W . Morgan Sheppard William Morgan Sheppard , sometimes credited as W . Morgan Sheppard , is a British actor who played four characters throughout the " Star Trek " franchise . He most recently played the head minister of the Vulcan Science Council in ' s . He did not receive screen credit for his work on the latter . A picture of him was used for card # 74 , Vulcan Minister Orsak , of the virtual collectible card battle game " " . While doing Additional Dialogue Recording for " Star Trek " , he told the film ' s director and producer J . J . Abrams – not realizing who he was speaking to – that the director was a " slave driver . " He apologized after Abrams revealed himself to be the director . ( " Star Trek " DVD commentary ) Outside of " Star Trek " , Sheppard is perhaps best known for his role as Blank Reg on the television series " Max Headroom " , which starred fellow guest actor Matt Frewer in the title role . He is also known for his portrayal of Confederate General in the films " Gettysburg " ( for which he also provided , in his normal English accent , the opening narration describing the prelude to the battle ) and " Gods and Generals " , both of which co - starred Billy Campbell , Joseph Fuqua , Kevin Conway , and Andrew Prine . Personal life . Born in London , England , and educated in Ireland , Sheppard graduated from London ' s Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 1958 . He then spent twelve years as Associate Artist with the Royal Shakespeare Company . He is the father of fellow guest actor Mark A . Sheppard , born in . Career . 1960s – 1980s . In 1965 , Sheppard began appearing in the original , Tony Award - winning Broadway production of " The Persecution and Assassination of Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade " , which ran for 145 performances from December 1965 through April 1966 . Sheppard also appeared in the 1967 British film adaptation of the play . In 1974 , Sheppard appeared with future TNG co - star Patrick Stewart in a Royal Shakespeare Company production of " Antony and Cleopatra " . The production was video - taped and aired on US television in January 1975 . Sheppard and Stewart worked together again on the films " The Doctor and the Devils " ( 1985 ) and " Lady Jane " ( 1986 ) before reuniting for the TNG episode . Throughout the 1970s and 1980s , he appeared on numerous British ( and later American ) television programs , mini - series and movies . Some of his credits during this time include " The Professionals " , " The Duellists " ( 1977 , starring Keith Carradine ) , " Hawk the Slayer " ( 1980 ) , " The Sea Wolves " ( 1980 ) , " The Elephant Man " ( 1980 ) , " The Keep " ( 1983 ) , " Max Headroom - 20 minutes into the future " ( 1984 , co - starring Matt Frewer ) , " Lassiter " ( 1984 , co - starring Ed Lauter ) , " Cry Freedom " ( 1987 , featuring Nick Tate ) , and " Lucky Stiff " ( 1988 , co - starring Larry Cedar , Jeff Kober , Leigh J . McCloskey , and Bill Quinn ) . He also starred in the 1988 cult favorite , " Elvira , Mistress of the Dark " . 1990s – present . In the early 1990s , Sheppard had supporting roles in films such as ' s " Wild at Heart " ( 1990 ) , the 1992 comedy " There Goes the Neighborhood " ( with DS9 guest stars Ron Taylor , Jonathan Banks , Harris Yulin , and Lee Arenberg ) , and the 1993 horror film " Needful Things " ( also featuring " Star Trek VI " co - star Robert Easton ) . His more recent film credits include the acclaimed 2006 period thriller " The Prestige " ( which also featured Daniel Davis ) and the 2007 blockbuster " Transformers " ( written by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci ) . In the latter film , Sheppard portrayed Captain Archibald Witwicky , the explorer who stumbled upon Megatron and grandfather of the film ' s central character , Sam Witwicky working with franchise leads Robert Foxworth , Glenn Morshower and Frank Welker as well as Andy Milder , Michael Shamus Wiles and Jamison Yang . In addition to his " Star Trek " appearances , Sheppard portrayed two roles on the sci - fi series " Babylon 5 " and was a runner - up for the role of Ambassador G ' Kar on the show , though the role eventually went to Andreas Katsulas . In addition , he had a recurring role as the holographic AI program known as " The Professor " on the series " seaQuest DSV " , alongside Richard Herd . Additionally , Sheppard was one of several " Star Trek " actors who voiced characters on the animated series " Gargoyles " . He voiced several characters on this show , including the father of Jonathan Frakes ' character , David Xanatos . Sheppard has also guest - starred on such popular TV shows as " MacGyver " , " Murder , She Wrote " , and " Frasier " ( starring Kelsey Grammer ) . He also appeared in the final episode of " Quantum Leap " , the hit science - fiction series which starred Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell . This episode featured Bruce McGill , Richard Herd , Stephen McHattie , Susan Diol , and Dan Butler , as well . Recent TV credits have included guest spots on " Charmed " ( with Richard Lynch ) , " Gilmore Girls " ( with Gregg Henry ) , and " Criminal Minds " ( with Jennifer Hetrick ) . In addition , he appeared in an episode of " Alias " , the popular spy series created by J . J . Abrams , the director and producer of 2009 ' s " Star Trek " . In 2009 , Sheppard played war criminal Marcin Jerek also known as Mr . Pain on " NCIS " in " Broken Bird " . Jerek was seen as a rival of Dr . Donald " Ducky " Mallard . In scenes depicting Jerek ' s past , Sheppard ' s son Mark was hired to play his father ' s character as a younger man . Sheppard also had a supporting role as Bishop Francois Malveaux in the 1996 computer game Zork Nemesis along with " Deep Space Nine " guest star Stephen Macht . In 2011 , Sheppard appeared in " Doctor Who " , alongside his son who played a younger version of the same character . This places W . Morgan Sheppard and Mark Sheppard among the small number of actors who have appeared in both the " Star Trek " and " Doctor Who " franchises .