With over 626 hours of content (and more on the way), as well as a cultural impact that simply cannot be summed up in words, Star Trek can claim to be one of the best-loved television franchises of all time. When the 1960 eponymous series was first released, it brought science fiction into the homes of many Americans who wouldn’t have touched the genre before, making household names of William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, George Takei, and the other cast members.
Multiple further series followed — both live-action and animated — as well as several films, bringing us watershed moments in the discourse around civil rights, dozens of tropes that became mainstays of the genre, and some excellent memes.
The explosion in popularity of nerd culture in recent years means Star Trek fandom has gone from strength to strength. And when you combine popularity with such a long run, you’re sure to get some strange guest stars making cameo appearances in the series. If you’re a huge Trekkie or are feeling a bit overwhelmed by the prospect of starting the 11 different shows and 13 films and want to dip your toe into an episode with a familiar (or surprising) face, then read ahead to our 10 favorite surprising guest stars in Star Trek.
10. Seth MacFarlane
Yes, you’ve read that right. While the man famous for giving us Peter Griffin might not be someone you’d peg as a Trekkie, if you watch a lot of his creations you can see the Star Trek references layered throughout. MacFarlane is a huge fan of the show, with his latest project The Orville being heavily inspired by Star Trek and its successor The Next Generation. And, how could we forget his other famous intergalactic creation, Roger from American Dad!?
In his cameo role, MacFarlane played a human Starfleet officer named River. He appeared in two episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise. “The Forgotten” and “Affliction” were broadcast in seasons three and four of the show respectively, but his association with Star Trek doesn’t stop there. He also recorded an audio commentary for the season five TNG episode “Cause And Effect,” which owners of the Blu-ray can listen to.
9. Dwayne Johnson
Now he’s a blockbuster name, it’s easy to forget Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson once had to break into the world of Hollywood after years as a WWE wrestler. The former college footballer and inventor of the people’s elbow, Johnson might not seem like he has the credentials to cameo in one of the geekiest franchises ever made, but his recent work in comic adaptations and franchises like Transformers show he has a bit of nerd in him. In fact, many consider his role in the season six episode of Voyager “Tsunkatse” to have been the performance that alerted studios to the fact he was more than just a handsome hunk.
In the episode, Johnson portrayed a Pendari fighting champion, so it wasn’t exactly a huge jump from his WWE days. While the cameo was originally greenlighted because of a UPN event celebrating the fact WWE had joined their network, Johnson put in a sterling performance. After appearing in Voyager, he was cast in The Mummy Returns, and since then it’s been success after success for the former wrestler.
8. Sarah Silverman
Although she burst onto the scene thanks to standout performances in SNL and is now more known for her daring comedy, Sarah Silverman had a slew of cameos in several high-profile shows in the nineties, including Seinfeld, The Larry Sanders Show, and, of course, Voyager.
The comedian appeared in two episodes of season three of the show, playing a modern-day scientist named Rain Robinson. In the episodes (“Future’s End” and “Future’s End: Part 2”) the Voyager crew has been sent back to the 20th century, and Silverman’s character notices their ship’s warp signature, culminating in a survived assassination attempt for the comedian, as well as a steamy kiss with Tom Paris. Not quite the barrel of laughs viewers would be used to from her, although she has some great comedic lines in her turn.
7. Kelsey Grammer
The man most famous for playing Frasier Crane in the eponymous series — or Sideshow Bob if like us you get ninety percent of your cultural references from The Simpsons – has had a long and successful career, beginning on Broadway and appearing in iconic shows like Cheers along the way. Grammer had a role in the season five episode of TNG “Cause and Effect”, as Starfleet officer and captain of the USS Bozeman, Morgan Bateson.
The episode was famous for its introduction of the concept of a temporal causality loop, which caused the Enterprise crew to endlessly relive the events that led to their deaths – much like endless syndicated reruns of Frasier must feel for Grammer in real life.
6. Tom Morello
While the other entries on our list have been actors, so their appearances at least make a little sense, we take a turn into the truly weird cameos now, starting with Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello. The Grammy winner and political activist is a hardcore Trekkie, and has actually appeared twice on the show — once in an uncredited role as a Son’a officer in Star Trek: Insurrection, the ninth Star Trek film, and then again as a human Starfleet officer in season six Voyager episode “Good Shepherd.”
The second appearance was a speaking role, and set insiders were repeatedly happy with his performance. Then again, he’s used to shredding it in front of tens of thousands of people, so that’s not the biggest surprise!
5. Jeff Bezos
What do you do when you’re one of the richest, most influential people in the world? Create a crack team to solve world hunger? Research how to end political polarization? Or get yourself a cameo in your favorite fictional universe of all time? Well, considering what this list is about, I’m sure you can guess what Jeff Bezos chose.
To be fair to the Amazon founder, who appeared as an alien Starfleet official in Star Trek: Beyond, he has put his money where his mouth is when it comes to attempts to get humanity bounding into the stars. His aerospace company Blue Origin has launched several successful (and some unsuccessful) flights, showing he’s a true believer in Picard’s words: “Things are only impossible until they’re not.”
4. Mick Fleetwood
There were some Rumours that Fleetwood Mac drummer Mick Fleetwood was a fan of Star Trek when his line in the 1987 Arnie blockbuster The Running Man made reference to Spock. When he showed up on the season two TNG episode “Manhunt”, heavily made up in prosthetics to be a fish-like creature, his Trekkie status was confirmed.
In a decent twist, Fleetwood’s character ends up being the villain of the episode. Although he had no lines, the drummer gave a memorable performance, and while the episode itself is far from a classic, many fans believe this was around the time TNG started really showing its worth.
3. Iggy Pop
Of course, Iggy Pop’s Star Trek cameo story involves the Stooges singer injuring himself in a mosh pit. The punk icon was supposed to play a role in season three, but he was on tour in Europe. Instead, he wound up hurting himself while dancing with fans just before the sixth season was to be filmed, making him available to play a Yelgun in the episode “The Magnificent Ferengi”.
Pop had a few other acting roles throughout his musical career, so he wasn’t just a novice fan looking to get involved. However, there’s no doubt having the “I Wanna Be Your Dog” singer appears in the depths of outer space was a bit of a trip for anybody who noticed his cameo.
2. King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein of Jordan
Diplomatic gifts come in all shapes and sizes, but for committed Trekkie King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein of Jordan, his appearance as an uncredited extra in the Voyager season two episode “Investigations” would have sealed the deal when it came to whatever the U.S wanted from him.
The middle eastern royal was reportedly floored by the surprise, and he received a nice photograph of the moment to keep for himself. The King’s role wasn’t exactly too strenuous, but there’s no doubt the entire experience was something no royal fund can buy.
1. Melvin Belli
Actors, musicians, and literal royalty might be strange guest stars, but at least it’s easy to see how they managed to get into contact with the right people to get themselves on the show. Our number one weirdest Star Trek cameo, though, comes from the controversial superstar lawyer Melvin Belli. Although Belli is most known for his defense of Jack Ruby, the man who murdered presidential assassin Lee Harvey Oswald, he was already prominent in the legal world before that landmark case, having even snagged the nickname “The King of Torts” from Life magazine.
The lawyer played the role of Gorgon in season three of the Original Series, in the episode “And the Children Shall Lead.” Belli was clearly an expert negotiator out of the courtroom, too, as he also snagged his son a part in the same episode.