A Star Trek Actress Wanted To Play Two Of The Franchise's Most Popular Characters At The Same Time

The mid-1990s was a very busy time for "Star Trek." 1993 saw the start of "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," right in the middle of the sixth hit season of "Star Trek: The Next Generation." The two shows ran concurrently. In May of 1994, "Next Generation" celebrated its final episode, while production was already in progress for the feature film "Star Trek: Generations." That film opened in November. In January of 1995, Paramount launched its own network, the UPN, while also debuting the brand-new series "Star Trek: Voyager." It began right when "Deep Space Nine" was in its third season. Those two shows also ran concurrently. And in 1996, the franchise returned to theaters with the "Next Generation"-inspired movie "Star Trek: First Contact."

The various "Star Trek" shows of this era were all filmed in the same "neighborhood" of studios on the Paramount Pictures lot in Hollywood. An enterprising "Deep Space Nine" actor could, if they were so inclined, trek across the lot to see the set of "Voyager." The two shows tended not to "mingle" in such a fashion, and each series had its own cast and creative team, but actor-to-actor interaction could be had, should someone be possessed to do it and if scheduling shook out. 

This potential ease of access was certainly on the mind of Nana Visitor, the actress who played Major Kira Nerys on "Deep Space Nine." Access to the "Voyager" set was so easy, in fact, Visitor figured — in a fit of ambitious pique — that she could play Kira one day, and then play Captain Janeway on "Voyager" the next. In a 2025 interview with TrekMovie, Visitor admitted she didn't know how that might logistically work, but she felt she could have swung it.

To be sure, the characters of Major Kira and Captain Janeway were very, very different. Kira was a former freedom fighter during the military occupation of her home planet, Bajor. At the beginning of "Deep Space Nine," the occupation had ended, and Kira had to settle into a desk job that she kind of hated. Captain Janeway, meanwhile (played by Kate Mulgrew), was a disciplined Starfleet officer who became obsessed with her mission to return the U.S.S. Voyager to Earth. As the series progressed, Janeway began to lean into her more authoritarian tendencies, clashing with the franchise's ideals. Both were fascinating characters. 

According to the TrekMovie interview, Nana Visitor once had a pipe dream of playing both roles. She even approached the "Star Trek" head honcho at the time, Rick Berman, and suggested that she would be able to do it. "I didn't care how it would work," she said, "I cared that I felt like I could do it." Visitor continued: 

"I wanted to play both roles. And I thought there, you know, it's just across the street. It's a quick makeup change. I can do it. Separate all the scenes that she's got for the week, put them on these days. Major Kira on others. It would have been a nightmare for them. Of course, for so many reasons, it made no sense. But when you're passionate about something, sometimes you don't make a lot of sense."

The scheduling would indeed have been a massive headache for everyone. The makeup comment was in reference to the small nasal prosthetic that Visitor had to wear to play a Bajoran character; Janeway was a human and required no facial prosthetics.

There was also the issue of having two "Star Trek" shows with the same lead actress playing two different characters. Visitor is certainly capable of playing two characters, of course, but her presence on the newer show would have robbed "Voyager" of forging its own identity. Kate Mulgrew was the right choice, but it's admittedly fun to imagine what Visitor would have done with the role, especially if she elected to play Janeway as a gentler counterpart to the gruff Major Kira.

Visitor once admitted that she admired Mulgrew's work, and was clearly still in love with the character. When she saw what Mulgrew did with the Captain, Visitor began imagining Major Kira and Captain Janeway interacting ... to explosive effect. Visitor once expressed a wish that Janeway and Kira somehow meet face-to-face, figuring that the two of them would slam heads. Specifically, Visitor said: 

"I would love to work with Kate Mulgrew. She has the whole Captain command aura and presence about her, and that would be a real upheaval to ['Deep Space Nine']. How would that work out? I see sparks all over the place, and with Captain Sisko. Not sure they'd get along. Those are two alphas. I think that would be really interesting."

Of course, "Voyager" was set in the Delta Quadrant, a many-decades trip away from Deep Space Nine, so it seemed unlikely that the two would ever have interacted (they only could have in the "Voyager" pilot episode). But Visitor certainly dreamt big. Both Visitor and Kate Mulgrew are still working, however, so it's possible they could take a job together someday.