In 1997, WWE (known at the time as the World Wrestling Federation) found themselves trying new things as they struggled against a hot competitor in WCW. One of the groups put together by WWE at the time was called The Truth Commission, led by a figure known as The Jackyl. In reality, The Jackyl was future AEW star Don Callis, and he was paired up with wrestlers Barry Buchanan and Robert Maillet, known respectively as Recon and Kurrgan.
Among the things Kurrgan had going for him was his height, with the Canadian measuring in at nearly seven feet tall. While the existence of the Truth Commission would be relatively short-lived, Kurrgan and The Jackyl would continue on as members of The Oddities. The group started out as heels under the leadership of Callis before the decision was made to pair them up with rappers Insane Clown Posse instead. At that point, they turned face but only lasted a short while before the group was disbanded and released by WWE.
From there, Kurrgan spent some time working in CMLL and various independent promotions in Canada. Eventually, he had to take a step back from wrestling and put his focus elsewhere to make ends meet. However, Maillet wasn’t meant to spend the rest of his professional career in obscurity.
Kurrgan finds success outside the world of pro wrestling
Around 2005, while living in Canada, Maillet received a call regarding a Hollywood production that was set to film in his area. They were looking for a man of a certain stature to portray a villain in the movie, and Maillet was intrigued. He said yes, and wound up playing the Über-Immortal in Zack Synder’s “300.”
This was the start of what’s become a fruitful film career for Maillet. After “300,” he was offered a role in the first “Sherlock Holmes” starring Robert Downey Jr. In that film, Maillet portrays a henchman who gets in a memorable fight with the titular character and even gets to speak a few lines in French.
In the years since “Sherlock Holmes,” Maillet has continued working as an actor, with roles in films like “Pacific Rim” and “Deadpool 2.” Now 55 years old, it wouldn’t be out of the question for Maillet to step back into the ring, with some of his peers still going strong today. However, as of late 2024, the former Kurrgan had no intention of doing anything more than a chokeslam, if he were to be invited back to WWE.
