Alice Krige
A South African actress whose serene, otherworldly presence has made her the definitive Borg Queen and a haunting figure in genre cinema.
Born 1954 (age 72)·South African actress·Birthday: June 28·Baby Boomers
Biography
Alice Krige possesses a luminous, ethereal quality that has defined her long career, often casting her as figures of unsettling grace. Trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, she made a stunning film debut in the Oscar-winning 'Chariots of Fire'. While she has shown range in period pieces and on the Shakespearean stage, it is in science fiction and horror where she has left an indelible mark. Her performance as the chilling yet strangely tragic Borg Queen in 'Star Trek: First Contact' created one of the franchise's most memorable antagonists, a role she has revisited multiple times. From the ghostly Alma Mobley in 'Ghost Story' to the mythic Sybil in 'Sleepwalkers', Krige specializes in characters who are simultaneously beautiful, intelligent, and deeply dangerous, bringing a hypnotic depth to genre fare that often elevates the material.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Alice was born in 1954, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Alice Was Born
The biggest hits of 1954
#1 Movie
White Christmas
Best Picture
On the Waterfront
#1 TV Show
I Love Lucy
Alice's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1954Born
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1959Started school
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1967Became a teenager
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1970Could drive
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1972Could vote
Watergate break-in; last Apollo Moon mission
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $19,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" — Roberta FlackBest Picture: The Godfather
1975Turned 21
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1984Turned 30
Apple Macintosh introduced
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $59,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"When Doves Cry" — PrinceBest Picture: Amadeus
1994Turned 40
Nelson Mandela elected president of South Africa
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $90,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"The Sign" — Ace of BaseBest Picture: Forrest Gump
2004Turned 50
Indian Ocean tsunami kills over 230,000
Gas: $1.88/galHome: $157,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Yeah!" — UsherBest Picture: Million Dollar Baby
2014Turned 60
Russia annexes Crimea; Ebola outbreak in West Africa
Gas: $3.37/galHome: $160,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Happy" — Pharrell WilliamsBest Picture: Birdman
2024Turned 70
AI reshapes industries; Paris Olympics
Gas: $3.31/galHome: $372,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Espresso" — Sabrina CarpenterBest Picture: Anora
2026Age 72 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Won a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Newcomer in a Play for her performance in 'Arms and the Man' in the West End.
- Originated the role of the Borg Queen in 'Star Trek: First Contact', a character she reprised in subsequent film and series.
- Made her acclaimed film debut as singer Sybil Gordon in the Best Picture winner 'Chariots of Fire'.
- Played a starring role in the Stephen King adaptation 'Sleepwalkers' as the mysterious mother Mary Brady.
- Portrayed the goddess Hera in the 1997 television miniseries 'The Odyssey'.
Did You Know?
She was born in Upington, South Africa, and her first language is Afrikaans.
She is a trained ballet dancer but had to stop due to a back injury, which led her to pursue acting.
She played three different characters in the 'Star Trek' universe: the Borg Queen, a human scientist in 'Voyager', and a hologram in 'Picard'.
She is married to fellow actor Paul Schoolman.
“The Borg Queen is not evil; she offers a kind of perfection.”
