Ben Cross Harry Bernard Cross , better known as Ben Cross , is the English actor who portrayed in J . J . Abrams ' . A picture of him is used for card # 86 " Ambassador Sarek " of the virtual collectible card battle game " " . Hailing from London and a graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in Bloomsbury , Cross made his feature film debut the 1977 war drama " A Bridge Too Far " . While performing in a stage production of " Chicago " , Cross was discovered and cast in " Chariots of Fire " , co - starring actress Alice Krige and " " and guest star Dennis Christopher . The film became an international hit and launched Cross to stardom . Afterward , Cross starred in the 1981 PBS mini - series " The Flame Trees of Thika " ( with W . Morgan Sheppard ) , the 1983 BBC mini - series " The Citadel " , and the 1984 HBO mini - series " The Far Pavilions " . For his work in the latter project , Cross was nominated for a CableACE Award . He also continued starring in films , including 1985 ' s " The Assisi Underground " and 1988 ' s " Paperhouse " . He received a second CableACE nomination for the 1988 telefilm " Steal the Sky " , co - starring Mark Rolston . In 1989 , he appeared with John Glover and Bruce Greenwood in the TV movie " Pursuit " ( also known as " Twist of Fate " ) . In the film , Cross and Greenwood actually portray the same character – that of an SS officer both before and after plastic surgery . In the second half of the film , Greenwood then portrays the SS officer ' s son . In 1990 , Cross starred as the vampire Barnabas Collins in the short - lived revival of the cult horror series " Dark Shadows " collaborating with Stefan Gierasch and Jean Simmons . He was nominated for a Soap Opera Digest Award for his performance on this series . Throughout the rest of the 1990s , he starred in such films as " Live Wire " ( 1992 , with Tony Plana ) , " The Criminal Mind " ( 1993 , co - starring Joseph Ruskin ) , " Temptress " ( 1994 , with Corbin Bernsen and Chris Sarandon ) , " First Knight " ( 1995 , opposite Sean Connery ) , " Turbulance " ( 1997 , with Catherine Hicks and James MacDonald ) , and " The Venice Project " ( 1999 , co - starring Dean Stockwell ) . Cross also starred as Captain Nemo in the 1997 TV version of " 20 , 000 Leagues Under the Sea " and played the title role in the 1997 biblical TV movie " Solomon " . He was honored with a third CableACE nomination for a guest appearance on " Poltergeist : The Legacy " , one of his rare forays into episodic television . He drew acclaim for his complex performance in the BBC mini - series " Nuremberg : Nazis on Trial " ( 2006 ) in which he played Rudolf Hess , Hitler ' s former deputy . More recently , Cross has co - starred with " Deep Space Nine " s Alexander Siddig in the 2006 TV movie " Hannibal " , with Siddig playing the title role and Cross playing his enemy , Fabius Maximus . He also played King Hrothgar to TNG star Marina Sirtis ' Queen Wealhtheow in the 2007 Sci - Fi Channel movie " Grendel " . Most recently , he starred with " Enterprise " s Dominic Keating in the direct - to - DVD sequel " Species : The Awakening " . In addition , he has starred in such films as the 2001 Jean - Claude Van Damme action / adventure " The Order " ( with Brian Thompson ) , the 2004 prequel " Exorcist : The Beginning " , and the 2006 sequels " Behind Enemy Lines II : Axis of Evil " ( with Bruce McGill and Glenn Morshower ) and " Undisputed II : Last Man Standing " .