AN affectionate dad-of-one has gone to extreme lengths to transform himself into Captain America’s nemesis the Nazi supervillain Red Skull.

    Henry Rodriguez, from Caracas, Venezuela, splashed out US$37,800 on multiple procedures in a bid to turn himself into the “Marvel” comic book madman.

    Red Skull was first introduced into the “Marvel” comic book series in 1947 as the Nazi arch-enemy to Captain America.

    The supervillian has also made a more recent appearance in the 2011 movie “Captain America: The First Avenger,” which starred Hugo Weaving as Red Skull and Chris Evans as the hero.

    Now, Rodriguez has undergone drastic surgery to look like his idol, including having subdermal implants on his forehead, part of his nose cut off and his eyeballs tattooed.

    The 38-year-old, who now calls himself Red Skull, has also inked his face with red and black and it’s unlikely he will stop the body modifications any time soon.

    His transformation started when he met Emilio Gonzalez, a medical school dropout who specializes in tattooing and extreme body surgery.

    Rodriguez said he started the project around seven years ago.

    “I wanted to turn myself into this amazing comic character who I’ve really admired since I was little.

    “I feel like there are similarities between this character and I regarding to personality and attitude.”

    One part of Red Skull Rodriguez wants to be clear he does not identify with, however, is the character’s ties to Nazism.

    “It is important to say that the only thing I don’t have in common with him is his Nazi ideology,” he clarifies.

    The surgeon who performed the modifications also says that Rodriguez went through several physical and psychological tests before going through surgery.

    In total, the modification process took 130 hours to complete, starting with tattooing Rodriguez’s eyes black.

    “After this I got two implants under my skin,” said Rodriguez. “It took around two years because it is a process that must be done in stages and it took longer than expected.“

    Rodriguez’s appearance does attract strong reactions, but Rodriguez says he doesn’t mind. As long as his son accepts him, he’s not bothered by what anyone else thinks.

    “People’s reactions are very different, sometimes funny, and sometimes odd but we are here to educate people.

    “It wasn’t easy for my family to accept my lifestyle but, even so, they are still my family and a part of me.

    “My son Aaron Rodrigo is 3 years old. If he accepts me and loves me I don’t care about what other people would say.

    “What matters to me is being happy and accepting myself. We will always be judged.

    “I decided to be who I am now and I feel good with myself. That’s the most important thing.”

    (SD-Agencies)