Robert Duncan McNeill stars as Ensign Tom Paris, a man descended from a proud family of Starfleet legends, in STAR TREK: VOYAGER from Paramount Network Television. When the pressures of living up to his family name resulted in tragedy, Paris enlisted with the renegade Maquis, only to be captured and imprisoned by Starfleet. Given a second chance by Captain Janeway, Paris is determined to prove his worth as the Voyager crew strives to return home. As McNeill puts it, “Tom is a man who has made mistakes, but hasn’t allowed these mistakes to ruin his life. He’s got another chance, and is going to do everything in his power to earn back respect and gain admiration. He is the classic action hero.”
McNeill made his directorial debut on STAR TREK: VOYAGER with episode #143, entitled “Sacred Ground.” Since then he has directed the introduction of the Borg in episode #159, “Unity,” and the comedic episode #216, “Someone to Watch Over Me.” Along with directing for Nickelodeon, he continues to develop television and film projects including “Monster,” a UPN movie of the week. His short film, “The Battery” which he recently produced and directed, has been very popular at numerous film festivals around the country. Born in North Carolina and raised throughout the East Coast, McNeill’s family finally settled in Atlanta, Georgia.
After high school, he decided to move to New York City to become an actor, and after appearing in a number of successful stage performances, was invited to join Juilliard, where he spent two years studying the craft.
While attending Juilliard, he was cast as Charlie Brent on the popular ABC daytime drama “All My Children.” From 1985 through 1988, McNeill became a favorite in the world of daytime soaps, and his efforts earned him a Daytime Emmy nomination. During this time, he also produced and starred in the off-Broadway play “The 4-H Club” and starred in the science fiction feature film “Masters of the Universe,” alongside Dolph Lundgren, Courteney Cox and Frank Langella.
After leaving “All My Children,” McNeill landed a starring role in Stephen Sondheim’s hit Broadway musical “Into the Woods.” While Los Angeles was to become his home, his career continued to take him back to the Big Apple. He returned to New York to appear in many plays on and off-Broadway as well as many television roles. While in New York, he and his wife, Carol, founded Real Play Productions, an organization to provide inner-city school children with creative ways of dealing with the daily crises and issues they face.
McNeill’s favorite performance was in Lincoln Center’s critically-acclaimed production of “Six Degrees of Separation.” In this drama, which also starred Stockard Channing, he played Rick, a kid from Utah whose suicide provides the turning point for the entire play.
McNeill soon moved back to Los Angeles and appeared in numerous television series including, “L.A. Law,” “Quantum Leap” and “Murder, She Wrote.” After a guest starring role on “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” he landed a starring role in the ABC series “Going To Extremes.” His credits also include recurring roles on ABC’s “Homefront,” and on CBS’s “Second Chances” with Connie Sellecca. McNeill also appeared as Romeo in “Romeo and Juliet” at the Ford Theater, where he earned a Drama-Logue Award as Best Actor.
McNeill and his family currently reside in Los Angeles.
