Brent Spiner

At 75 years old, Brent Spiner has this physical status:

Brent Jay Spiner (born February 2, 1949) is an American actor, comedian, guitarist, and singer best known for his portrayal of the android Lieutenant Commander Data in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and four subsequent films.

He received the Saturn Award for his role in Star Trek: First Contact in 1997, and was nominated in the same category for portraying Dr. Jeremy.

Brackish Okun is a character from Independence Day, a role he played again on Independence Day: Revival.

He has also worked as a actor and as a guitarist.

Early life

Brent Jay Spiner was born in Houston, Texas, on February 2, 1949, to Jewish parents Sylvia (née Schwartz) and Jack Spiner, who owned a furniture store. When his son was ten months old, Jack Spiner died of renal disease at the age of 29. Spiner was adopted by his mother's second husband, Sol Mintz, who used the surname from 1955 to 1975, following his father's death.

Spiner attended Bellaire High School in Bellaire, Texas. He joined the Bellaire speech team, winning the national championship in dramatic interpretation. He attended the University of Houston, where he appeared in local theater. Spiner appeared at Six Flags Astroworld as a gunfighter first and then as a host of Dr. Featherflowers Medicine Show with his friend Trey Wilson in 1968. Both performers appeared as Dr. Featherflowers. Spiner appeared in the 1968 television film The Pied Piper of Astroworld.

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Career

Spiner joined New York City in the early 1970s, appearing in many Broadway and off-Broadway plays, including The Three Musketeers and Stephen Sondheim's Sunday in the Park with George. He appeared in the film Stardust Memories for a brief time as "Fan in Lobby," the one with a Polaroid. In one of the films-within-the-film, he can also be seen as a passenger on the train full of misfits.

Spiner appeared in "The Advocates," a second-season episode of Showtime's "The Paper Chase," a spinner. He migrated to Los Angeles in 1984, where he appeared in numerous pilots and made-for-TV films. Bob Wheeler, the patriarch of a rural family, was a recurring figure on Night Court. In 1986, he appeared as a condemned soul in "Dead Run," an episode of Rod Serling's revival of The Twilight Zone on CBS. He made two appearances in Mama's Family's season three (1986), where he appeared as two distinct characters. Spiner's first and only film role was in Rent Control (1984). He appeared in "Never Love a Goalie Part II," a Cheers episode, in which he played convicted murderer Bill Grand. Spiner also appeared in "A Case of the Stubborns," a Darkside episode, as a preacher. In the made-for-TV film Manhunt for Claude Dallas, Jim Stevens portrayed Jim Stevens.

In Friends as James Campbell, the man who interviews Rachel for Gucci, Spiner appeared as a man.

Spiner began starring android Starfleet officer Lieutenant Commander Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation, a series of seven seasons and four feature films in 1987. In all but one of the series's 178 episodes, he appeared as a main character. He reprised his role in the spin-off films Star Trek Generations (1994), Star Trek: Insurrection (1998), and Star Trek: Nemesis (2002). Despite being billed as the final Trek film for the TNG cast, Star Trek: Nemesis' ambiguous ending suggested a potential path for Data recovery. Spiner opined that he was too old to continue playing the part, but that does not age. In Star Trek: Lore is the Android brother of Data. In the Star Trek: The Next Generation and another brother B4 are two siblings. (2002).

Spinner returned to Star Trek in 2004 as Dr. Arik Soong, the ancestor of Data's creator Dr. Noonien Soong, who also appeared in a three-episode story line on Star Trek: "Borderland," "Cold Station 12," and "The Augments."

In the final episode of Star Trek: Enterprise, "These Are the Voyages," which aired in 2005, Spiner also recorded dialogue as Data.

He reprised his role as Data in the 2020 Star Trek series Star Trek: Picard, as well as Dr. Altan Inigo Soong, the son of Data's creator Dr Noonien Soong, eighteen years after his last appearance as Data. Spinner has confirmed that he does not want to reprise his role as a spinner, but that he may be interested in playing Altan Soong. In Season 2 of Data's Strange Brother Lore, he played another ancestor of Dr Noonien Soong, Dr Adam Soong, in the 2024 storyline, and Lore's nefarious twin brother Lore appears as the Evil twin brother of Data's nefarious twin brother Lore, a role he previously appeared on The Next Generation.

In addition to the series and films, he appeared in numerous Star Trek video games, such as Star Trek: Generations, Star Trek: Hidden Evil, and Star Trek: Bridge Commander.

In 1991, Spiner released Ol' Yellow Eyes Is Back, the title of which was a play on the yellow contact lenses Spiner wore as Data, as well as the name of a Frank Sinatra song Ol' Blue Eyes Is Back, which was a play on Spiner's yellow contact lenses. He returned to Broadway in 1997, playing John Adams in the Roundabout Theatre Company's revival of the musical 1776. The show had been nominated for a Tony Award. The revival cast was announced on television.

Spiner has appeared in several television shows, including Deadly Games, The Blacklist, Dream On, Gargoyles, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Mad About You, and The Outer Limits. He appeared as himself in the series The Big Bang Theory and Joey. He has appeared in the films The Aviator, Dude, Where's My Car? I Am Sam, Independence Day, Phenomenon, Out to Sea, Phenomenon, The Ponder Heart, and South Park: The Ponder Heart and Uncut, He has appeared in the film The Aviator. The role of Dorothy Dandridge's boss and confidant, Earl Mills, in the HBO film Introducing Dorothy Dandridge include the 2000 musical Geppetto and his television film appearances during this period.

Spiner appeared in a short-lived science-fiction television series Threshold in 2005, but it was cancelled in November of that year after 13 episodes. He appeared in a film comedy called Material Girls starring Hilary and Haylie Duff in 2006.

Spinner made two brief cameos as a fellow airline passenger with Frasier Crane's ex-wife, Lilith Sternin, during the 10th season of the situation comedy Frasier.

Spiner appeared in Dreamland, a radio show/musical that was originally released as a CD album in March 2008.

Spiner appeared in the parody Superhero Movie in 2008 as Dr. Strom. In February 2009, he appeared William Quint in "The Juror #6 Job," an episode of Leverage starring Jonathan Frakes. He appeared in the Family Guy episode "Not All Dogs Go to Heaven" earlier this year.

Spiner and fellow Trek in 2010: Levar Burton, the Next Generation actor, appeared on TWiT.tv's coverage of the Consumer Electronics Show.

Spiner launched Fresh Hell, a comedy webseries in which he plays a version of himself, in April 2011, trying to resurrect his career after being left out of the limelight.

In the "Blind Spot" episode of the Syfy channel program Alphas on September 12, 2011, he appeared as Dr. Kern. He appeared in the episode "The Russian Rocket Reaction" of The Big Bang Theory in October 2011. Spiner would guest-star in the Young Justice episode "Revelation" on the day after his guest appearance. In the third and fourth seasons, Spiner has appeared on the Syfy programme Warehouse 13 as Brother Adrian.

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