Rudy Youngblood Biography

Rudy Youngblood is an actor, musician, dancer, and artist of Native American descent. His ancestors belonged to Comanche, Cree, and Yaqui tribes. Originally from Texas, Youngblood did not have an easy childhood. In the absence of his father, his mother raised him. When he was ten years old, he began doing construction works and learned various skills from others at the sites. He attended local schools and was part of the boxing and track athletics programs there. During this period, he developed a deep love for cinema. After he graduated, he received offers of Fulbright scholarships to major colleges in both art and track and field but decided to pursue native dance instead. He had been a member of the American Indian Dance Theatre. Youngblood made his screen debut in Peter Buffett’s ‘Spirit: The Seventh Fire’. In the following year, he played Jaguar Paw in Mel Gibson’s directorial venture, ‘Apocalypto’, which is unarguably the most significant film of his career. He has since appeared in films like ‘Wind Walkers’, ‘Crossing Point’, and ‘Attrition’ and TV shows like ‘Amnesia’ and ‘American Mythos’. Youngblood is highly active as an HIV activist in the Native community.