May 11—In the Gareth Evans-directed film "Havoc," streaming on Netflix, Michelle Waterson-Gomez has barely five minutes of screen time.

Her character utters not a single word. That character remains nameless throughout the film, listed in the closing credits only as "Assassin."

But does she have an impact? Boy, does she.

In fact, one might say, the "Assassin" kills it.

For Waterson-Gomez, who retired as an MMA fighter in June 2024 after a 17-year pro career, "Havoc" is the latest and most eye-catching step in a film career that began with stunt work — a natural outgrowth of her martial-arts background and an interest in film that predated her MMA career.

"I've always enjoyed film and theater," she said in a recent phone interview. "I was a theater kid growing up (in Colorado Springs) and I actually went to college for theater."

Her interest in martial arts, however, won the upper hand. She moved to Albuquerque and began training at Jackson-Wink MMA, for a time living in the dormitories at J-W's former location on Acoma SE.

Then, she said, "I met a friend who actually was a stunt coordinator. He knew I was a professional fighter, and he needed somebody around my size that could be thrown around and not care about being beat up and could do fight scenes and stuff like that.

"And between my fights, I was doing movies."

Along the way, she met, then married Joshua Gomez, an El Pasoan and an armed forces amateur boxing champion who'd been stationed at Kirtland Air Force Base, then stayed in Albuquerque to train as a pro fighter. They have a daughter, Araya, who turned 14 in March.

Of his partner's cinematic journey, Gomez said, "It's something I know she's deserved since forever. So it's a cool thing to see come full circle."

Work in Disney productions and on the Thor and Avengers series served to raise Waterson-Gomez's profile and simultaneously whet her appetite.

In 2018, she starred (and spoke) in "Crossed Lines," a New Mexico-produced film that also featured Carlos Condit, Waterson-Gomez's former Jackson-Wink teammate; Greg Jackson, J-W co-founder; and Michael Lyubimov, J-W's gym manager. She plays a police officer who's battling a human-trafficking ring.

Then, in 2021, Waterson-Gomez spent five months in Wales filming "Havoc."

Some four years later, the film finally debuted. In between, Waterson-Gomez admitted to some uncertainty. Between filming and editing, where would her character wind up?

"I was concerned, I have to tell you," she said. "I was concerned about not having any lines. ... I was afraid I was going to get lost in the storyline."

Then, last month, she attended the film's world premiere in London. Her concerns were allayed.

"I really did have a really cool presence," she said. "... Even though I didn't have any lines, it's still a huge part of the movie."

In "Havoc," Waterson-Gomez is part of an impressive cast.

Tom Hardy, an Oscar nominee for "The Revenant," stars as a corrupt but guilt-ridden policeman. Forest Whitaker, an Oscar winner for "The Last King of Scotland," plays a corrupt politician. Timothy Olyphant, an Emmy nominee for his work on the TV series "Justified," plays another, even more corrupt policeman. (Yes, there's a pattern here).

Renowned character actor Luis Guzman plays the protective but ill-fated uncle of a young woman being pursued by both an Asian drug cartel and the aforementioned Olyphant character.

The country of Wales, meanwhile, is remarkably and realistically transformed into a grimy, unnamed American city. Evans, the director, is a Welshman.

In her five minutes on the screen, while saying nothing, Waterson-Gomez (Michelle Waterson in the credits) nonetheless speaks volumes — her character exuding menace while relentlessly serving the malign, vengeful interests of her drug-cartel boss.

For those who haven't seen "Havoc," be advised: This is an ultra-violent film. The body count is astronomical; fake blood (which seems all too real) flows like cherry Kool-Aid.

And yet, even if one — having been forewarned — prefers to simply fast-forward through the carnage, one should not miss a dazzling fight scene between Waterson-Gomez's assassin and Hardy's Patrick Walker near the film's conclusion.

The scene lasts less than a minute, but ... wow.

Waterson-Gomez's martial-arts skills are on full display, and it clearly helped that Hardy is a devotee of Brazilian jiujitsu.

"Whenever there was any free time," she said, "we would train, (Hardy) and his stunt double and pretty much the whole team. We'd actually pull in all the other actors to come and try to do some jiujitsu with us."

In the finished product, she said, she can't always tell whether it's Hardy or his stunt double the Assassin is fighting. That, of course, was the idea.

With "Havoc" behind her, Waterson-Gomez said she's leaving soon for Hong Kong "to talk with some directors and set guys." Closer to home, she's been talking with former J-W teammates Keith Jardine and Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone, both of whom have have worked in films.

In an episode of the Albuquerque-filmed TV series "The Cleaning Lady" that aired on April 22, Waterson-Gomez played a corrections officer who gets into a scuffle with an inmate.

Meanwhile, she and Gomez maintain a busy life on multiple fronts.

Waterson traveled to Des Moines, Iowa the weekend of May 3, providing studio commentary on a UFC card. After a fighting career that produced an 18-13 record and an Invicta FC atomweight (105-pound) title, becoming a UFC fan favorite by virtue of a style nearly as relentless as that of "the Assassin," she has no desire to return to the cage at age 39.

The couple owns two Albuquerque restaurants, Thai Street and Tako Ten. They have their own gym and build and sell homes in the area.

Post-"Havoc," Waterson-Gomez said, the future looks even brighter.

Spoiler alert: In the fight between the Assassin and the cop, the Assassin wins.

But then ...