Summary
- Claustrophobic Nana Visitor disliked being encased in the rock prop from "Heart of Stone," describing it as a "hot fudge sundae."
- The Star Trek: DS9 cast and crew also shared frustrations with the prop, calling it "horrible."
- Despite the prop issues, "Heart of Stone" remains a significant episode for Kira and Odo's relationship and provides key character moments for Nog and Sisko.
Major Kira actress Nana Visitor hated one particular prop she worked with on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, humorously describing it as a "hot fudge sundae". Throughout her time on DS9, Nana Visitor wasn't afraid to speak her mind when it came to how the character of Kira was handled. Nana Visitor nixed a Kira and Gul Dukat love story, and also had her reservations about the eventual love story between her character and Constable Odo (Rene Auberjonois). Star Trek: DS9 season 3, episode 14, "Heart of Stone" represented a crucial moment in Kira and Odo's love story, but the occasion was marred by an unwieldy prop.
In "Heart of Stone", Nana Visitor's Kira appears to get trapped inside an expanding alien rock formation while she and Odo search for a Maquis terrorist. The rock prop itself was hated by the Star Trek: DS9 cast and crew, and members of the team voiced their frustrations in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion. Showrunner Ira Steven Behr called it "horrible", while Visual Effects Supervisor Glenn Neufeld observed that "pretty much none" of the shooting of the prop "worked". On top of this, Nana Visitor had her own deep frustrations with the prop given that she was forced to spend so much time in it.
Why Nana Visitor Hated The Rock Prop In Star Trek: DS9's "Heart of Stone”
"...my head was the cherry on top"
Nana Visitor is claustrophobic, so the experience of being trapped in the alien rock formation during shooting "Heart of Stone" must have been grueling. In "Meridian", Visitor's claustrophobia meant that she had to have a body double when filming the holosuite scenes, as she was required to wear a restrictive foam mask upon which they'd map the image of Quark's head. Discussing her discomfort with the "Heart of Stone" prop in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion, Visitor said it "was an awful choice". Read more from Nana Visitor below:
" It didn't look like I'd imagined it when I read the script. I thought it was going to be like my body turning to stone. Instead I looked like a big old hot fudge sundae, and my head was the cherry on top. "
When watching "Heart of Stone", it's hard to disagree with Nana Visitor that the prop is poorly realized. It's bulky, it looks artificial, and the choice to give it a glittering pink color scheme detracts any seriousness from the situation. The final reveal that Kira, and the rock formation, are being impersonated by Salome Jens' Female Changeling could provide an in-universe explanation for why it looks fake. However, this likely wasn't the original intention of the production designers that created Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's unconvincing rock prop.
“Heart of Stone” Is One Of DS9 Season 3’s Best Episodes - Despite The Rock
"you humanoids have a hard time giving up the things you love"
Despite the levels of hatred for the rock prop from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's cast and crew, it doesn't detract from what is one of season 3's best episodes. "Heart of Stone" is anchored by Ira Steven Behr & Robert Hewitt Wolfe's emotionally nuanced script, and the incredible performances by Nana Visitor and Rene Auberjonois. Both actors have great chemistry together and Kira and Odo's back-and-forth is so engaging that you almost forget that the rock is there.
"Heart of Stone" was designed as a bottle episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine to absorb the costs of the epic two-parter, "Past Tense".
The embarrassing rock prop also fades from significance when you take into account how important "Heart of Stone" is to the trajectory of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Not only is it the first time that Odo vocalizes his feelings for Kira, it's the second indication that the Changelings are acquiring intelligence on key figures in the Alpha Quadrant. "Heart of Stone" is also the episode that starts Nog (Aron Eisenberg) on his journey to Starfleet Academy. With these big character moments, and incredible performances by Visitor and Auberjonois, the finished version of "Heart of Stone" eclipses its big dumb rock.
