If you ever want a 6' 5", musclebound, broad-shouldered, shaved-head actor to play a terrifying bodyguard, a soldier of fortune or a fearsome gangster, then Tommy "Tiny" Lister Jr. is the man you want. This African-American basketball player turned actor first popped up in minor roles such as a prison guard in Runaway Train (1985), as Andy Garcia's bodyguard in Huit millions de façons de mourir (1986) and Powers Boothe's bodyguard in Extreme Prejudice (1987). "Tiny" Lister also had a stint in both the WWE (Formerly WWF) & WCW professional wrestling circuits in the late 1980s appearing under the name "Zeus" and "ZGangsta". His wrestling exploits can be seen on Summerslam (1989), Survivor Series (1989) and WWF Superstars of Wrestling (1986).
However, unlike many musclebound athletic types, "Tiny" Lister is a reasonable actor, and he has managed to notch up appearances in over 80 movies, expanding upon his original "fierce bodyguard" roles to now include comedic and rather quirky performances in films such as Dernières heures à Denver (1995), the African-American western La revanche de Jesse Lee (1993), as the Federated Territories President in the science fiction epic Le cinquième élément (1997), the cult comedy Friday (1995) and its sequel, Next Friday (2000).
Lister has also recently appeared on screen with Adam Sandler in Little Nicky (2000), and with Mike Myers in Austin Powers dans Goldmember (2002), plus he's been seen in a slew of B-horror films including Soulkeeper (2001), Hellborn (2003) and Dracula 3000 (2004). Tommy "Tiny" Lister may not be an A list star, but he is certainly one of Hollywood's most instantly recognizable and busiest character actors.
