Rura Penthe inhabitants

List of personnel who inhabited the Rura Penthe penal colony, including prison personnel and their prisoners.

Named[]

22nd century

23rd century

Unnamed personnel []

Klingon commandant []

This commandant was a Klingon of short stature, who was in charge of the penal colony on Rura Penthe in 2293. He welcomed the new prisoners to the colony, including Captain James T. Kirk and Doctor Leonard McCoy, and demonstrated to them the consequences of failing to comply with the rules – death.

It was later revealed to Kirk and McCoy that the commandant was part of the Khitomer conspiracy and was ordered by General Chang to allow them to make an escape attempt so they would appear to have been killed while trying to escape. The commandant captured them escaping as planned, and was about to tell them who wanted them killed before executing them, when they were beamed aboard the USS Enterprise-A.

He later contacted Chang, notifying him of their escape, forcing Chang to proceed to Khitomer to intercept any unwelcome guests. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

The commandant was played by actor W. Morgan Sheppard. His costume was later sold off at the It's A Wrap! sale and auction. [1]^(X)

In the various instances of creating his designs, makeup artist Richard Snell often took it upon himself to establish a backstory for his creations, as he often found the actor fulfilling the role inquiring about why the character's look is a certain way. In this instance the backstory he created for the commandant's was "–you're basically no good anymore to [the Empire] as a true fighter, maybe as a strategist. Now you have this horrible disfiguring scar and even though it's debilitating, you're making it work for you. We're going to make it ooze a little and you're going to use it over your prisoners as a psychological tool because you're using your mind." Snell continues, "I went into a great deal of character development for all the characters I did. The commandant is a little Napoleon. He rules with an iron fist. But in Klingon life, small people don't usually get ahead. Klingons are a huge race, particularly the ones that were used on the ice planet. We used even bigger than normal Klingons; these were the baddest of the bad. These were the guards at the worst prison in the galaxy, holding onto prisoners that were alien and all sort of different capabilities. They were absolutely gigantic, yet their commandant was half their size. How did a man like that get to be in that kind of power and respect given their background? So in terms of makeup, we put a huge scar through his eye and blended off the prosthetic down below the eye. It's a dead eye oozing stuff, and it's just kind of creepy to look at. In my mind, this character knows it. He knows that's it's difficult to look at an eye that has seepage and he puts it right in your face as a psychological tool." (Charting the Undiscovered Country: The Making of Trek VI, p. 92-93)

The Star Trek Customizable Card Game gives his name as Koth. In the IDW comic Star Trek: Nero, Koth was already the commandant at Rura Penthe – and had lost his eye – when Nero was imprisoned there in 2233, and commanded the fleet of 47 ships destroyed by the Narada.

Klingon guards 1 []

These two Klingon guards were stationed at Rura Penthe in 2152, and were involved with the handling of the newly arrived prisoners: Kolos and Jonathan Archer.

The first guard used a painstik on Kolos and was promptly attacked by Archer in retaliation. After Archer was subdued, the guard threatened to have Archer spend the night on the surface where no one survives.

The second guard shocked Archer with a painstik after Archer had attacked the first guard. (ENT: "Judgment")

The first Klingon was played by Danny Kolker who was credited as "Klingon Guard". The second Klingon was played by uncredited stunt actor Michael Papajohn. [2]^(X)

Klingon guards 2 []

These Klingon guards were also stationed on Rura Penthe in 2152, when Jonathan Archer was imprisoned for crimes against the Klingon Empire. (ENT: "Judgment")

These unspecified guards were played by Joe Billingiere, Sean Dye, Juan Mabson, and John Reyes. According to the costumer's tags, Reyes was "Guard #11" and Dye was "Guard #14". [3]^(X) [4]^(X)

Klingon guard in mine []

Klingon mine guard rura penthe — A Klingon guard

This Klingon guard was posted in the mines at Rura Penthe in 2293, when Kirk, McCoy, and Martia escaped to the surface. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

He was played by Claude Nemeth. According to the costumer's tag, he was identified as "Guard #7". [5]^(X)

Klingon guards in mine []

These three Klingon guards were present in the mines of Rura Penthe in 2293. They were eating and drinking at a table while the prisoners were working. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

They were played by unknown performers. One may have been played by Andre Dukes, who was identified as an uncredited guard in the film.

Unnamed prisoners[]

Alien prisoners []

These aliens were prisoners at Rura Penthe in 2293, when James Kirk and Leonard McCoy were incarcerated there. Many, like Martia, wore furs to remain warm. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

The individuals present at the Klingon prison where, in Star Trek VI, Kirk and McCoy are detained were originally to have included some characters they had met previously, in Star Trek: The Original Series and the first five Star Trek films. (The Making of the Trek Films, p. 106)

Behemoth alien []

Alien behemoth prisoner — Behemoth alien

This humanoid was noticeably taller and stronger than most. He was incarcerated at Rura Penthe in 2293, and was an acquaintance of Martia. When Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy first arrived at the prison, the behemoth alien seized Kirk, picking him up above head-level and demanding both his "allegiance to the Brotherhood of Aliens" and his coat. Kirk was unable to understand him as his universal translator had been confiscated. The behemoth later backed off at Martia's insistence and Kirk was allowed to keep his outerwear. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

This behemoth alien was played by John Bloom.

Horned alien []

This humanoid with blue, scaly skin and horns of varying size protruding from his head was imprisoned by the Klingons at Rura Penthe.

In 2293, he started a fight with Captain Kirk, who was able to incapacitate the alien with a kick to both knees; Martia pointed out "not everyone keeps their genitals in the same place." As a gesture of truce, Kirk told Dr. McCoy to help the creature recover so there would not be any lingering hard feelings. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

This alien was played by an uncredited Dennis Ott. His scene was cut from the version of the film aired for television.

To create the distinguishing changes in his skin color, "Ed French employed fluorescent makeup so ultraviolet light could trigger changes in coloration. This required the assistance of technicians from the Wildfire company," who used the same technique originally used for the Tarchanne in TNG: "Identity Crisis". "Nicholas Meyer learned the possibilities of the effects and suggested they increase the intensity of the ultraviolet light to communicate pain." It was also indicated that this was "an alien bully who has lost more fights than he's won" [...] as "was indicated by having the creature's horns look squashed." (Trek: The Unauthorized Story of the Movies, p. 176)

A portion of the costume, on which the costumer's tag read "Knee Jerk Alien", was sold off at the It's A Wrap! sale and auction. [6]^(X)

Humanoid on surface []

Frozen prisoner on Rura Penthe — A frozen prisoner

This humanoid prisoner was brought to the surface of Rura Penthe to demonstrate that no one could survive there. He was barely clothed, and had frozen within minutes.

The commandant told the arriving prisoners, including James T. Kirk and Leonard McCoy, that they should work well so they would be treated well, and if they worked badly they would suffer the same fate. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

This prisoner was portrayed by actor Douglas Engalla.

This prisoner had no distinctive alien features; he was, however, referred to as a "Screaming Klingon convict," according to the film's script.

Humanoids in mines []

These two individuals were imprisoned in Rura Penthe in 2293. They volunteered for work in the mines, along with Kirk, McCoy, and Martia. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

Klingon prisoner in mine []

Klingon Rura Penthe Prisoner 1 — A Klingon prisoner

This Klingon was a prisoner on Rura Penthe in 2152. He was present in a mine when Jonathan Archer and his advocate Kolos were brought into the prison. (ENT: "Judgment")

This Klingon was played by regular extra Dieter Hornemann who received no on-screen credit.

Klingons in common area []

These two Klingon prisoners were imprisoned on Rura Penthe, when Kirk and McCoy were also imprisoned there, in 2293.

One was an older male who wore ragged clothes, and the second was very tall in stature. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

Klingons in mines []

These two Klingon prisoners were imprisoned in Rura Penthe in 2293. They volunteered for work in the mines, along with Kirk, McCoy, and Martia. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

Klingon on surface []

Klingon prisoner frozen — A frozen Klingon prisoner

This prisoner froze to death on the surface of Rura Penthe, when he was brought to the surface as punishment in 2293. His corpse was seen by Kirk, McCoy and Martia when they escaped the prison camp. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

The frozen Klingon was a dummy made to resemble makeup artist Edward French. French attached a Klingon headpiece to his own head and made a cast of himself with a tortured expression on his face as the foundation of the prisoner's appearance. (Cinefex 49, February 1992, p. 44)

Background information []

Klingon guards []

In deleted scenes from Star Trek, the Klingons captured the Narada after the USS Kelvin crashed into it, and imprisoned Nero for the next twenty-five years. These Klingon guards wore helmets and thick coats, which costume designer Michael Kaplan respectively modeled on a horseshoe crab and elephant and rhino skin. (Star Trek - The Art of the Film, p. 42)

J.J. Abrams said the masks allowed them to avoid selecting Klingons that did or did not have the augment virus. According to him and the producers on the audio commentary for the deleted scenes, the Klingons come up to Nero in large numbers and throw him a chain to cuff himself because they're actually scared of him.

Around twenty Klingons were guarding the area the slaves were working. Most of them were armed with rifles and pistols and all of them were wearing helmets and coats. A group of six interrogated FourSquare and then thew some handcuffs to Nero to bring him to his interrogation. Two Klingon guards then escorted Nero through the tunnels of the plant and three were present when the interrogator questioned Nero. Nero later overwhelmed two Klingon guards when they brought him back into his cell. The Klingons in the deleted scenes were played by background performers including Terryl Daluz, Brandon Stacy, Scott Trimble, James D. Weston II, Cole Fritch, and Henry Jenkins and stunt actors T.J. Storm and Troy Brenna. For the wide shot in which the production used child actors, John Alan Bartlebaugh portrayed one of the Klingon guards.

Klingon interrogator []

The Klingon interrogator led the interrogation of Nero after he was brought in by the guards. He presented Nero his writings and drawings and told him he believes Nero is from the future. He also used a Centaurian slug on him. The interrogator was played by actor Victor Garber.

Prisoners []

The deleted scene also included many extras, including creatures that were homages to the Gorn and the M-113 creature. Among the prisoners were background performers Adam Absinthe, Mark Casimir Dyniewicz, Michael Lovern, Sarah Abrams Char, and Michael John Feig. Tad Atkinson portrayed an Amphibian prisoner while Paul A. Brown portrayed the "O Alien". [7] [8] There were also at least three more Romulan prisoners.

FourSquare []

In a deleted scene, an alien named "4-Square" – who was named because he had four eyes – had kept papers of Nero's plans in his cell and was interrogated by the Klingon guards after they found them in his cell. This alien was played by actor Tommy Germanovich and his make-up was created by Barney Burman and his company Proteus Make-up FX Team. It was given the name Quocch (β) in the Nero, Number Two comic book.