The Star Trek Crossover Elite: Ranking the Actors Who Ruled Multiple Series by Appearances

written by Leo Hartwell

January 3, 2026 12:14 pm

The Star Trek Crossover Elite: Ranking the Actors Who Ruled Multiple Series by Appearances — Image credit: Legion-Media

From Picard to blink-and-you-miss-them ensigns, the Trek-verse is a revolving airlock—actors keep beaming back for hundreds of crossovers. We’ve mapped the most persistent faces across the Federation’s many series and who truly holds the crown for repeat appearances.

Star Trek is the gift that keeps sending the same people back to your screen, and I mean that as a compliment. Across decades and multiple series, certain characters (and a few very committed actors) just keep showing up. I pulled together a ranked rundown of who has logged the most time in the Trek-verse, plus one special case to kick it off. Counts are approximate because cameos, voices, and animated appearances can get a little messy, but the scale of it all is the point.

Majel Barrett (special case) — The only person to appear in all six of the original televised Trek series. On camera, she was Christine Chapel in The Original Series and The Animated Series, and Lwaxana Troi in The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine. Behind the scenes, she was the voice of the ship’s computer pretty much everywhere: TOS, TAS, TNG, DS9, Voyager, and Enterprise. Because her voice is woven through so many episodes, her tally is kind of its own category, but she is the only actor present in every show. Iconic is an overused word; here it fits.
9. John de Lancie (Q) — Q only showed up in 8 episodes of TNG’s 178-episode run, which is wild given how crucial he feels. He then popped into DS9, returned for Voyager, resurfaced decades later in Picard, and even made an animated cameo on Lower Decks. Call it 20+ total appearances. For a supposed guest star, he left a crater-sized impression.
8. Whoopi Goldberg (Guinan) — Roughly 30 episodes of TNG plus the movies, then a short but memorable return in Picard. However many trophies Whoopi has, Trekkies will always also know her as the confidant behind the bar on the Enterprise.
7. Jeri Ryan (Seven of Nine) — She arrived late in Voyager and still racked up 100+ episodes there, then carried that momentum into Picard as a key player across all three seasons. The character basically bridged old-school Trek and the modern era because the creatives knew she mattered.
6. LeVar Burton (Geordi La Forge) — In TNG alone he’s in well over 150 episodes, missing only a few. Geordi also swings by Voyager and shows up in Picard right when the story needs him. He’s one of those characters who quietly became the emotional heartbeat for a lot of fans.
5. Brent Spiner (Data and assorted Soongs) — Data is central to TNG, and Spiner is in almost all of those episodes plus all four TNG films. On top of that, he played Soong-family ancestors across Enterprise (five episodes) and Picard (three episodes). At one point he even had a deal with Paramount that basically guaranteed we kept seeing him. All told, you’re looking at close to 180-ish episodes worth of Spiner’s various androids and mad scientists.
4. Marina Sirtis (Deanna Troi) — Full TNG run, three Voyager appearances, seven episodes of Picard, and all four TNG films puts her around 190 total. Troi grew up with the audience, and the character’s evolution is a big part of why she’s still beloved.
3. Jonathan Frakes (William T. Riker) — The beard is eternal. Frakes is essentially in every episode of TNG, then keeps showing up in DS9, Voyager, Enterprise, Picard, and the TNG movies, plus a vocal victory lap on Lower Decks. Stack all that and he’s hovering near the 200-episode mark across the franchise.
2. Patrick Stewart (Jean-Luc Picard) — 178 episodes of TNG, four theatrical films, and 30+ episodes of Picard puts him north of 210. If there’s a single figurehead for the franchise’s modern legacy, it’s Stewart’s Picard. He’s the anchor.
1. Michael Dorn (Worf) — The champ. Worf logs 175 TNG episodes, 102 more on DS9, four TNG films, and seven episodes of Picard for a grand total around 288. He started on the margins and ended up redefining entire storylines and eras. Bringing him into the DS9 ensemble was a pivot point for the franchise, and Dorn’s long-term commitment made Worf a cultural icon.

Yes, the numbers are approximate, but the scale is what matters. Trek thrives on cross-pollination, which is why fans keep revisiting it and finding new stuff to love.

Who’s your favorite repeat offender? Drop it in the comments.

All Star Trek shows are streaming on Paramount+ in the U.S.