Born and raised in Houston, Brent moved to New York after college, where he did numerous Off-Broadway plays. He says, "The play that finally pushed me over into the serious-actor category was a public theater production of 'The Seagull' for Joseph Papp." Spiner eventually won roles in the Broadway musical productions of "Sunday in the Park with George," "The Three Musketeers" and "Big River," based on the story of Huckleberry Finn.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1984, Brent appeared in the Westwood Playhouse production of "Little Shop of Horrors." Among his other credits are the Woody Allen film "Stardust Memories," a cameo appearance in the movie "The Miss Firecracker Contest" and guest-starring roles in such television series as Cheers, Twilight Zone, Night Court and Hill Street Blues. Last year Brent was featured in the two blockbuster films "Phenomenon" and "Independence Day." Brent will be seen in the upcoming comedy film "Out to Sea" with Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon.
During the fourth season hiatus of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Brent co-produced and released his first album. Entitled "Ol' Yellow Eyes is Back," the album features some of the most popular classic standards ever recorded, including one single, "It's A Sin To Tell A Lie," which has background vocals provided by the "The Sunspots," more familiar to Star Trek: The Next Generation fans as Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton, and Michael Dorn, from the Starship Enterprise.