Name: Rhys 'Phoenix' Gundersen

Play-By: Clive Standen

Age: 32

Occupation: MMA fighter

Birth Place: Philadelphia, PA, US

Sexuality: straight


Physical Description: Rhys stands at 6'2" in height. He has short, middling to dark brown hair that often has a mildly tussled look. His eyes are a deep greyish-green color and have an intensity about them. Rhys is a lean man, somewhere between wiry and mildly toned. Not just in his eyes, there is an air of intensity about him. Most of the time he has a serious expression though on occasion the right person or moment can coax out a surprisingly gentle smile.


Distinguishing Marks: Rhys has two circular scars easily recognizable as gunshot wounds. One on the front of his right shoulder. The other is both front and back on his right side a couple inches from his belly button. There's a diagonal scar just below the kidney on the left side of his back. A nearly three inch diagonal scar on the right side of his chest. A few smaller scars on his torso and the inside of his left hand. See below for his tattoos.

Personality: He often seems just a little on edge, even when he's not. There's a bit of the strong silent type about him. Rhys is an honest and simple man. He doesn't rush to volunteer things about himself but he doesn't shy away when people ask, although there are a couple of things he won't talk about. He's usually fairly calm but he does have a temper that can be triggered by a couple of things.

Back Ground: Rhys was born in a poor, predominantly Irish neighborhood in Philadelphia (even though his family wasn't Irish). It wasn't a very nice place but it was all his parents could afford. Still, they did their best to make it a happy life for him. Untouched by the violence between the gangs that ran out of theirs and a few adjacent neighborhoods. Untouched that is, until his father was killed in a gang shooting when he was 13.

After that, his mother did everything she could to support them and keep him on the straight but he became more and more angry about his father's death and their situation. It didn't take much for the Irish gang that ran his neighborhood to join. A chance to make some money to help take care of his mom. A chance to get back at the gang that killed his dad in a crossfire.

They started him off just running errands and acting as a lookout. That lasted for a couple years but his temper started getting him into fights. He wasn't the biggest guy but he was scrappy and fierce. So, by the time he was 16 they had him running with a crew.

By 20, Rhys was a regular hardened criminal. He'd never been caught but if he had his rap sheet would be pretty long for his age. His luck ended when he got caught in a pretty large fight between the Irish and the gang that had killed his dad years before. Half of everyone involved got away, five died, the rest were too injured to run when the sirens came. Rhys managed to get three blocks away but in the same direction as a few of the other gang's members went. When the cops found them two of them were on the ground beaten unconscious and a third that was starting to get the upper hand on an exhausted and injured Rhys ran. Rhys simply collapsed when he saw the cops running towards him.

He was arrested and convicted for three charges of assault and battery. Whatever else he'd done, no evidence had been recovered. Like a loyal soldier, he didn't give a single name when they tried to offer him a deal. He was sentenced to 15-25 years in prison. For the first four years, he hooked up with the Irish inside as it was safer and supposedly they were looking after his mom on the outside.

When he was almost 25, he was notified that his mother had taken ill and died because she wasn't getting the care and medicine she needed because she couldn't afford it. The next day he broke ties with the Irish and became unaffiliated in the prison, which made things harder. Something inside him had changed though. His mom had never said anything because they needed the money, but he knew she never approved of what he became. Still, she always did her best to show him love and support. And now the people he'd gone to prison for had just let her die. In that moment he knew he was done with that life, whether it was done with him or not.

The next five years in prison were very rough for him. He made a couple of good, reliable friends that could watch his back. That didn't work all the time, though. Enough to keep him alive but he gained his share of scars while earning enough of a reputation for people to stop messing with him.

His life changed for the better for the first time about two and a half years ago. No one knows what kicked it off but the prison he was in broke out into a substantial riot. Early on, two of the guards trying to bring it under control got badly beaten and found themselves helpless. From their perspective, out of nowhere he Rhys jumped in and started fighting off the inmates that had been about to kill them. He didn't know how many inmates he beat back when they came to take a shot at the guards but it was a lot.

After the riot, once everything was settled, Rhys was surprised to be offered an early parole hearing. Thanks to the testimony of the two guards and a few of the inmates who didn't get involved in the riot, he was granted parole and set free. The changes didn't end there though. The riot made national news and a security recording of him defending the guards leaked. An MMA trainer/promoter named Jack Keller saw it and had a lightbulb moment. They sought him out, offered Rhys training and at least a shot at a professional fight. They saw his natural talent and the scattering of fighting skills he'd picked up over the years on the streets and in prison and thought he'd make a great MMA fighter.

It took Rhys about a year to prove Jack right. His first couple of matches were a little rough but then he started winning. Before long, ESPN got wind of his story and someone called him a phoenix, rising from the ashes. The name stuck and started getting more visible, prominent fights. His history kept him from the fast track but Jack started looking for ways to get around it. Trying to work on his image. So, when Jack heard of the celebrity season of the show Coupled in Paradise he thought it would do wonders to soften Rhys' image and maybe help get him on track for a chance at a title. It took some serious convincing, but ultimately Jack convinced him it'd be a chance to meet someone in a setting where his criminal past might not mean as much.

Likes: sparring, exercise, reading, music, singing

Dislikes: anyone who mistreats women, guns, sweet food

Strengths: excellent fighter, surprisingly good gravelly singing voice, in fantastic shape, always polite and respectful to women (regardless of how they treat him)

Weaknesses: he has a temper that can be triggered by a couple of specific things, not always great at expressing himself

Fears: going back to prison, losing control


Tattoo over his heart:


Tattoo on his right arm:


Tattoo on his left arm:


Tattoo on his back: