Since his introduction as Lt. Commander Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Brent Spiner has been one of the franchise's strongest actors, and this becomes even more apparent when he portrays villains. Data quickly became one of TNG's most beloved characters, thanks in large part to Brent Spiner's nuanced performance. Throughout his Star Trek journey, Data wanted nothing more than to be human, and Spiner always did an excellent job of hinting at Data's humanity even when the android was at his most robotic.
Still, portraying Data required a subtle form of acting that did not often allow Spiner to truly let loose in the role. While there were a few instances when Data was possessed or taken over by another entity, Data's evil twin brother Lore and the various Soong family members allowed Brent Spiner to show his full range as an actor. Spiner proved that he could chew scenery with the best of them, as Lore and most of the Soongs had big personalities that allowed the actor to have fun.
Lore Let Brent Spiner Play A Twisted Version Of Data
Spiner Got To Sneer & Chew Scenery As Lore
Introduced in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 1, episode 13, "Datalore," Lore was created before Data and soon grew unstable and resentful of humans. Dr. Noonien Soong then created Data, who became the cyberneticist's greatest creation. Data was Soong's most successful android, and Lore had all the negative traits Data lacked. With his arrogance and duplicitous nature, Lore allowed Brent Spiner to portray a twisted version of Data. Lore was still an android, but whereas Data had a subtle form of humanity, there was nothing subtle about Lore.
It's clear from Brent Spiner's first scenes as Lore that he is very different from his brother. Even when Lore pretends to get along with the Enterprise-D crew, it's obvious there is something different about him. After his initial appearance, Lore continues to be a sneering villain, manipulating Data, attacking his creator, and eventually working with the Borg. Spiner always makes it clear which android he's portraying even in the scenes when Lore pretends to be Data, and it's especially fun when the two play off of one another.
Brent Spiner Cuts Loose As Members Of Star Trek’s Soong Family
Spiner Got To Portray A Range Of Emotions As The Various Soongs
In addition to Data and Lore, Brent Spiner has portrayed several members of the Soong family. In TNG season 4, episode 3, "Brothers," Spiner was nearly unrecognizable as Dr. Noonien Soong, Data and Lore's creator. But Noonien was mild compared to his Soong ancestors and descendants. In Star Trek: Enterprise, Arik Soong stole a group of Augment embryos and raised them as children despite the Federation's ban on eugenics.
Besides playing Data and all of his siblings in Star Trek, Brent Spiner portrayed the android's creator as well as various other Soongs in history.
Two different Soongs popped up on Star Trek: Picard, in the late 24th century of seasons 1 and 3, as well as in the 21st century of season 2. When Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and his friends traveled back in time to 2024 in Picard season 2, they encountered Adam Soong. Adam was a geneticist who created a series of clones and cared more about his own image and legacy than anything or anyone else.
Although Altan Soong initially sided with his androids in Picard season 1, he later created an advanced golem body that combined the personalities of Data, Lore, B-4, and Data's daughter Lal (Hallie Todd). Data's personality eventually became the dominant one, bringing the android as close to humanity as he could hope to be. All of these different characters not only showed Brent Spiner's impressive range as an actor, but also gave him the chance to cut loose more than he ever did with Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
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