Tanoai Reed
Early life[edit]
Tanoai Reed was born in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, on February 10, 1974. He is primarily of Samoan descent with smaller amounts of Irish, Norwegian, and Swedish ancestry. After the separation of his parents, he grew up in California before being sent back to Hawaiʻi to live with his grandmother.[1] He was educated at Kahuku High School and the University of Hawaiʻi.[1]
Career[edit]
Reed's stunt career began when he worked on Waterworld (1995),[1] and he began steady work as a stunt double for his cousin Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson[2][3] on The Scorpion King (2002).[4] His other work includes acting in the music video for the Black Eyed Peas song "Pump It" (2005), playing one of the villains fought by Fergie. He also appears in the 2008 relaunch of American Gladiators as the gladiator Toa.[5] His first episode of Gladiators saw him performing a shortened version of "Ka Mate", a New Zealand Māori haka, before beginning his defense of the top of the pyramid.