Trek actors who could have been in other roles...

[eschaton]

Not only have their been many cases of actors who were almost in Trek, but many actors who became associated with well-known main cast or recurring roles were originally supposed to be different characters. Off the top of my head.

DeForest Kelley - Roddenberry wanted him to play the doctor in both of the pilot episodes. If he got his wish I suspect the "McCoy" character would have been subtly different (different name, different background, etc).

Rosalind Chao - Auditioned for Yar - eventually got Keiko as a consolation prize.

Jeffery Combs - Auditioned for Riker. Frakes remembered him, which is how he eventually got onto Trek as a recurring actor.

Denise Crosby - Was originally supposed to be Troi.

Tim Russ - Originally in the running for Geordi on TNG.

Marina Sirtis - Was originally supposed to be Yar.

Patrick Stewart - Supposedly originally auditioned for Data.

Tony Todd - Auditioned for six small roles before getting cast as Worf's brother. Was in the running for SIsko on DS9.

Michelle Forbes - Famously turned down two roles offered to her - the one which became Kira on DS9, and the one which became Torres on Voyager.

Andrew Robinson - Originally auditioned for Odo. Even earlier than that, he auditioned for the role of Will Decker in TMP.

Bob Picardo - Originally auditioned for Nelix before being moved over to The Doctor.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Michelle Forbes - Famously turned down two roles offered to her - the one which became Kira on DS9, and the one which became Torres on Voyager.

She turned down the offer to reprise her role as Ro, so new characters were created to fill the void.

 

[DonIago]

I think I read recently that Alexander Siddig auditioned for Sisko as well?

Take a moment to imagine him as Sisko and Avery Brooks as Bashir...

 

[Tenacity]

Rosalind Chao - Auditioned for Yar

That would have been very interseting.

 

[DonIago]

Now imagine Denise Crosby and Colm Meaney as a couple...

 

[Captain pl1ngpl0ng]

I just read that Genviève Bujold quit after a few days of shooting the role as Captain Janeway and that Nana Visitor was begging Berman for the role while she was still working ds9, she wanted to do both.

 

[FormerLurker]

Marina Sirtis - Was originally supposed to be Yar.

IIRC, the security chief role's name was original Macha Hernandez, and when Sirtis and Crosby switched roles, the name was changed to reflect the new look.

 

[eschaton]

IIRC, the security chief role's name was original Macha Hernandez, and when Sirtis and Crosby switched roles, the name was changed to reflect the new look.

Given how bad Sirtis's accent was in the beginning of TNG, I wouldn't want to hear her attempt to do a Spanish accent.

 

[Tenacity]

Marina Sirtis would have been far more believable as someone in the security field (person opinion). Denise Crosby simply doesn't look like a "cop."

 

[Takeru]

Given how bad Sirtis's accent was in the beginning of TNG, I wouldn't want to hear her attempt to do a Spanish accent.

What makes you think Hernandez would have had a spanish accent or that Sirtis would have been bad at doing one? Her accent was originally supposed to be betazoid before Majel Barrett decided not to care so it's not like Sirtis tried to imitate a real accent and failing.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Nana Visitor was begging Berman for the role while she was still working ds9, she wanted to do both.

She would've been awesome as Captain Janeway!

 

[DonIago]

Hell, she could have been awesome as Captain Kira (she did get a Starfleet commission) if VOY was set after DS9 rather than starting mid-show (granted that would introduce Maquis complications). Why she'd want to command a ship is somewhat of an open question, admittedly.

 

[Tim Thomason]

Hell, she could have been awesome as Captain Kira (she did get a Starfleet commission) if VOY was set after DS9 rather than starting mid-show (granted that would introduce Maquis complications). Why she'd want to command a ship is somewhat of an open question, admittedly.

They could've just spun her off. Introduce a storyline in DS9's second season where she gets a Starfleet commission (Bajor enters the Federation?), and is soon granted a ship.

If they instead cast Visitor as Janeway, they would still need to deal with the Kira situation on DS9 (you can't logistically do two shows as a main character). So, transfer, death, or retirement would be in the cards for her character.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

they would still need to deal with the Kira situation on DS9 (you can't logistically do two shows as a main character).

Realistically, yes, but Visitor believed (and probably believes) she could do both. And if it were simply a matter of having the energy to do so, I think Visitor could have done both roles.

 

[Sophie74656]

She turned down the offer to reprise her role as Ro, so new characters were created to fill the void.

Actually I'm glad she turned them down. Kira and B'Elanna are two of my favorite characters.

 

[DonIago]

They could've just spun her off. Introduce a storyline in DS9's second season where she gets a Starfleet commission (Bajor enters the Federation?), and is soon granted a ship.

If they instead cast Visitor as Janeway, they would still need to deal with the Kira situation on DS9 (you can't logistically do two shows as a main character). So, transfer, death, or retirement would be in the cards for her character.

Bajor joining the Federation in S2 would have been bizarrely fast for my money, and essentially closed one of the major plot arcs of the series ("is Bajor ready/willing to join the Federation?"). Especially if you had the The Circle arc at the beginning of the season it would have been even worse, because that arc did such a great job of establishing how much Bajor was still struggling to find itself post-Occupation.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Actually I'm glad she turned them down. Kira and B'Elanna are two of my favorite characters.

They're two of mine as well, easily in my top five characters of all Trek.

 

[Timewalker]

Now imagine Denise Crosby and Colm Meaney as a couple...

At least he wouldn't have ended up with a whiny shrew.

 

[DonIago]

Sounds like you may be blaming the actor too much and the writing too little.

 

[Timewalker]

Sounds like you may be blaming the actor too much and the writing too little.

Both. Keiko was written as a shrew and I don't like the actress' voice or the way she chose to say particular words or lines.