Why Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Added TNG's Worf To The Cast In Season 4

Michael Dorn, the man behind Worf, has been in more episodes of "Star Trek" than any other actor, in large part because his Klingon security chief made the jump from "The Next Generation" to "Deep Space Nine." But why did Worf leave the Enterprise to come aboard DS9? The threat of lowered ratings meant the series needed a shake-up, and Klingon conflict was the perfect excitement.

Ratings for Season 3 of "DS9," which aired in syndication in 1994 and 1995, were solid, but the producers were wary that the glut of competing sci-fi shows and rumblings that fans weren't satisfied with the series meant they might lose their audience. Season 4 promised more action and made Klingons a big part of the plot. According to the 1997 book "The Trekker's Guide to Deep Space Nine," co-creator Rick Berman told Variety, "We got the feeling in the last year that 'The Next Generation' viewers had stopped watching 'DS9.' We needed to get viewers to resample the show, and we thought having the Klingons back would do the trick."

While there were conflicting reports on whether the creative decision to have the Klingon Empire break with the Federation came before or after the decision to add Worf to the show, it's hard to deny that the character made narrative sense. Worf was raised by humans and was a loyal member of Starfleet, yet his heritage made him the Klingon expert that the space station needed as war loomed.

Getting Worf from the Enterprise to Deep Space Nine was one thing; getting Michael Dorn from "TNG" to "DS9" was another. Initially, it looked as though the actor wasn't going to agree to reprise the role on the show. Per "The Trekker's Guide to Deep Space Nine," TV Guide reported he'd declined because Paramount hadn't offered him enough money and he was concerned the show would get in the way of filming "TNG" movies. Also, he was sick of being in the makeup chair for Worf's Klingon forehead every day. Luckily, it worked out. Dorn signed a three-year contract that ensured he'd be able to make the movies and he wouldn't spend more than an hour in the makeup chair.

In a 2012 interview with StarTrek.com, Dorn recalled that he had previously been joking when he said that it was the money that convinced him to come back and endure the makeup chair. "But, really, the money never really entered into it," Dorn explained. "... I guess I was surprised that I said 'Yes' [in spite of the makeup issue]. But it wasn't like, 'Oh my God, what am I doing?' It was more like, 'Yeah, that sounds great. Let's talk about it.'"

Dorn appeared in more than 100 episodes of "DS9" along with the "TNG" movies, even if the films needed to find explanations for why Worf was back on the Enterprise each time.