Before Picard season 3, let's take stock which actors have appeared in the most shows....
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00Whether you're doing sci-fi or horror, comedy or tragedy, casting is a vital part of any
00:05work of film or television.
00:08Star Trek is no different.
00:09Across nearly 56 years of televisual history, countless hundreds, maybe even thousands of
00:14actors have crossed the bridges of the various titular ships, and rubbed shoulders with some
00:19of the most recognisable faces in all of sci-fi.
00:22Finding somebody to sit through the often arduous process of make-up, particularly Ferengi
00:27as many of this list have experienced, before delivering monologues of Technobabble and
00:32unpronounceable Klingon is going to be a tall order for any actor.
00:36It's no surprise then that the makers of all things Trek will occasionally have a flick
00:40through the pages of their phonebooks to find the names of Star Trek stalwarts who have
00:45reliably given great performances for years, and in some cases, decades.
00:50These then are the names of those that cast and directors can always rely on in times
00:54of need.
00:55Whether main cast, recurring characters or explosive cameos, the actors on this list
01:00have returned to the bridge time and time again, and their names truly are a part of
01:05Trek history.
01:06So with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with Trek Culture, and here are 10 Star Trek actors
01:10who have appeared in the most shows.
01:13Before we begin, just to let you know, we will not be including the recent announcement
01:17that the Next Generation cast will be returning to season 3 of Picard, because technically
01:22it hasn't happened yet.
01:24Or maybe this article was written a while ago.
01:2610.
01:27Tim Russ
01:28Many actors have appeared in at least three incarnations of Trek, but none have the honour
01:32of sharing the screen with four separate series captains.
01:36For that honour, we must go to Tim Russ.
01:39Audiences' first encounter with Russ would be in the Next Generation episode, Starship
01:43Mine, as a member of a group of mercenaries attempting to steal Trilithium resin from
01:48the Enterprise-D during a baryon sweep.
01:51So coming to a well-placed Vulcan nerve-pinch by Picard, this would be a one-and-done deal
01:55for the character.
01:56In a weird display of typecasting, Russ would pop up again in Deep Space Nine under heavy
02:02Klingon makeup as somewhat of a rongan.
02:04Employed by the Tril'Varad, Klingon mercenary Takkar arrives on the station to help his
02:09employer forcibly extract the Dax Symbiont from Jadzia as part of a tense hostage situation
02:14with Captain Sisko.
02:16Russ would share the screen with Captain Kirk in the movie Generations, but his most iconic
02:20role would be that of Voyager's resident Vulcan and Hursute security officer Tuvok.
02:25A loyal confidant of Captain Janeway, Tuvok's would be the first Vulcan presence on board
02:30a ship since Spock, and his frequent frustrations with the emotions of his illogical crewmates
02:36– looking at you, Neelix – would give the writers plenty to play with.
02:409.
02:41Randy Oglesby
02:42Whilst many actors have appeared on multiple shows, there are only a handful who have portrayed
02:47as many different characters as Randy Oglesby.
02:51Originally appearing in The Next Generation as an unnamed artist in the chorus of Ramatizian
02:56mediator Reva, whose genetic deafness forced him to communicate to others through his telepathic
03:01retinue, Oglesby would catch up on the name-character front by portraying twins Arkel and Rokel
03:07in Deep Space Nine.
03:08The actor would memorably return to Deep Space Nine as the menacing Silurin Prynne, a Cardassian
03:13who murders members of Kira's Shakar resistance cell, who were responsible for his disfiguring
03:18during an attack before attempting to steal Kira's unborn baby.
03:22Oglesby would return in a couple of one-and-done deals as refugee Kira in Voyager and space
03:27scavenger Tranal in Enterprise, before sinking his teeth into the recurring role of Zindi
03:32scientist Degra in Enterprise.
03:35Responsible for the superweapon that first brought the Zindi to Earth's attention,
03:38Degra and his people are manipulated by the time-travelling Sphere Builders into trying
03:43to wipe out humanity.
03:44It is only by the intervention of Archer and the Enterprise that Degra could convince his
03:48species of this existential threat, and at the expense of his own life, prevent all-out
03:53intergalactic war.
03:548.
03:55J.G.
03:56Hertzler
03:57The gravel-voiced John Garman Hertzler is one of only five actors to play seven or more
04:02roles in Trek.
04:04Originally appearing in the Deep Space Nine premiere Emissary, Hertzler portrayed the
04:08Vulcan captain of the USS Saratoga, one of many ships which would fall at the hands of
04:13the Borg at Wolf 359, a loss which would also cause the death of then-Commander Sisko's
04:19wife Jennifer.
04:20It would be later in Deep Space Nine that Hertzler would shine as the Klingon General
04:24Martok and his changeling Doppelganger.
04:26The latter of these connected, but separate roles would put into motion the Klingon invasion
04:31of Cardassia, before the former is rescued and plays a pivotal role in the all-out Dominion
04:36War, later ascending to the role of Chancellor.
04:39He would also appear as the changeling Lars, who comes into direct conflict with Martok
04:44after murdering a Klingon on the promenade.
04:47Hertzler returns as a Hirogen fighter in Voyager, before again donning the Klingon make-up as
04:51both an unnamed captain and the jaded advocate Kolos, whose time defending Archer against
04:57the bloodthirsty High Council inspires him to stand up for the Klingon's forgotten
05:01sense of honour.
05:02Finally, lending his voice to a Druchmani scavenger in Lower Decks, Hertzler has joined
05:07the coveted Seven Role Club, and rightly takes his place in Trek history.
05:117.
05:12Clint Howard
05:13Actors have appeared in more roles and across more series than Clint Howard, but none can
05:18claim to have played roles at such different times of their lives.
05:22The brother of acclaimed film director Ron Howard first appeared in Trek as far back
05:27as 1966 in the episode The Corbomite Maneuver, at only seven years of age.
05:33Following an accidental foray in First Federation space, the Enterprise finds themselves in
05:37a diplomatic deadlock with a remarkably fake-looking alien, which later transpires to be a front
05:42for the diminutive BALOC testing the human's ethics.
05:4629 years later, Howard would return to Trek in the Deep Space Nine two-parter Past Tense,
05:52playing a paranoid dim by the name of Grady, who steals Jadzia's comm badge believing
05:57her to be a brain-sucking alien.
05:59Fast forward another seven years, and Howard would reappear as Muke, one of three Ferengi
06:04who board the Enterprise after knocking the crew unconscious in order to loot their resources.
06:09Sixteen years later, Howard would make his last Trek appearance in the Discovery Season
06:141 finale, as an Orion of Qo'Nos who drugs Ensign Tilly.
06:18With a Star Trek CV now spanning 51 years, it's fair to say nobody's coming for this
06:23record any time soon.
06:256.
06:26Jeffrey Combs
06:27One of Star Trek's most reliable recurring actors, to the point where it's basically
06:31a meme within the community, Jeffrey Combs appears in relatively few series, but he makes
06:37a huge impact in those that he does.
06:39After losing out on the role of William Riker to Jonathan Frakes, the successful auditionee
06:44kept Combs in mind when casting Quark's associate Tyron in a Deep Space Nine episode
06:49that he directed.
06:50Combs clearly made quite an impression, as he would go on to play the recurring characters
06:54of slimy Ferengi Brunt and the various clones of Dominion representative Weyoun.
06:59Combs would play the characters in 31 separate Deep Space Nine episodes, including pulling
07:05double duty as Weyoun and Brunt in the episode The Dogs of War.
07:09Following the end of Deep Space Nine, Combs would return to the franchise as the kidnapper
07:13Penk in Voyager and Ferengi Krem in Enterprise, before bagging another recurring character
07:19as Jonathan Archer's frenemy and kind of racist Andorian commander, Vilec Shran.
07:25After a long time absent from the franchise, Combs has recently lent his voice to the supercomputer
07:30Agimus in Lower Decks.
07:32Although other actors may have appeared in more shows, with 44 appearances across the
07:37franchise, Combs will always be a favourite.
07:405.
07:41Vaughn Armstrong
07:4212 characters, 8 species, 4 series, and 28 episodes.
07:48Few people can be considered as much of a Star Trek mainstay as Vaughn Armstrong.
07:52Armstrong first appears in the Next Generation episode Hearts of Glory as the Klingon Captain
07:57Korus, who is attempting to fulfil his destiny as a warrior by stealing a freighter before
08:02coming into conflict with both the Klingons and the Enterprise.
08:05He would then don the Cardassian Neck Ridges twice on Deep Space Nine as the terrorist
08:10hunting Gul'danar and, ironically, the key Cardassian resistance member Sesgal.
08:15Most of Armstrong's key roles would be with the crew of Voyager, including a Vidian Captain,
08:20a Hirogen Hunter, a former Borg from Seven of Nine's Unimatrix, a Romulan scientist
08:24from the past who contacts the crew through a temporal displacement, and Korath, the Klingon
08:29who gives Admiral Janeway technology allowing her to travel to the past and return Voyager
08:34home.
08:35It wouldn't be until Enterprise's debut in 2001 that Armstrong would get a recurring
08:39role within the franchise as Admiral Forrest, head of the NX Project who worked closely
08:44with the Vulcans in the gestation and oversight of the Enterprise's first mission, as well
08:49as an unnamed Klingon and two stints as the fussy Cretassans.
08:53Take it as a given, you've seen Vaughn Armstrong.
08:564.
08:57Marina Sirtis
08:58For Deanna Troi, what started as a slightly fluffy role serving as the Enterprise D's
09:03eye candy would go on to be one of the most enduring and well-loved characters of the
09:08whole franchise.
09:09It's no understatement that this is down to the talents and tenacity of actress Marina
09:13Sirtis.
09:14Originally auditioning for the role of Lieutenant Hernandez, who would later be renamed Tasha
09:19Yar, Sirtis and Yar actress Denise Crosby swapped roles at the behest of Roddenberry.
09:24The rest, of course, is history, and the idea of the two actresses in each other's roles
09:28after all this time is just baffling.
09:30After her run on The Next Generation, Sirtis would reprise the role of Deanna for the four
09:34movies as well as appearing in Voyager as part of the Pathfinder project to contact
09:39the stranded Starfleet vessel and alongside Jonathan Frakes in the disastrously misjudged
09:44Enterprise series finale.
09:46After some time off from the franchise, Sirtis would lend her voice to the character for
09:50the season one finale of Lower Decks, serving as a commander on board the USS Titan.
09:56Returning to live action in Star Trek The Card, Sirtis gave one of Troi's best performances
10:00in season one's Nepenthe.
10:023.
10:03John Delancey Of the recurring actors who have never made
10:07it to the opening credits, few have become as outstandingly memorable as John Delancey
10:12in his time as the mischievous Q.
10:14Debuting in The Next Generation's opening encounter at Farpoint, Delancey chewed all
10:19the scenery that was afforded to him as the omnipotent arbiter of humanity's place in
10:24the cosmos.
10:25Ultimately deciding to allow Starfleet out further into space as a trial for their species,
10:30Q would return multiple times over the series' run, turning from antagonist to arrogant and
10:35playful anti-hero.
10:36After getting punched in the face by Commander Sisko at a time when Deep Space Nine was still
10:40languishing in The Next Generation's shadow, Q would move to the Delta Quadrant and begin
10:45tormenting Catherine Janeway, giving Delancey a chance to spice up his performance with
10:50some lethargy.
10:51Delancey later lent his voice to Lower Decks, poking fun at this godlike being's obsession
10:55with banal human games, before a much more serious and nefarious Q appears in Picard's
11:01mirror during the Captain's eponymous series, continuing the trial he started all those
11:05decades ago.
11:072.
11:08Jonathan Frakes
11:09If in doubt, add some Riker.
11:11So goes the seemingly unwritten motto of the Star Trek canon, as since his debut in 1987,
11:17Jonathan Frakes has played the bearded commander in six separate series and four films, making
11:22him one of the most reliable appearances in Trek history.
11:26Originally chosen from a deluge of potential candidates, Frakes' youthful energy in The
11:31Next Generation created an immensely watchable dynamic alongside his more stern captain,
11:36and with the growing of the iconic beard in Season 2, a true icon was born.
11:41Frakes would reprise the role of Thomas Riker, a transporter accident-created clone in the
11:46Deep Space Nine episode Defiant, as well as appearing as O.G.
11:49Riker in Voyager as part of the trial of the rogue Q-Quinn.
11:53When it was time for Enterprise to call it a day, the writers decided to completely torpedo
11:58the franchise and draft Frakes in again, turning the series finale into a holodeck simulation
12:03that not even the actor can bring himself to justify.
12:05Frakes' dulcet tones would appear in three-episode arc as Captain of the USS Titan in Lower Decks,
12:11before coming to the rescue of Picard in the latter's own series, proving that the actor,
12:16the character, and the beard can still be relied upon to this day.
12:201.
12:21Majel Barrett Roddenberry
12:22The First Lady of Star Trek and wife to series creator Gene Roddenberry, it's no wonder
12:27that one of Trek's most beloved voices would top this list.
12:31First appearing as Number One in the original Star Trek pilot, The Cage, Barrett would unfortunately
12:35not make it to the full series in this role due to studios disliking the idea of a female
12:40second-in-command, but would return as recurring character Christine Chappell aboard the Enterprise
12:45Bridge, a role she would resume in the animated series alongside many other voices.
12:50Barrett would return in live-action Trek as the bombastic Lwaxana Troi, mother to Deanna
12:55Troi and effervescent nuisance to the crews of the Enterprise D and Deep Space Nine.
13:00Taking a particular romantic liking to both Jean-Luc Picard and Odo, Lwaxana's episodes
13:05were always marked with hilarious pageantry and occasional forays into some truly touching
13:10emotion.
13:11Although they may not realise, many people will know Barrett due to her time as the voice
13:14of the ship's computer across the original and animated series, The Next Generation,
13:19Deep Space Nine, Voyager, Enterprise and several movies.
13:23With footage from The Cage reappearing in Discovery episode If Memory Serves, even after
13:27her passing, Barrett continues to be a Star Trek institution.
13:31And that concludes our list.
13:33If you can think of any that we missed, then do let us know in the comments below.
13:36And while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe and tap that notification bell.
13:41We have reached our goal of 200,000 followers way ahead of schedule, so from all of us here
13:45at Trek Culture, thank you, thank you, thank you to all you wonderful subscribers.
13:50You can also find us over on Twitter and I can be found across various social medias
13:54just by searching Ellie Littlechild.
13:56I've been Ellie with Trek Culture, I hope you have a wonderful day and remember to boldly
14:01go where no one has gone before.