9 Actors Who Were On Star Trek Before Becoming Famous
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Star Trek is one of, if not the, most popular science fiction franchises in the history of the genre. Ever since the 1960s, fans have been both intrigued and delighted by the show to the point where it is less a TV show and more of a way of life. Across the several decades that Star Trek has existed, many stars have stepped onto the deck of The Enterprise.
And we're not just talking about the show's iconic stars like Patrick Stewart or William Shatner. Many have walked through the halls of Federation star ships, including some of the most beloved A-listers of today. More impressive is the fact that many of these same stars were not even remotely famous yet when they appeared on the show. Here are some of the stars who lived long and prospered well after they had a role on Star Trek.
9 Kurtwood Smith
Smith became somewhat famous in the1980s thanks to his role as the villain in Robocop, but it was not until the late 1990s and early 2000s that he became a household name thanks to That '70s Show. But before he was Red Forman, he was either a Klingon or a Federation officer in Star Trek films and episodes of The Next Generation. He played different characters each of the three times he appeared.
8 Kirstie Alley
Kirstie Alley became very famous when she replaced Shelly Long on the hit sitcom Cheers. From then on she enjoyed a healthy career in both film and television. Alley began acting in 1978 on television, but it was the world of Gene Roddenberry where she got her film debut. Alley played Saavik, a newly recruited Vulcan, in Star Trek II The Wrath of Khan, a movie that many Trekkies consider to be the best in the franchise.
7 Jonathan Banks
Banks will forever be known to modern audiences as Mike Ehrmantraut, the no-nonsense private detective of the Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul universe. But his career is far more extensive than that. Years before he had starred in the hit mafia drama Wiseguys, and he had been in several sitcoms and movies, including a bit role in the comedy classic Airplane. In the first season of Star Trek Deep Space Nine, and with very heavy alien makeup, Banks played the alien warlord Golin Shel-la.
6 Gabrielle Union
Union has a steady career thanks to her roles in Scary Movie, Bring It On, and a long list of voice acting and other roles ranging from action to comedy. But every actor has to start somewhere, and Union first cut her teeth as N’Garen, a Klingon in an episode of Deep Space Nine.
5 Sarah Silverman
Before she was the stand-up icon she is today, Silverman popped up in a plethora of TV shows and films. One of her earliest gigs was as a bit player in the sketch series Mr. Show which was hosted by Bob Odenkirk and David Cross before they became famous. She was also in films like Evolution with David Duchovny and others. In "Future's End" she played Rain, an astronomer in an episode of Star Trek Voyager.
4 Tom Hardy
Hardy played the villain in Star Trek Nemesis, the final film in the Next Generation series of movies. It is also considered one of the worst Star Trek movies ever made. Hardy is also on record admitting that he made the film during one of the lowest points of his life. He was suffering from crippling depression and he hated the film so much that he became highly addicted to alcohol and very dangerous drugs. Eventually, Hardy was able to sober up and his career thrived.
3 Adam Scott
There is something cutely ironic about Scott having played a minor character in Star Trek First Contact. His character Ben Wyatt on Parks and Recreation was the biggest nerd on the show and a notorious Trekkie. If Ben Wyatt were real and knew that he would get to be a member of the Star Trek canon, he'd probably have a heart attack of joy.
2 Seth MacFarlane
Seth MacFarlane in real life is a hard-core Star Trek fan. Episodes of Family Guy and American Dad abound with Trek references. He even went as far as to hire Sir Patrick Stewart as one of his show's regulars. Stewart also told a cute story about when MacFarlane was star-struck during a dinner Stewart had arranged with the Star Trek cast. Years before Family Guy was the institution that it was, MacFarlane played Rivers in the episode titled "Afflicted" on Star Trek Enterprise. MacFarlane also created his own sci-fi show, The Oroville.
1 Dwayne Johnson
Johnson's acting career was slow going at the beginning. Although he had risen to fame as The Rock in the WWF, many doubted that he had the acting chops needed to be taken seriously. Before he landed his breakthrough roles in The Mummy franchise and got to show off his range in films like Be Cool or the Fast and Furious movies, Johnson took small roles wherever he could. Among them was a role in Star Trek Voyager, where he played an alien gladiator in the episode "Tsunkatse." The epsiode marked Johnson's first legit acting credit outside the world of wrestling.
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