Renes Antonio Rivera-Kuilan was born in Brooklyn, New York. His mother, Susan Rosado, worked many jobs managing fast food restaurants to keep the family afloat. His father, Porfirio Rivera-Kuilan Jr, was a construction worker who specialized on flooring. Renes' ancestry is Puerto Rican and Dominican. Before his acting career, the football player and former wrestler studied Criminal Justice C.W Post Long Island University. In his early 20's , Renes worked nightclub security and was a celebrity body guard. His first acting role was as 'Armando' in Larry Dooley's 2009 film 'Acting Criminal'. In 2011, Renes teamed up with Zachary Karem and Brennan Karem to create Threshold Films. Together, the three produced short films such as '7 minutes' and 'Selected'. In 2012, Renes began a career as a big and tall model. Renes is one of the handful of actors that have had roles in both 20th century Fox Marvel and Marvel Studios with roles such as 'Bulk' from 'The Gifted' and "Lennox" from 'The Falcon and The Winter Soldier'.