Keith Jardine reflects on his switch from UFC fighter to character actor

After a long and illustrious career in the UFC, Keith Jardine has successfully transitioned careers and is now an actor. MMA Fighting sat down with the former spoiler, whose unusual stand up style earned him wins over names like Chuck Liddell and Forrest Griffin. Now it's his somewhat unusual looks that are helping him land roles as a character actor in westerns, most notably the critically acclaimed Netflix miniseries Godless.

“I have as much passion for this as I ever did for fighting,” he said. “I don’t want to be a coach. I like helping guys learn, but that’s not for me. Here’s an opportunity to do something I really love and I’m passionate about. Even if I had to be poor doing it, then I’ll be that. It’s better than doing something I’m miserable at. It’s just like in fighting, there’s an easy way and a hard way. The hard way is usually the better way, and it usually pays off in the end.”

It's always great to see a fighter continuing to find success after his days in the Octagon are over. Jardine always had a crazy biker look to him and putting him in henchmen roles is a perfect fit.

And who knows? Based on how hard Jardine is working, we wouldn't be surprised if he manages to build up to some bigger parts. Ten years from now, people might be surprised to learn this Hollywood actor used to be a UFC fighter, rather than the other way around.