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Jeffrey Combs

Jeffrey Alan Combs was born in Oxnard, California September 9th 1954. He was raised in Lompoc, California and studied Performing Arts at various institutions including the Professional Actor's Training Program at the University of Washington in Seattle. He started his acting career in theatre and made his feature film debut in 'Honky Tonk Freeway' as a Drive-In Teller. In 1983, he made his horror debut as Stu in Troma's production of 'Frightmare'. This would be the beginning of a prolific career in the horror genre, becoming quite an iconic figure. Most of this is down to his portrayal of Herbert West in the calssic 80's gorefest 'Re-Animator' and its sequels. He has become closely associated with the horror writer HP Lovecraft, having appeared in 5 films relating to his work (Re-Animator, From Beyond, The Lurking Fear, Necronomicon and Castle Freak). In addition to this he has turned in an award worthy performance as Edgar Allen Poe, in the Masters of Horror episode 'The Black Cat'.

Although he is mostly known for his work in horror he has given many memorable performances in a wide array of films from Love And A .45, Brutal, Fortress, Death Falls and one of his most critically acclaimed performances, as Special Agent Milton Dammers in Peter Jackson's The Frighteners. No role is too small, no character too bizarre, just when you think he has tackled pretty much everything, he'll come back with another gripping performance.

Known mostly for his film work, he also has a large fanbase in the realm of television. He played the role of Dr Kevin Burkhoff in The 4400, a scientist who has the weight of the world on his shoulders but it is for his work in the Star Trek universe that he is mostly recognised for. As well as playing one off characters in several incarnations of the series he also played the Vorta, Weyoun in Deep Space Nine (a character that is highly revered by fans of the show) and Commander Shran in Enterprise.

He continues to work on various projects and also goes to conventions when his schedule permits it to meet up with the fans. An actor of many talents and a vast amount of work, there is more to him than meets the eye.


What members say | Filmography

Jeffrey Combs - what members say


  • The Frighteners
  • The Frighteners review by from Saffron Walden, England
    Rated - 4 stars Great entertainment, but not as good as some of Jackson's other films. 5 October 2004
    ...laugh-out-loud humor and the characters were entertaining (I particularly liked Jeffrey Combs as a massively overdone FBI investigator). This film isn't as good as some o...  
  • Beyond Re-Animator
  • Beyond Re-Animator review by A customer from London, England
    Rated - 4 stars Another Dose of Gory Medicine 29 July 2004
    ...o beat for a sequel, it isn't saying much that this is an improvement. However Jeffrey Combs delights in the role of Herbert West as always, playing the superior yet clearl...  
  • From Beyond
  • From Beyond review by Prodigy from Ipswich
    Rated - 5 stars Overlooked classic 30 October 2006
    ... my VHS is wearing thin. If you liked Re-animator, you'll like this as well. Jeffrey Combs plays the mad scientist again, as he does so well, striving to create a resonat...  

Jeffrey Combs - filmography


  • Parasomnia on DVD (2008)
    Starring: Dylan Purcell,  Patrick Kilpatrick,  Jeffrey Combs
    Director: William Malone
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    In "Parasomnia", a stylish horror/thriller film from director William Malone (House on Haunted Hill, Masters of Horror) Danny Sloan is looking for something solid in his life. After his girlfriend leaves him, he realizes that something is missing. Once he goes to visit a friend in rehab, he happens ..read more »
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 47% from 280 members
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  • Wizard Of Gore on DVD (2007)
    Starring: Kip Pardue,  Bijou Phillips,  Crispin Glover
    Director: Jeremy Kasten
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    In the darkly phantasmagorical world of the carnival magician and sideshow hypnotist, the gruesome "illusions" of Montag the Magnificent are unique in that they seem to become retroactive reality long after the the tricks are done. Is it coincidence, or circumstantial evidence of the world's most ..read more »
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 49% from 170 members
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  • The Frighteners (3 discs) on DVD (1996)
    Starring: Michael J. Fox,  Trini Alvarado,  Jeffrey Combs
    Director: Peter Jackson
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    When his hometown is struck by a series of mysterious deaths that appears to be the work of a malicious supernatural killer, a psychic private investigator (Michael J. Fox) who is able to communicate with the dead attempts to get to the bottom of things and put a stop to the murders. But even with ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 67% from 7,358 members
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  • Dillinger And Capone on DVD (1995)
    Starring: Martin Sheen,  F. Murray Abraham,  Don Stroud
    Director: Jon Purdy
    Certificate: Certificate: 15
    When the FBI kill the wrong brother, Scarface (Al Capone) traces the real John Dillinger and forces him to plan one final bank heist. With his wife and son held by the Mob, John must make a success of his biggest bank job to date...
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 47% from 104 members
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  • Love And A .45 on DVD (1994)
    Starring: Gil Bellows,  Renee Zellweger,  Rory Cochrane
    Director: C.M. Talkington
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    A pair of dangerous lovers turn fugitive when the guy and his psycho partner kill a girl during a robbery. Like Billy Joe and Bobbie Sue, they take the money and run for the border. Features an alternative rock soundtrack with the Meat Puppets, the Butthole Surfers, the Jesus and Mary Chain and others.
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 52% from 247 members
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  • Castle Freak on DVD (1994)
    Starring: Jeffrey Combs,  Barbara Crampton,  Jonathan Fuller
    Director: Stuart Gordon
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    The Reilly family inherit an ancient Italian castle which soon reveals something evil in the dungeons. Their beautiful but blind daughter Rebecca becomes the object of its monstrous obsessions and everyone who stands in its way comes to a grisly end...
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 50% from 132 members
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  • Trancers 2 on DVD (1991)
    Starring: Tim Thomerson,  Helen Hunt,  Megan Ward
    Director: Charles Band
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    Los Angeles, 1991. It's been six years since Jack Deth (Tim Thomerson), a cop from the future, wiped out the last of the Trancers, those zombie-like creatures whose mission is murder. Now Jack's got that funny feeling again...he knows they're back. And he's ready to give them the fight of his life. ..read more »
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 50% from 285 members
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  • Bride Of Re-Animator on DVD (1990)
    Starring: Jeffrey Combs,  Bruce Abbott,  Claude Earl Jones
    Director: Brian Yuzna
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    The Re-Animator's back in this gory sequel. This time, the twisted Dr. Herbert West (Jeffery Combs) is aiming not just to restore life, but to create it from spare body parts. His warped genius has given birth to hideous and disgusting combinations, both animal and human, but his desire to create ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 56% from 1,243 member
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  • Pit And The Pendulum on DVD (1990)
    Starring: Oliver Reed,  Jeffrey Combs,  Lance Henriksen
    Director: Stuart Gordon
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    Lance Henriksen plays Torquemada, the Grand Inquisitor of the infamous Spanish Inquisition, which is in full swing when THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM begins. The heretic-burning fires of the Auto da fe are raging all across Spain, the people live in fear, and no one dares speak a word against Torquemada ..read more »
    Rate this: 2.5 stars out of 5 53% from 460 members
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  • Re-Animator on DVD (1985)
    Starring: Bruce Abbott,  David Gale,  Robert Sampson
    Director: Stuart Gordon
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    Herbert West (Jeffery Combs) has found the secret to eternal life--or so he thinks. West needs fresh cadavers to continue his experiments in the re-animation of dead tissue, so he enlists the help of young medical student Dan Cain (Bruce Abbott) to steal bodies from the local morgue. Despite all ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 65% from 2,560 members
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  • Urgency
    Starring: Jeffrey Combs,  Brian Austin Green,  Scott William Winters
    Director: Kantz
    Certificate: Certificate: TBC
    Tony West is a successful pharmaceutical executive living in LA with his loving wife Sofia. But after a day of tense negotiations with potential buyers, Tony comes home to find his wife kidnapped - and the kidnappers demand he bring $50,000 to them within 90 minutes or she's dead. The police are ..read more »
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 No ratings yet. Be the first.
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  • Voodoo Moon on DVD
    Starring: Eric Mabius,  Charisma Carpenter,  John Amos
    Director: Kevin Van Hook
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    Cole and Heather are the two survivors of a demonic force that killed everyone else in their hometown twenty years ago. Heather can see into the future and Cole has become an exorcist and now they must return to the place where it all began and fight against the demon that ruined their lives.
    Rate this: 2 stars out of 5 39% from 1,214 member
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  • Beyond Re-Animator on DVD
    Starring: Jason Barry,  Jeffrey Combs
    Director: Brian Yuzna
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    A doctor serving a prison sentence for mass murder continues to experiment on the animals that frequent his cell. With the arrival of a new doctor at the jail he finds his services needed...
    Rate this: 3 stars out of 5 56% from 1,083 member
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  • Horror In The Attic on DVD
    Starring: Jeffrey Combs,  Seth Green,  Wendy Robie
    Director: Jeremy Kasten
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    When Trevor regains consciousness in a sanatorium he is told that he sacrificed his fiancee in some bizarre ritual. But his grip on reality is tested when he realises that the other patients are being killed one by one...
    Rate this: 2 stars out of 5 40% from 242 members
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  • Cyclone on DVD
    Starring: Heather Thomas,  Dar Robinson,  Martin Landau
    Director: Fred Olen Ray
    Certificate: Certificate: 18
    A military scientist develops a turbo-charged motorcycle with an unlimited power source. When he is murdered by assassins, it is up to his girlfriend to deliver the top secret machine into the rightful hands.....
    Rate this: 2 stars out of 5 38% from 58 members
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  • Star Trek Enterprise - Season 4 (6 discs) on DVD
    Starring: Scott Bakula,  John Billingsley,  Jolene Blalock
    Certificate: Certificate: 12
    The fourth Star Trek series blasts off with Scott Bakula starring as Captain Jonathan Archer. Set before the original 1960's series, Enterprise tells the story of the first ship to bear that legendary name and of the early days of space discovery. This release features all the episodes from Season ..read more »
    Rate this: 3.5 stars out of 5 73% from 3,973 members
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Jeffrey Combs facts

5 most recent films

Parasomnia - 2.5 stars
Wizard Of Gore - 2.5 stars
Return To House On Haunted Hill - 2.5 stars
Edmond - 2.5 stars
Faust: Love Of The Damned - 2.5 stars

5 highest-rated films

Star Trek Enterprise - Season 4 - 3.5 stars
Frighteners, The - HD DVD Version - 3.5 stars
The Frighteners - 3.5 stars
From Beyond - 3.5 stars
Re-Animator - 3.5 stars

5 lowest-rated films

Urgency - 3 stars
Death Falls - 2.0 stars
Voodoo Moon - 2.0 stars
Cyclone - 2.0 stars
Horror In The Attic - 2.0 stars

Most frequent co-stars

Barbara Crampton - 4 times - show films
David Gale - 2 times - show films
Laia Gonzalez - 2 times - show films
Jonathan Fuller - 2 times - show films
Julianna McCarthy - 2 times - show films

Most frequent directors

Stuart Gordon - 5 times - show films
Brian Yuzna - 3 times - show films
Jeremy Kasten - 2 times - show films
Peter Jackson - 2 times - show films
Victor Garcia - 2 times - show films