Star Trek: Deep Space Nine actor Rene Auberjonois dies at 79

Star Trek actor Rene Auberjonois passed away Sunday in his Los Angeles home. He was 79.

Auberjonois' son Remy-Luc confirmed to the Associated Press the cause of death to be metastatic lung cancer.

Born June 1, 1940, Auberjonois had a prolific career on both stage and screen. After starring on Broadway with the likes of Katharine Hepburn, he landed his first movie role in the 1970 smash hit M*A*S*H, playing Father Mulcahy. In 1976 he co-starred with Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange in King Kong. In what would be foreshadowing of things to come, Auberjonois would have a role in 1991's Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country.

An accomplished voice actor, Auberjonois took on the role of Chef Louis in Disney's The Little Mermaid. His other voice credits include Azmuth on Ben 10: Omniverse and Ebony Maw on Marvel's Avengers Assemble.

He was no stranger to the television landscape. In the 1980s he played Clayton Runnymede Endicott III opposite Robert Guillaume in Benson and played Paul Lewiston on Boston Legal during the 2000s.

Sci-fi fans will remember him most from his role as Odo on the 1993-1998 series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Serving as the station's security officer, the Changeling used his abilities to both keep DS9 safe and assist the Federation during the Dominion War.

He is and will be missed by his many fans and colleagues, some of whom took to Twitter, offering their condolences.