Character Spotlight #12-Barrett (Revised Version)

Meet Barrett

Barrett, whose full name is Amundsen Barrett, began his career as a physicist in the service of the United Colonies. Brilliant and inquisitive, he quickly distinguished himself in the fields of science and engineering. Yet, despite the prestige of working within the UC, Barrett found the rigid structures of government service at odds with his restless curiosity. For him, discovery was not meant to be confined to laboratories or bound by bureaucracy—it was meant to be lived among the stars.

In 2305, he left the United Colonies behind and joined Constellation, seeking the freedom to pursue knowledge without restraint. Within the organization, Barrett’s talents as both a scientist and engineer proved invaluable. He became one of Constellation’s most reliable innovators, often finding creative solutions where others saw dead ends. His optimistic spirit and disarming sense of humor made him not only a respected colleague but also one of the most approachable members of the group.

The shadow of personal loss follows him still: twenty years ago, his husband Ervin Madani died, leaving Barrett with questions that remain unanswered. The pursuit of truth, and perhaps justice, has shaped his path ever since.

Among his peers in Constellation, Barrett is known for his brilliance and versatility. He wields knowledge of starship engineering, particle beam weapons, and robotics with the ease of a seasoned explorer, turning challenges into opportunities. Yet it is his restless curiosity and boundless enthusiasm for discovery that leave a lasting impression on all who travel with him. Barrett is best utilized as a ship systems specialist. His combination of Astrodynamics and Engineering makes him invaluable for explorers who want longer grav jumps and efficient ship management. He’s not as strong a combat companion as someone like Sarah Morgan or Sam Coe, but his scientific skills more than make up for it when outfitting a crew for exploration.

Meet Barry Wiggins

Barry Wiggins is an American actor and voice performer whose career stretches back more than four decades across television, film, stage, commercials, and video games. Originally from Washington, D.C., Wiggins began his professional acting career onstage before moving to Los Angeles in 1980. He earned his Screen Actors Guild card shortly afterward and steadily built a career as a character actor, frequently appearing as police officers, military personnel, officials, reporters, and other authority figures. His own professional profile describes him as a veteran actor with roughly forty years of experience and dozens of screen, stage, commercial, and voice-over credits. More recently, he became especially familiar to gamers as the voice of Barrett, the charismatic scientist, engineer, explorer, and Constellation member in Bethesda Game Studios’ Starfield.

On television, Wiggins has accumulated a long list of guest and recurring appearances. One of his best-known recurring roles was Inspector Al Deluca in The Division, appearing in five episodes in 2001. He also appeared in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as a Jem’Hadar officer in the 1997 episode “By Inferno’s Light,” and in Star Trek: Voyager as Officer Sims during the two-part “Future’s End” storyline. Other television appearances over the years have included JAG, where he played an Air Boss; The X-Files; Friends; The Practice; Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman; Beverly Hills, 90210; Melrose Place; The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air; The O.C.; Arrested Development; My Name Is Earl; Rizzoli & Isles; and the animated series Goldie & Bear. His more recent television work includes voicing Grandpa Gene Maxwell in RoboGobo. His career is therefore less defined by one long-running starring role than by decades of dependable character work across a very wide range of television genres.

Wiggins has also appeared in a number of films. One of his most recognizable movie credits is Ron Howard’s 1999 comedy EDtv, in which he appeared as a sports anchor. His film résumé also includes projects such as Conflict of Interest, Other People, Driving While Black, and the short film Her First Black Guy. Much of his film career, like his television work, has consisted of supporting and character roles rather than leading parts, but those appearances contributed to the breadth of a résumé that has remained active over several decades.

Before Starfield, he contributed additional voices to Mafia III (2016). MobyGames presently lists those two principal game credits, with Starfield identifying him specifically as Barrett and Mafia III crediting him for additional voice work.

Taken as a whole, Barry Wiggins’ career is a good example of a veteran character actor whose face and voice have quietly appeared across American entertainment for decades before one particularly substantial role introduced him to a much larger gaming audience.

With Starfield, Wiggins received a role that allowed him to do far more than a single guest appearance: Barrett is an important companion with extensive dialogue, personal quests, humor, emotional material, and a major presence throughout the Starfarer’s journey. That performance has made Wiggins closely associated with one of Starfield’s most distinctive and well-liked Constellation characters.