The Kurgan is the chief antagonist of the movie Highlander and was a brutal member of a mysterious race of immortals that had existed alongside humans for centuries - The Kurgan was a brutal warrior and a member of an ancient tribe known for their exceptional acts of cruelty both on and off the battlefield.
The Kurgan made an enemy of fellow immortal Connor McLeod after failing to kill him in battle - swearing to hunt him down in order to behead him and thus gain his "Quickening": during his many battle The Kurgan gained infamy for raping Connor's wife, Heather.
The Kurgan and Connor McLeod would meet again in 1985, in New York City, where the Gathering was to take place. During this time, the Kurgan was using a status as a NYC criminal skinhead gang leader as a disguised background to hide his true self and going by the alias "Victor Kruger." The last six Immortals at this time were he, MacLeod, Sunda Kastagir, Iman Fasil, Osta Vasilek, and Yung Dol Kim. Vasilek was beheaded by the Kurgan in New Jersey before he learnt of Fasil's death in Madison Square Garden at the hands of the Highlander (McLeod). He then defeated both Kim and Connor's friend Kastagir, leaving just the two of them, McLeod and the Kurgan. In order to throw Connor's concentration off, the Kurgan kidnapped his then-girlfriend, a screaming Brenda Wyatt, and raced all the way to the Silvercup Studios building while driving down the wrong side of the street, playing chicken and running over pedestrians while gleefully singing the theme from "New York, New York."
McLeod followed them to the site, where he and the Kurgan faced each other in deadly combat, with Brenda's life at stake. Disarming McLeod, the Kurgan was distracted by Brenda bashing him over the head with a pipe. This distraction gave Connor the time to recover his sword and gather his composure, and the two ancient warriors clashed once more. McLeod's calmness, maturity, and skill all proved to be superior to the Kurgan's, and ended up beheading his foe, his essence passing to the Highlander, winner of "The Prize."