Born and raised in Oregon, Bruce Locke was originally not a martial artist and yet is known for some of the action characters he has portrayed. He played tennis in college and was nationally ranked. He is a single-digit-handicap golfer and active on the charitable celebrity golf circuit in between roles. His fame began after his role in Robocop 3 and continued after portraying Shang Tsung in the Mortal Kombat Conquest television series. His favorite role until now was in Robocop 3, and his first appearance was in General Hospital. For Robocop, Locke was trained in Kenpo by Bill Ryusaki and various styles of Gung Fu by Al Leong. He was also exposed to Wing Chun under his brother, Jon Locke.