Star Trek: Deep Space Nine ran for seven seasons in syndication from 1993-1999. The first spinoff of Star Trek: The Next Generation, DS9 broke Star Trek's established mold centering on the voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Deep Space Nine was set aboard the eponymous space station led by Commander (later Captain) Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), the first Black lead of a Star Trek series. As a hub and destination point, DS9 was populated by a menagerie of humans and aliens, friendly and hostile, some permanent residents, others just passing through. There has not been a Star Trek show or cast quite like Deep Space Nine since, and there likely won't be again.
Why Star Trek Can Never Duplicate Deep Space Nine’s Massive Cast
Everybody Came To Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's huge cast is unparalleled. All seven seasons of DS9 boasted nearly a dozen series regulars, from Avery Brooks' Captain Sisko, to Rene Auberjonois' Constable Odo, to Armin Shimerman's Quark, to Cirroc Lofton's Jake Sisko. But what set Deep Space Nine apart was its sprawling supporting cast, a host of recurring characters who grew remarkably popular, and were so well-defined that they could even carry entire episodes on their own without DS9's main cast.
Deep Space Nine counted another two dozen supporting characters, from the holographic crooner Vic Fontaine (James Darren), to the sinister Female Changeling (Salome Jens), to the cunning Kai Winn Adami (Louise Fletcher), to a gaggle of Ferengi regulars like Rom (Max Grodenchik), Nog (Aron Eisenberg), and even Liquidator Brunt (Jeffrey Combs). Meanwhile, the Ferengi characters were so plentiful, they were their focus of their own DS9 episode aptly titled, "The Magnificent Ferengi."
Jeffery Combs played multiple versions of his cloned Vorta sycophant, Weyoun.
No new Star Trek show can equal Deep Space Nine's cast because of the series' unique space station setting, which invites new faces to visit and recur as their characters grow in popularity. More so, DS9 was made in a different TV era that had 26 episodes a season. This gave Deep Space Nine ample time to develop and spotlight its myriad characters in ways that today's serialized streaming series, which only consist of 8 to 10 episodes a season, simply cannot match.
Which Deep Space Nine Actors Returned To Star Trek
Star Trek: Lower Decks Has Hosted Several DS9 Comebacks
When Star Trek: Deep Space Nine ended in 1999, its cast didn't jump to feature films like Star Trek: The Next Generation. Nor has DS9 enjoyed a full reunion like Star Trek: The Next Generation's cast received in Star Trek: Picard season 3. However, some of DS9's familiar faces have made comebacks thanks to Star Trek: Lower Decks, which has been the sole Star Trek on Paramount+ series to bring back Deep Space Nine's beloved characters and actors.
Nana Visitor's Colonel Kira Nerys, Armin Shimerman's Quark, Max Grodenchik's Grand Nagus Rom, and Chase Masterson's First Minister Leeta returned in Star Trek: Lower Decks seasons 3 and 4, and J.G. Hertzler voiced a game version of Klingon Chancellor Martok. Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5's penultimate episode introduced alternate reality versions of Alexander Siddig's Dr. Julian Bashir, Andrew Robinson's Elim Garak, and Curzon Dax, voiced by Fred Tatasciore. While a full cast reunion in live-action is, unfortunately, an unlikely prospect, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine remains popular with generations of audiences.
