Star Trek Actor Jeffrey Combs Struggled With Tiron's Gills In Deep Space Nine
Throughout "Star Trek," actor Jeffrey Combs has played ten different characters, counting his voice work in the "Elite Force II" video game, a relative of Shran in "Star Trek Online," and his quick cameo as a holographic human in the final episode of "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine." More famously, Combs had three notable recurring roles throughout the franchise, playing the Vorta Weyoun and the Ferengi Brunt on "Deep Space Nine," and the militant Andorian Shran on "Star Trek: Enterprise." Most recently, he played an evil computer intelligence AGIMUS in three episodes of "Star Trek: Lower Decks."
The number of Combs characters increases greatly when one takes into account that Weyoun was cloned multiple times, and that audiences once saw the Mirror Universe version of Brunt. Also, hologram versions of characters count separately, right? If one wants to split hairs — and we Trekkies live to split hairs — then Combs has played 23 characters.
Combs' first "Star Trek" appearance was for the "Deep Space Nine" episode "Meridian" (November 14, 1994) playing a lascivious, creepy character named Tiron. In the episode's B-plot, Tiron asks Quark (Armin Shimerman) to make a holographic double of Major Kira (Nana Visitor), a woman he lusts after desperately. Kira hates holosuites and staunchly refuses to lend Quark her likeness, especially for creepy sex purposes. Quark then attempts to sneak pictures and break into Kira's secure personal files in order to fulfil Tiron's request. Luckily, Kira catches wise and busts Quark's scheme in an amusing way.
In 2011, Combs spoke with StarTrek.com about his various Trek roles, and he recalled playing Tiron was a headache, mostly because of the nasal appliance he had to wear.
Tiron's nose on 'Deep Space Nine'
Tiron was a creep, of course, and he actively sought to invade a woman's privacy for his own sexual gratification. As mentioned, Kira caught wise to his plan and played a prank on Tiron and Quark to demonstrate that they were busted: she broke into Quark's holosuite programs and replaced her own head with Quark's. Tiron was greeted on the holosuite by Kira in a nightie, but with Quark's face. The Ferengi was duly punished.
Combs' makeup to play Tiron extended over his nose, and wasn't equipped with breathing holes. As an actor, this was a challenge, as Combs could no longer inhale without ruining the appliance. It seems that exhaling wasn't as big a problem. The makeup, incidentally, was applied by veteran DS9 makeup artist Dean Gates. About the makeup, Combs said:
"Tiron had a weird nose, and I had problems breathing out of it. I had gills, and every time I'd breathe in through my nose, the nose would suck in. So I really had to make sure, technically, that I didn't blow the makeup by breathing!"
One cannot see the gills on Tiron incredibly well, and Combs' mention of gills might lead one to wonder what species Tiron is. There is no canonical answer, but StarTrek.com lists his species as Serilian. If that is indeed his species, "Meridian" is the only episode in which Serilians appear.
Combs, meanwhile, became very familiar with Dean Gates' makeup chair, as he would require a lot of makeup to play Brunt and Weyoun. He would also play a shady alien MMA fight commissioner in an episode of "Star Trek: Voyager," and playing Shran required not only full-head blue face makeup, but specialize worn servos that made his antennae twitch.