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Jeffrey Combs (born September 9, 1954 in Oxnard, California) is an American actor well known for his roles in science fiction and horror films and television series.
DCAU filmography
The New Batman Adventures
- "Never Fear" – Scarecrow
Video games
- Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu - Scarecrow
Justice League Unlimited
- "Fearful Symmetry" – The Question
- "Double Date" – The Question
- "Question Authority" – The Question
- "Flashpoint" – The Question
- "Grudge Match" – The Question
Background information
Film
Probably Combs's best known film role is Dr. Herbert West, in Re-Animator and its two sequels. He also played "Re-Animator" author H. P. Lovecraft in the film Necronomicon: Book of the Dead. His most recent film credits include FeardotCom (2002), The House on Haunted Hill (1999), and I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998). He also did a small but memorable performance in Peter Jackson's The Frighteners as insane FBI Special Agent Milton Dammers.
Television
He began to appear on the science fiction series The 4400 in August 2005, in what by 2006 became a recurring role, as Dr. Kevin Burkhoff. He also starred as the telepath Harriman Gray, in "Eyes," a first season episode of Babylon 5. In early 2007, he played Edgar Allan Poe in "The Black Cat", an episode of Masters of Horror.
He has played several recurring alien characters on various Star Trek series. Trek fans unfamiliar with Combs' appearance nevertheless recognize him by his distinctive voice. Combs originally auditioned for the role of Commander William Riker on Star Trek: The Next Generation, but lost out to Jonathan Frakes, though producers kept him in mind for casting in the later series.
His favorite and largest role to date has been the multi-episode, multi-season Vorta clone Weyoun on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. On the same series, he had a recurring role as the Ferengi Brunt. During the DS9 episode "The Dogs of War", Combs made Trek history as the first guest actor to play two unrelated recurring roles in the same episode.
On Star Trek: Enterprise Combs had a very popular recurring role as Shran, an Andorian military officer. Shran represents a dramatic shift in character type for Combs, as his three previous Star Trek incarnations, Weyoun, Brunt and Penk, had all been somewhat passive officials, whereas Shran is a more heatedly aggressive leader. Enterprise producer Manny Coto once mentioned in an interview that he hoped to make Shran and Combs a regular on the show, had the series been renewed for a fifth season. [citation needed] In addition Combs made some non-recurring appearances, including Mulcahey and Tiron on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Penk on Star Trek: Voyager, and the Ferengi Krem in Star Trek: Enterprise.
Voice Work
Combs replaced Henry Polic II as the voice of Scarecrow for The New Batman Adventures. His work on Justice League Unlimited as The Question was well-regarded by both fans and the JLU writing staff and is credited for reviving interest in the character.
Trivia
- On September 11, 2001, a man named Jeffrey Coombs (note the extra 'o' in the last name) was aboard hijacked American Airlines Flight 11, which was later crashed into the World Trade Center. Having been confused with the passenger on the jet, Combs the actor was pronounced dead by news media outlets and had to announce publicly that he was still alive.