Which Cast Got Along the Best? And Worst?

[Shanndee]

I think it also comes down to just how much people actually worked together. Anything I have read about the DS9 cast suggests that the set was a very professional, work oriented atmosphere.

However, Armin Shimerman mentioned (at a convention) that since rehearsal time was limited he used to have all of the cast who worked in makeup over to his house for extra rehearsal so they could work out the kinks of how to best act through the makeup.

In my experience that comes across in the Q&A panels I have seen...the actors who worked in makeup all seemed to have little in-jokes and seemed very friendly with each other.

[137th Gebirg]

ZapBrannigan wrote:

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My recollection from an interview somewhere was that Beltran seemed to resent how the writers gave Picardo so many good storylines and things to do.

If I got this right, Beltran was told that "the Doctor" was getting good material because Picardo would come up with ideas himself and pitch them all the time. And Beltran complained about it, essentially saying "that's not my job" and you should be coming up with better things for me to do.

I found it ironic that when they finally had Chakotay carry an episode, it was that terrible boxer illusion/fantasy/metaphor story which for me was by far the worst show of the series. They gave him an episode, but it was a boring and murky story that no one could have carried off-- except possibly Jeri Ryan, who would have shined in the topless scenes.

Re: Beltran, I remember this being the case as well. Both Beltran and Wang seemed to be the most vocal detractors of their experiences with the show, always wanting more dialog and episode directing opportunities, seeing that some of the others were getting it.

Yeah, DS9 was an odd duck. I do remember Dorn's comment about it being a more "grim" set, but I wonder if that was more of a function of the subject matter of the show (always being promoted as the "darker" Trek) or one of the actors.

I do recall Brooks being the most aloof of the group, however, IIRC, he was also said to have frequently advocated for the other actors to get bigger roles in the show where it made sense to the plot. That, to me, speaks volumes of the man's professionalism and proof that he wasn't about stroking his own ego, despite his top-billing status.

TNG and Enterprise seemed to have the most camaraderie that I could tell, with everyone pretty much having fun with the gig in general.

And yes, top marks for TOS being the most fraught with cliquey behavior and petty squabbles. The "big three" may have gotten along well with each other, but the venom from the second- and third-tier folks, whether perceived or real, coupled with the almost persistent threat of imminent cancellation, definitely puts it at its own level above the rest when it came to disharmony on the set.

[Anwar]

137th Gebirg wrote:

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Re: Beltran, I remember this being the case as well. Both Beltran and Wang seemed to be the most vocal detractors of their experiences with the show, always wanting more dialog and episode directing opportunities, seeing that some of the others were getting it.

That had more to do with neither of them ever taking their work professionally or putting much effort in. Wang wasn't willing to take the directing courses that all the other Trek Actors-turned-Directors did, IIRC.

[137th Gebirg]

Yep - sounds like a pretty simple case of wanting the title and accolades without actually putting in the hours to earn it.

[The Wormhole]

1001001 wrote:

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Michael Dorn said that, compared to the TNG set, DS9 was "grim". I don't think that was about the cast not getting along necessarily, but other factors.

I remember a quote from Michael Dorn where he was asked to compare the working environment on the two shows and he said being on TNG was like going to a party every day while being on DS9 was like spending a day at the office. Which I interepret as meaning TNG was the more fun show to be on, but he had no complaints about DS9.

[Jonas Grumby]

137th Gebirg wrote:

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The "big three" may have gotten along well with each other, but the venom from the second- and third-tier folks...

Fortunately, if the venom was all coming from the second- and third-tier folks, it was usually only a problem for maybe one or two days a week, and possibly all but invisible to the Big Three.

[LobsterAfternoon]

Has Colm Meany ever commented on the difference between the two sets?

[137th Gebirg]

Hmmm...y'know, come to think of it, I can't remember ANY interviews with Meany. Ever. I don't know if he ever went on the record on any subject.

[Jeyl]

137th Gebirg wrote:

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Hmmm...y'know, come to think of it, I can't remember ANY interviews with Meany. Ever. I don't know if he ever went on the record on any subject.

Jump to 8:22 in this video. Not much, but it's something.

[JirinPanthosa]

To be fair to Beltran and Wang, the writers did give them nothing.

A character with a gimmick is easy to write for. Any one of us could come up with a dozen hologram stories off the top of our heads. Chakotay has no gimmick. He has one element of 'non-white-male-human'-ness, he was Native American. The writers know nothing about Native Americans, but they're like, all spiritual, right? Ok, look up a few spiritual Native American stuff and make episodes around it. Episodes that have nothing to do with his gimmick? Oh, way too hard, that would mean they have to be creative.

O'Brien had no gimmick either (Unless you count being married) and he got Whispers, Hard Time, Visionary, and The Assignment.

[Mojochi]

ZapBrannigan wrote:

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My recollection from an interview somewhere was that Beltran seemed to resent how the writers gave Picardo so many good storylines and things to do.

If I got this right, Beltran was told that "the Doctor" was getting good material because Picardo would come up with ideas himself and pitch them all the time. And Beltran complained about it, essentially saying "that's not my job" and you should be coming up with better things for me to do.

Sour grapes. A tv show is a dynamic thing, & ultimately, you get out of it what you put into it, especially when it's kind of a soap opera format set to sci-fi

McNeill's Tom Paris had no more a gimmick than Beltran or Wang, & what HE got was a relationship, which is what O'Brien got too

& usually those go to the characters that are most likable. Had Beltran & Wang done more to present themselves as being more interesting, then they'd maybe have been more likable or at least more engaging

Then you get better stuff to play. It's a two way street. You can't blame it all on the writers. Most of the time they're just writing for the people up on the screen, & the people up on the screen are in the hands of the actor

They just strike me as uninspired actors, who had no investment in their characters, or they'd have found a way to make something more of them

[ZapBrannigan]

Mojochi wrote:

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Sour grapes. A tv show is a dynamic thing, & ultimately, you get out of it what you put into it, especially when it's kind of a soap opera format set to sci-fi

McNeill's Tom Paris had no more a gimmick than Beltran or Wang, & what HE got was a relationship, which is what O'Brien got too

& usually those go to the characters that are most likable. Had Beltran & Wang done more to present themselves as being more interesting, then they'd maybe have been more likable or at least more engaging

Then you get better stuff to play. It's a two way street. You can't blame it all on the writers. Most of the time they're just writing for the people up on the screen, & the people up on the screen are in the hands of the actor

They just strike me as uninspired actors, who had no investment in their characters, or they'd have found a way to make something more of them

Yeah, but to be fair, Robert Picardo was an energetic genius. He had extra talents (especially his singing), and his own creative ideas were not just plentiful but good.

Whenever Picardo was paired with VOYAGER's other true star, Jeri Ryan (who also sang, and elevated the show far beyond the face-and-figure value she was hired for), the series reached its greatest heights. Seven and the Doctor were sensational together.

By contrast, nothing in seven years rang as fake and hollow, as tacked on, as the Seven/Chakotay relationship. It made me feel disappointed in Seven, that she would simplistically do what workaday women do: choose the tall, broad-shouldered corporeal guy instead of the talented, witty hololgraphic one. She let us down.

[Mareika]

Anwar wrote:

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That had more to do with neither of them ever taking their work professionally or putting much effort in. Wang wasn't willing to take the directing courses that all the other Trek Actors-turned-Directors did, IIRC.

From what I`ve seen and heard (check the vids from conventions last year- Vegas and Peterborough) , the Voyagercast seamed to be like a great family (Roxanne said so).
Look at this Picardointerview
http://www.startrek.com/article/robe...retaker-part-2

You and the Voyager boys usually have a dinner once or twice a year. Didn’t last year’s get-together actually occur on January 16?

Picardo: Yes, it did. We have our dinner at the Palm (in Los Angeles), and last year I made the reservation on the 16th without realizing that it was our exact anniversary. Everybody made it except Tim Russ, who was recording something, and we talked to him on the phone from the table. And Garrett (Wang) actually tweeted a picture of us around the table. We’ll do that again later this month, have our usual dinner, but this time we’ll be missing Ethan Phillips, who’s back in New York City doing stage work. Once in a while it’s all of us, but it usually seems like we’re missing one person, and it’s usually a different missing person each year. But I love it. It’s fun that we all stay in touch. I talk to the guys pretty regularly, and I talk to Kate (Mulgrew) pretty regularly.

Do you have that with any other cast from any other show or film you’ve worked on?

Picardo: No. Frankly, part of it with Voyager comes from the fact that we see so much of each other during our personal appearances that we’ve maintained the friendships. We have scheduled reunions, in a way, especially with the big show in Vegas every year. It seems that a chunk of us are in Vegas every year, and a couple of us are usually together at other events around the world during the year. So that’s already there, though getting together for dinner is definitely a choice, a social event. We go out of our way to do it, and it’s fun. I’m not in regular contact with Robert Beltran, for example, so it’s great to know I’ll see him at these dinners. I talk to Garrett all the time, but we don’t see each other all that much. So, it’s really important that we do these dinners. Everyone feels like, if they’re in town, they show up

Robert Beltran interview after finishing the third season
http://www.reocities.com/trekguide/t...ts/beltran.txt

Do you enjoy working on Star Trek: Voyager and being part of the whole Star Trek phenomenon?

Robert Beltran: It has grown on me and yes, I do, I enjoy going to work and I enjoy our cast immensely. We have great producers and great writers. The fans are terrific; very loyal and very caring about the show. You can't ask for anything more than that. I'm really enjoying it.

[...]
We take our work seriously but at the same time, we don't let it get in the way of having fun.

[Trek Survivor]

137th Gebirg wrote:

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Hmmm...y'know, come to think of it, I can't remember ANY interviews with Meany. Ever. I don't know if he ever went on the record on any subject.

What? He's been interviewed numerous times - those that immediately spring to mind are the old Starlog Ds9 specials (esp. #24) and also the UK Star Trek Monthly has done several interviews with him over the years.

[timtonruben359]

There is no doubts the TNG cast get along the best. I mean they're all still close 25 years after first working together which is unheard of in Hollywood. Watching the 25th anniversary reunion special on the Bluray you can tell these people really like being together.

As for the cast that got along the least well, it would probably be the TOS. I think Nimoy, Shatner and Kelly got along fine, but the rest of the cast pretty much loathed Shatner.

The DS9 cast were not close but I don't think there were any conflicts, they simply were coworkers rather than friends. Though I do think Nana, Rene, Alexander Siddig, Micheal Dorn and Armin are fairly good friends. I was watching one of Shatner's documentaries and there was a scene with Terry Farrell, Rene and Nana in a room together before going on stage at a convention and Rene and Nana comment that its been at least 10 years since they say Terry.

The VOY cast seemed to be very close (more like the TNG cast) for the first years until Jennifer Lien got fired and they brought in Jeri Ryan. It's no secret Kate Mulgrew was deeply unhappy about it and Kate was very hostile towards Jeri Ryan the whole of Jeri's time on set. Now, I love Kate Mulgrew but I've gathered from little bits and pieces from the cast over the years that many of them found her hard to work with at times. But I do think out of the original cast, most of them get along fairly well.