and career Yayan Ruhian was born in Tasikmalaya, West Java, Indonesia on 19 October 1968. By the age of 13, hoping to "show his masculinity", he began studying the traditional martial art pencak silat; his father had practiced karate. Yayan Ruhian trained with what later became Pencak Silat Tenaga Dasar, eventually becoming a trainer and referee, although he later learned that this disqualified him from participating in tournaments. By the mid-2000s Yayan Ruhian had taught pencak silat in countries such as Belgium, France, and Netherlands, and also learned several further martial arts techniques, such as aikido. He also worked as a hand-to-hand instructor for the Indonesian National Police.
In 2008, Yayan Ruhian was asked by Gareth Evans to help with the choreography for his film Merantau. He also auditioned for the role of Eric, later stating that he did not care if he was cast, so long as he did his best. He received the part, and Merantau was released in 2009. In the film, his character, an antagonistic and diminutive martial artist, is capable of overcoming a considerably larger man in moments. Afterwards, he had several people approach him and ask to study silat, although some called him Eric.
Yayan Ruhian played Mad Dog in Evans' 2011 film The Raid, and handled the fight choreography together with costar Iko Uwais. Evans described the character as "such an unrelenting, cold, irredeemable psychopath that when he kills someone, he wants to feel it", such that he would rather kill a man bare-handed than shoot him. Manohla Dargis of The New York Times described the character as the film's stand-out, "a commanding physical presence".
After this performance, Yayan Ruhian's likeness and the term gereget (used by his character) became a memetic image macro on the internet. In a 2014 interview, Yayan Ruhian stated that he did not mind the memes, as the individuals posting them could not create such macros if they had not seen the film. The magazine Tempo reported in June 2012 that Yayan Ruhian and Iko Uwais had gone to Hollywood to handle choreography for an American remake of the film.
Gareth Evans' 2014 release, The Raid 2, cast Yayan Ruhian as Prakoso, an assassin and confidant of mafia kingpin Bangun (Tio Pakusadewo). Recognising that Yayan Ruhian had already been identified with Mad Dog, Gareth Evans emphasized that Prakoso was a new character: a failed father and husband, aged sixty, who is nevertheless a faithful employee. As with the earlier film, Yayan worked with Iko Uwais on choreography. Charlotte O'Sullivan of the London Evening Standard found Yayan's portrayal of Prakoso "sublime", writing that "when his body starts flying through the air, you feel as if you're reading his life story".
In mid-2014, it was announced that Yayan Ruhian would appear in Takashi Miike's Yakuza Apocalypse: The Great War of the Underworld, playing alongside Hayato Ichihara as Kyoken. In this film, penned by Yoshitaka Yamaguchi, a Yakuza member is caught in international intrigue after discovering that his boss is a vampire.
In December 2014 it was reported Yayan Ruhian would appear in the Indonesian heist action sequel Comic 8: Casino Kings
He appeared in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) as Tasu Leech, alongside his co-stars from The Raid and The Raid 2 Iko Uwais and Cecep Arif Rahman.
In 2017, he appeared in the alien invasion movie Beyond Skyline where he played a police chief in Laos credited only as the Chief in the movie. In 2020, he reprised this role in Skylines where his character was given the name Huana.
In 2019, he appeared in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum as Shinobi #2, one of Zero's students, alongside Cecep Arif Rahman as Shinobi #1. He also appeared in the 2019 Malaysian film Wira as Ifrit.
In 2022, he starred in the Malaysian film Mat Kilau as one of the villains Toga, who helps the British conquer Malaya and leads them in the fight against the Pahang villagers in the Pahang Uprising.
In 2022, he appeared in the Indonesian film "Ben and Jody". A film which touches on deforestation, removal of Indigenous peoples from villages and the activism against it.
Personal life Yayan Ruhian speaks fluent Sundanese and Indonesian. He also speaks a little conversational English. , Yayan Ruhian has three children, who live with his wife in Tasikmalaya. Yayan Ruhian, because of his work, must live in Jakarta. Aside from his acting, he teaches pencak silat. He is also a teacher of inner breathing techniques developed in the Perguruan Silat Tenaga Dasar Indonesia.
Style On screen, Yayan Ruhian is often cast in antagonistic roles, portraying characters who speak little but have great endurance, stamina and fighting skills.
Filmography
Film Year Title Role Notes 2009 Merantau Eric 2011 The Raid Mad Dog 2014 The Raid 2 Prakoso 2015 Gangster Bang Jangkung Yakuza Apocalypse Kyoken (狂犬) / Mad Dog Japanese debut film Star Wars: The Force Awakens Tasu Leech Cameo, Hollywood debut film Comic 8: Kings Part 1 The Ghost 2016 Pre Vis Action Assassin #1 Short film Comic 8: Casino Kings Part 2 The Ghost Iseng Edi 2017 Beyond Skyline Huana Satria Heroes: Revenge of Darkness Master Torga 2018 212 Warrior Mahesa Birawa As actor and fight choreographer 2019 John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum Shinobi #2 Hit And Run Coki Wira Ifrit Malaysian debut film 2020 Tarung Sarung Pak Khalid Pasal Kau! Maman Skylines Huana 2021 Gas Kuy Mang Ujang Photocopier Rama's father 2022 Ben & Jody Aa Tubir Satria Dewa: Gatotkaca Beceng Mat Kilau Toga Ashiap Man Mister Jamet 2023 Boy Kills World Shaman2024 Misi Ainaa Short film The Shadow Strays Burai Cameo2025 Gayong Wak Kusang The Furious Tak Hong Kong debut film Si Paling Aktor Himself Lone Samurai Witch 2026 Gayong 2 Wak Kusang Cameo BluefishTBA Skyline: Warpath Huana Post-production The Original Gangster Pablo Post-production Chekau Post-production The Shadow Kills Burai Pre-production Song of the Sword Guru Guntur Pre-production Hunter Eleven: The Awaken Wushua Pre-production
Television series Year Title Role Network Notes 2018 Mimpi Metropolitan Himself MDTV 1 episode 2020 Strike Back: Vendetta Kabul Cinemax 1 episode 2023 Who Is Erin Carter? Moses Netflix 2 episode
Video games Year Title Role Notes 2016 Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens Tasu Leech Voice-over
Awards and nominations Year Organisation Award Work Result 2010 Indonesian Movie Awards Best Newcomer Actor Merantau Indonesian Movie Awards Favorite Newcomer Actor Merantau 2013 Indonesian Movie Awards Best Supporting Actor The Raid 2016 Infotainment Awards Indonesian Celebrity of World Achievement Yayan Ruhian 2016 Berlin International Filmmaker Festival of World Cinema Best Lead Actor in a Foreign Film Iseng
References
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