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It's been over 20 years since DS9 wrapped: what have the cast been up to since?
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00:00Deep Space Nine was the show that enjoyed one of the largest supporting casts out of all of the
00:04Trek series to date. Aside from the core characters, there were regulars in Quark's bar,
00:09looking at you, Morn, and those Starfleet officers who dropped in from time to time.
00:13Add to this the mighty Dominion, the Klingon Empire, and all sorts, and without a chance,
00:18sometimes it's a little difficult to keep all of these characters in check.
00:21One of the major positives are the directions that the actors' careers can take during the show,
00:25and also afterwards. Whilst many have remained on television, some of the cast of Star Trek DS9
00:30have moved into entirely new directions. Some are teaching, some are writing, and others,
00:35well, they've run for office. I'm Marcus Bronzy, this is Trek Culture, and this is the cast of Deep Space Nine,
00:41where are they now?
00:43Number 19. Admiral Ross, Barry Jenner. Admiral William Ross was an addition to the series in the sixth
00:49season, taking Sisko on as his right-hand man. Barry Jenner appeared in several more episodes up to the
00:55seventh season finale, and he passed away in 2016. He was a popular addition to the convention circuit,
01:00and attended as often as possible. He also made appearances in Knotts Landing, Dallas, Somerset,
01:06and Another World. He was an avid fan of both tennis and golf, playing in many tournaments to raise
01:11money for charity. Unfortunately, he died in 2016 from acute myeloid leukemia. He was 75.
01:17Number 18. Legate Damar. Casey Biggs. Legate Damar first appeared in a tiny guest spot back in
01:23Deep Space Nine's fourth season, as an unnamed aide to Golda Cat. This was a very small spot,
01:29which eventually evolved to Damar running the Cardassian Union, and finally instigating the
01:34insurrection against the Dominion, giving his life for the fight in the process. Not bad for a walk on
01:40pie. Since Deep Space Nine, he's appeared in ER, The Good Wife, Elementary, Person of Interest,
01:45and Unbelievable, a show which features many of his former co-stars along with other Trek alumni.
01:51Number 17. Rom. Max Groddenchik. First appearing in The Next Generation as Sovak in Captain's Holiday
01:58and Parlenor in The Perfect Mate, Max Groddenchik, like his on-screen brother Armin Shimmerman,
02:04has played several different characters in Star Trek. He is, of course, most well-known for playing the
02:09lovable buffoon Rom, Quark's brother in Deep Space Nine. Originally written as Ferengi Pit Boss in
02:15Emissary, his character grew immeasurably over the seasons until he was finally made the Grand Nagus
02:21in the series' penultimate episode. He has also made guest appearances in ER, like much of Hollywood
02:27during the show's run, Crossing Jordan, Six Feet Under. He's also an accomplished singer writing and
02:33performing Rom's song, which he often knocks out at conventions. The song, of course, laments his wishes
02:38to take over Quark's bar and have Odo finally leave the station. Cute. Like many of his co-stars,
02:43he's appeared in What We Left Behind, wherein he also sings, this time with Jeffrey Coombs,
02:48Casey Biggs and Armin Shimmerman. Number 16. Cassidy Yates. Penny Johnson. Cassidy Yates was
02:54introduced in the show's third season and was quickly established as a love interest for Ben Sisko.
02:59After a slightly rocky first year where she was, well, sent to prison for helping the marquee,
03:04she returned in the show's fifth season where she and Ben picked things up from where they left off.
03:09Penny Johnson wasn't originally a Star Trek fan, so when she told her other half that she got the
03:13job, he was over the moon because he was the big Trekkie in their relationship. Since the show ended,
03:18she is probably best known for her role in Seth MacFarlane's The Orville, where she plays Dr.
03:23Claire Finn. The show is very obviously a loving tribute to Star Trek, the original series,
03:28and of course, the Next Generation eras. Before this, she appeared in a starring role on Castle,
03:32where she shared several episodes with both Michael Dorn and Robert Picardo. She has also
03:37appeared with Michael Dorn back in The Next Generation in the seventh season episode Homeward.
03:42Cassidy Yates was recently teased in the first season of Star Trek's Picard, where her shipping
03:47company has an office in Boston. A precursor to an appearance, maybe? Well, hopefully.
03:52Number 15. Weyun slash Brunt. Jeffrey Coombs. Jeffrey Coombs is an actor with a vast body of work to
03:58his name. Before he joined the cast of Deep Space Nine in the dual role of Weyun and Brunt,
04:03he was most famous for portraying Dr. Herbert West in the films Re-Animator and Bride of Re-Animator.
04:09He has a special love for these films and appeared in the direct-to-DVD third film
04:13Beyond Re-Animator in 2003. He also gave his voice to the role of the redesigned Scarecrow in the
04:19animated series of Batman, picked primarily for the deep sense of dread he could instill with his voice.
04:25He appeared in both Star Trek Voyager and Star Trek Enterprise as well, as several other roles.
04:30He has appeared in many horror films, including a large amount based on Lovecraft's literature,
04:34starting back in the 80s but continuing on up until quite recently. In 2018,
04:39he played Lovecraft himself in Howard Lovecraft and the Kingdom of Madness.
04:43He can also be seen in Unbelievable alongside many other great Star Trek actors.
04:49Number 14. Gull Ducott. Mark Alaimo.
04:52Mark Alaimo is most recognisable to most Star Trek fans as Gull Ducott,
04:57the evil leader of the Cardassian Union and then later the Parr Wraith Acolyte.
05:02His slow manner of speaking hooked audiences from the beginning,
05:06though Ducott was not his first role on Trek.
05:08In the years since Deep Space Nine has finished, Alaimo has stayed away from the spotlight somewhat.
05:13He has continued to work on stage using his role as Gull Ducott as an inspiration for much of his work
05:19since then. Alaimo has the distinction of being probably the most developed villain in all of
05:24Star Trek, as Ducott appeared in 33 separate episodes, where his story went from shady Cardassian
05:30soldier to the harbinger of doom in the show's finale. Be that as it may, Ducott remains a firm
05:36fan favourite character. Number 13. Garrick. Andrew Robinson.
05:41Garrick remains one of the most interesting recurring characters on any of the Star Trek series,
05:46thanks in large to the wonderful performance by Andrew Robinson himself. Introduced early in the
05:51series, he appeared in many episodes throughout the show's run. He originally auditioned for Odo,
05:56but secured Garrick instead. He kept a character bible throughout the series, using it to frame and
06:01then fully compose the novel, a stitch in time once the show was finished. The novel chronicles not
06:06just the aftermath of the Dominion War, but expands on Garrick's early life as well. He and Alexander
06:11Siddig collaborated on a stage play entitled The Dream Box, which they often performed together at
06:17conventions. He was recently interviewed for the behind the scenes look at the making of the 80s
06:22horror film Hellraiser, wherein he played the father of the original lead character. Prior to Deep Space Nine,
06:27he would have been widely recognised as the Scorpio Killer from 1971's Dirty Harry. He was one of the
06:32first backers of What We Left Behind and provides a narration thread throughout, using his instantly
06:37recognisable voice to both chill and intrigue. Number 12. General Martok. JG Herzler. Herzler actually
06:44appeared as far back as the pilot emissary, as the Vulcan captain of the USS Saratoga. He would of course
06:50become best known for his role as General Martok, with two of his many appearances being as a changeling
06:56imposter. Herzler has a long and distinguished career on stage and screen. He has a vast Shakespearean
07:01credit, something he feels adds to his ability to play a Klingon. After Deep Space Nine wrapped,
07:06he appeared on the series Charmed and Roswell, the latter of which had an episode written by Ronald D.
07:11Moore. However, it is in the political arena that Herzler has been busy for the last few years. In 2013,
07:17he was elected as a Democrat of the Board to Ulysses, New York, close to a town called Romulus.
07:23In 2016, he and James Cromwell were arrested for civil disobedience, protesting the green lighting
07:29of underground gas storage in Seneca Lake over public opposition. In 2017, he announced his
07:34candidacy for the US Senate, planning to run in 2018, advancing to the primary but withdrawing
07:40his candidacy a little later. Number 11. Nog. Aaron Eisenberg. Forever known to Star Trek fans as Nog,
07:47Quark's nephew, best friend of Jake Sisko and ensign aboard Deep Space Nine and the USS Defiant Aaron
07:52Eisenberg sadly passed away in September 2019. He had suffered ill health for many years,
07:58beginning with a kidney transplant in his teens that stunted his growth and eventually a second
08:02kidney transplant in 2015. He had two sons and a loving wife whom he married in 2018. He was a
08:08professional photographer with his own gallery. He appeared on other shows like The Secret World of
08:13Alex Mack in the 90s and was also a theatre director up to the time of his death. He played Nog for all
08:18seven seasons of Deep Space Nine. Of the role, he had this to say,
08:22I'll always carry love for the show with me, wherever I go. So when you ask me what I've left
08:27behind, I can't think I've left anything behind because it's still here with me every day. A
08:32consummate professional, a devoted father and friend, he was a co-host with Sirach Lofton on the
08:37podcast The 7th Rule, keeping their friendship going in the years after the show wrapped. Taken far too
08:42young by heart failure at the age of 50, he sorely missed. 10. Colonel Kira, Nana Visitor
08:49Nana Visitor had one of the hardest roles to play in Star Trek. As a major and later a Colonel Kira,
08:55she was tasked with making an admitted terrorist a sympathetic character, something she not only
08:59achieved but did so in such a way that it cemented her character as one of the best across all entries
09:04in the franchise. Since the show wrapped, she is kept very busy in terms of work. She went from space
09:10to dancing, appearing in Las Vegas and Washington as Roxy Hart in Chicago before joining the Broadway
09:16version. She appeared in Dark Angel, Frasier, CSI and in Wildfire in which she had the starring role
09:22for four seasons. She then went on to appear in Battlestar Galactica for one episode of its fourth
09:27season where she plays a woman dying from cancer who strongly believes in the message of God, tying
09:31back to her days as the devout Kira. She appeared in the BBC sci-fi series Torchwood, Miracle Day for two
09:37episodes and then in Castle with former co-star Penny Johnson. Like many other Trek actors, she
09:43has done voice work in Family Guy, appearing in 12 episodes to date. She's also appeared in the
09:47remake of Friday the 13th. She's a frequent guest at Star Trek conventions and it's safe to say that
09:52she's kept busy since the show wrapped. Number 9, Julian Bashir, Alexander Siddiq. Introduced to the
09:57show in Emissary, the cocky young recruit Julian Bashir would rise through the show to become one of the
10:03most beloved characters in the series. Siddiq was only 25 when he landed the role of Dr. Bashir
10:08after being passed over for the role of Commander Sisko. That was a great idea guys. During the show's
10:13run, he fell in love with and had a child with co-star Nana Visitor, with whom he married and
10:18subsequently divorced, although they remain on good terms. His later credits include Spooks, Family Guy,
10:2324, Game of Thrones, Peaky Blinders and Gotham. He has appeared in many films since the show finished as
10:29well. He appeared in Reign of Fire, Kingdom of Heaven, Doomsday with his uncle Malcolm McDowell
10:34and Siriana, to name a few. He has also been one of the few actors to both work in Star Trek and
10:40Doctor Who, so it's safe to say that he's been busy. Number 8, Quark, Armin Shimmerman. Armin Shimmerman
10:46has enjoyed a very long association with Star Trek. He made his first appearance on screen all the way
10:52back in the next generation's first season. He appeared as the face of L'Oxana Troi's jewellery box in
10:57Haven and then appeared in the flesh, so to speak, in The Last Outpost, portraying one of the first
11:02Ferengi ever seen in Star Trek. While that episode was mixed in terms of reception, his turn as Quark
11:08undeniably was one of the highlights of Deep Space Nine. Through him, the Ferengi were given a greater
11:13depth and breadth, evolving from something of a joke to a well-rounded species. He also appeared as
11:19the horrible Principal Snyder on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. There were few fans who didn't have a smug
11:24smile when that giant snake chomped down on him. Since then, he's appeared in Nip Tuck,
11:29an ER, and has lent his voice to video games including 2007's Bioshock and Mass Effect.
11:34He's married to actress Kitty Swink, who guest starred in Deep Space Nine as well.
11:39Bonus fact, he was actually present on set as Quark when the Paramount lot was hit by an
11:43earthquake in 1994. He quickly rushed home to check on his family, forgetting that he was in full
11:48makeup and in his own words, scared the sh** out of several onlookers.
11:52Number 7, Jake Sisko, Siroc Lofton. Siroc Lofton was the youngest lead actor in the Star Trek series
11:59when he was cast as Jake all the way back in 1992. It was just a few weeks after his 14th birthday at
12:05the time, but it wasn't his first appearance on TV. He'd already appeared in several other productions.
12:09Throughout the run of the show, Lofton grew very close to his on-screen father, Avery Brooks,
12:13a relationship that he has recently revealed has survived to this day. Both Brooks and Lofton
12:18cite that this relationship was one of their favorite takeaways from their time on the show.
12:22Lofton is currently the host of the podcast, The 7th Rule, which he previously hosted with Nia. On
12:27the show, they developed a firm friendship that lasted up until, unfortunately, had their Trek
12:31overtones dulled due to the lawsuit on fan productions. He now resides in California and has one daughter.
12:38Number 6, Miles O'Brien, Colomini. The long-suffering chief of operations on Deep Space Nine,
12:43or to others, the most important man on Starfleet, Miles O'Brien was a role that Colomini landed back
12:49in The Next Generation, appearing in the pilot Encounter at Farpoint. He is one of the few guest
12:54stars to appear in both of the pilots and final episodes for The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine.
12:59Meany was perhaps best known to audiences for his roles in the Barrytown trilogy outside of Star Trek,
13:04but he has also appeared in a vast array of both Irish, UK and American productions. He appeared in Die
13:09Hard 2, Into the West and The War of the Buttons. After the show, he went on to appear in The
13:13Simpsons and Stargate Atlantis. He had a starring role in AMC's Hell on Wheels from 2011 to 2016,
13:20as well as a role in the adaption of Childhood's End.
13:24Number 5, Esri Dax, Nicole DeBoer. Nicole DeBoer joined Deep Space Nine in the role of Esri Dax and
13:29appeared in all episodes of the seventh and final season. She was actually given quite a few episodes
13:34revolving entirely around her character, which gave her a short amount of time but the opportunity
13:38to really establish herself on the show. Esri was a very different character from Jadzia,
13:43something that fans were quick to point out even though Star Trek painfully goes through the effort
13:47to explain why symbiotes are different when they are in different bodies. Um, do you not know how
13:51Trill work? Opinion has softened a bit in the intervening years. The introduction of her
13:56character allowed writers to better resolve the Dax Worf storyline, which by necessity was cut
14:00brutally short. I'll explain why that happened in just a minute. She eventually ended up in a
14:04relationship with Julian, which sort of brings his arc with Dax in a full circle.
14:09Following the end of the show's run, DeBoer then took a starring role in The Dead Zone,
14:13based on the Stephen King novel of the same name. She appeared in Stargate Atlantis,
14:17which also starred Robert Picardo, although their characters were never seen on screen at the same
14:22time. DeBoer was also a part of What We Left Behind, expressing her fond memories of her relatively
14:27short time on the show. She currently has a recurring role on the Canadian series Private Eyes,
14:31and she has one daughter named Summer. Number four, Jadzia Dax, Terry Farrell.
14:36Terry Farrell of course played Jadzia Dax for Deep Space Nine's first six series,
14:40being memorably killed off in the sixth season finale, Tears of the Prophets. She also remains
14:44one of the few main actors to be killed on screen and not have her character come back in some form
14:49or another. The reason for this was due to behind the scenes strife. Farrell's contract had ended and
14:53she wanted to renegotiate a contract where she had less episode appearances. This had the unfortunate
14:59effect of angering producers to the point where they decided they would give her all the time off
15:02she wants, by killing Jadzia Dax. Though this relationship has since been mended, it had not
15:07been fixed in time for the series finale, What You Leave Behind, which features no tribute to Jadzia
15:12in the closing minutes. Since then, Farrell went on to star in shows like Becca, where she remained
15:16for four seasons. At various conventions, she has expressed her regret at how the situation ended
15:21between her and, in particular, Rick Berman, who she cites as the main reason Dax was killed off.
15:26Officially, though, it stated she did not give her permission to use her likeness for the show's
15:30finale. She's in fact stated that she was never approached about it. In 2018, she married Adam
15:35Nimoy, yep, Leonard's son, and had a son named Max from a previous marriage. She's appeared in
15:40Renegades and continues to tour the convention circuits.
15:433. Worf
15:45Michael Dorn
15:46Like Colin Meany, Michael Dorn was an alumni of The Next Generation, where he played Worf for seven
15:52seasons. Once that show finished and generations had been released in theaters, the producers
15:56decided to bring Worf over onto Deep Space Nine, making him the first Trek actor to play a leading
16:01role on two of the different spin-offs. He remained with the show until completion in 1999. Following
16:07Star Trek, he appeared as a pilot in the biography film of Ali. Dawn is actually an experienced pilot
16:12in real life and owns several jets. He appeared in the Disney movies The Santa Clause 2 and 3,
16:17playing the Sandman. He's continued to work on television and film, occasionally with his Star Trek
16:22castmates. He was also one of many Star Trek actors who provided their voice on the Disney
16:26animated series Gargoyles, wherein he played the role of Cold Stone and Taurus. He has appeared in
16:31many video games and joined the rest of The Next Generation castmates in the Family Guy episode,
16:36Not All Dogs Go To Heaven. Word on the street is that Dawn has pitched a Worf spin-off series,
16:41but nothing has come of that yet, and he was allegedly offered a role in Star Trek Discovery,
16:45but apparently was offered so little money he had to turn it down. He's gone on the record to say how much
16:50he hated the makeup required for the role of Worf, but still. When this article was first written,
16:54we did say that we hoped that he would be making a cameo appearance in the new season of Picard.
16:59I better buy myself a lottery ticket because it's happening.
17:022. Odo
17:04René Obagenois
17:05Obagenois starred as Odo for the entirety of Deep Space Nine's run, but appeared in Star Trek before as
17:11Colonel West in Star Trek Undiscovered Country. He would later appear in a guest role on Enterprise.
17:17Sadly, he passed away from lung cancer in 2019, but not before leaving a significant body of work
17:23behind. Prior to his work in Star Trek, he appeared in Benson from 1980 to 1986 and appeared in several
17:29theatre productions, earning him a Tony Award along the way. Following Star Trek, he went on to star in
17:34Boston Legal, which also featured William Shatner and his longtime friend Armin Shimmerman.
17:39Obagenois was an accomplished voice actor as well. Perhaps his best-known voice role was Disney's
17:44The Little Mermaid, where he played Louis the Chef, a role he reprised in the animated television series
17:50that followed. Speaking of animated series, he also lent his voice to Batman the animated series,
17:55and he's one of the few actors to appear both in the animated Batman series and the live-action
17:59films. He appeared in Stargate SG-1, took part in the comedy roast of William Shatner along with
18:04appearing in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. He directed several episodes of Deep Space Nine and
18:09took part in several of the video games. More recently, a lovely tribute to Odo is made in an
18:14episode of Prodigy. It's the episode titled Kobayashi and it uses existing dialogue from DS9.
18:19It's fair to say that the face of Odo and Obagenois will be remembered forever.
18:241. Captain Sisko Avery Brooks
18:27Avery Brooks is an actor of course, but also an activist and a highly talented musician. He was
18:32already a well-known actor before taking on the role of Commander Sisko. He was the first African-American
18:37lead actor in any of the Star Trek series and throughout his time on the show, was involved
18:41in several of the franchise's most well-known takes on civil rights. He actually directs the
18:46episode Far Beyond the Stars, in which he stars as a science fiction writer, Benny Russell. Whilst
18:51there are currently no plans for Brooks to return to the franchise, I mean, who wouldn't love a Star
18:55Trek Sisko series? His work on Deep Space Nine serves among the most inspirational acting across the
19:01franchise. The fact that he juggled all seven seasons, whilst retaining a professorship at a
19:05university, occasionally conducting lectures in costume, is no mean feat. One of the best
19:10actors that the franchise brought on board, Brooks is truly a credit to Star Trek.
19:14So there you have it, I've been Marcus Bronzy and this is Trek Culture and that was
19:18the cast of Deep Space Nine, Where Are They Now? Please don't forget to give us a like and a
19:23subscribe. You can also follow Trek Culture on Twitter. I too, I'm on Instagram, Twitter and
19:27TikTok at Marcus Bronzy, M-A-R-C-U-S-B-R-O-N-Z-Y or twitch.tv slash Marcus Bronzy weekdays at 9am GMT.
19:35Until next time, see you around. Bless.
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