Randy Couture’s (Almost) Perfect Double

You will not see anything quite as unsettling this weekend as watching this footage of Randy Couture getting a virtually flawless cast made of his head and shoulders at Amalgamated Dynamics, a special effects house credited with busts and models for corpulent Hollywood features. It’s so dead-on that it’s practically repulsive. (There’s a term for that: “uncanny valley,” the natural recoil against something lifeless that mimics human expression or behavior. It’s one of many reasons you should not watch “The Polar Express.”)

According to Amalgamated’s Alec Gillis, the reason for making a Couture bust was simple enthusiasm. “I'm a big fan of MMA, and Randy Couture in particular, as are a few of our artists here at my studio,” he says. “It's an updating of ancient Greek and Roman portrait busts of wrestlers and gladiators using modern materials.” Gillis gifted the bust to Couture, but plans to field interest on a series of Hall of Fame replicas for the UFC’s use or for mass production.

On my bookshelf? No. I still get houseguests from time to time. In a UFC “Hall of Immortals,” as Gillis envisions? In Las Vegas, it would be right at home.

(Thanks to Fightlinker for the video alert.)