All 6 Star Trek Characters Played By DS9’s Marc Alaimo

Before he took on the role of Gul Dukat in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Marc Alaimo played multiple characters on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Alaimo not only has the distinction of playing one of Star Trek’s best villains in Dukat, but he also portrays one of the first Romulans to appear in TNG and the first Cardassian to appear in the franchise. Alaimo appeared as four different characters in TNG, all of whom played a somewhat antagonistic role. With his distinctive voice and undeniable screen presence, it’s no surprise Star Trek’s producers kept finding more roles for Alaimo.

Marc Alaimo began his career in theater, playing bad guys even then, including Iago in Shakespeare’s Othello, one of the Bard’s most conniving villains. After moving to Los Angeles, Alaimo appeared in many television series throughout the 1970s and 1980s, often portraying antagonistic characters. Alaimo also appeared in several films throughout this time, most notably portraying Captain Everett in 1990’s Total Recall. Alaimo left his mark on the Star Trek franchise in more ways than one. Not only did he make Dukat a memorable and complicated Star Trek villain, but he also influenced the look of the Cardassians, as makeup supervisor Michael Westmore based the Cardassian’s neck ridges on Alaimo’s prominent neck muscles.

6 Badar N’D’D

Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1, Episode 7 – “Lonely Among Us”

In his first Star Trek appearance, Marc Alaimo portrays Badar N’D’D, the chief delegate of the Antican species, in an uncredited role on Star Trek: The Next Generation season 1. In “Lonely Among Us,” the USS Enterprise-D is transporting a delegation of Anticans and a delegation of their rivals, the Selay, to a conference on a planet called Parliament. Both species wish to join the United Federation of Planets, but the Federation insists they resolve their own issues first. As the Enterprise crew does their best to keep the two deligations apart, a non-corporeal alien entity begins possessing certain crew members. Alaimo is unrecognizable in the Antican alien prosthetics, and makeup designer Michael Westmore used the cast of Alaimo’s head when designing the look of the Cardassians.

5 Commander Tebok

Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1, Episode 26 – “The Neutral Zone”

Marc Alaimo’s next appearance comes in the final episode of TNG season 1, where he plays the Romulan Commander Tebok. When the USS Enterprise-D investigates destroyed outposts along the Federation/Romulan Neutral Zone, they soon encounter a Romulan Warbird commanded by Tebok. Tebok demands to know why the Enterprise has breached the Neutral Zone and reveals that Romulan outposts have also been destroyed. Alaimo succeeds in making Tebok menacing, despite not getting much to do beyond sitting on his ship. Before plans were derailed by the 1988 Writers Strike, “The Neutral Zone” was meant to be the first part of a two-part story that would have seen the Enterprise and the Romulans work together to fight the actual culprits behind the destroyed outposts — the Borg.

4 Gul Macet

Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 12 – “The Wounded”

In TNG’s “The Wounded,” Marc Alaimo plays Gul Macet, the first Cardassian to ever appear on-screen. Macet commanding the warship Trager when he responds to an attack on a Cardassian outpost by the Federation vessel, the USS Phoenix. Macet and his men are brought on board the Enterprise, as Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and his crew pursue the Phoenix and its commanding officer, Captain Benjamin Maxwell (Bob Gunton), who has apparently gone rogue. “The Wounded” not only sets up the Cardassians as the main antagonists of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine but also reveals more about Chief Miles O’Brien (Colm Meaney), who will, of course, become one of DS9’s main characters.

3 Frederick La Rouque

Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 5, Episode 26 – “Time’s Arrow”

In the first part of TNG’s “Time’s Arrow” two-parter, Marc Alaimo portrays Frederick La Rouque, a professional card shark from 19th-century New Orleans. When Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) travels back in time to 19th-century San Francisco, he encounters La Rouque at a poker table. To explain his odd appearance, Data proclaims himself to be a Frenchman, prompting La Rouque to speak to him in French. Data responds in kind and then joins the next round of the poker game to win money for supplies. La Rouque expects Data to be an easy mark, but Data has years of experience playing poker on the Enterprise. Data then wins all of La Roque’s money and returns to his hotel room wearing La Roque’s vest.

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2 Gul Dukat

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

In his most well-known Star Trek role, Marc Alaimo portrays Gul Dukat in 35 episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. During the Cardassian’s occupation of Bajor, Dukat served as the commander of Terok Nor (the space station that would come to be known as Deep Space 9). Despite committing numerous atrocities against the Bajoran people, Dukat saw himself as a compassionate leader and hated the Bajorans for not recognizing his supposed mercy. Throughout DS9, Dukat was often antagonistic but occasionally worked with Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks). Thanks in no small part to Alaimo’s incredibly compelling portrayal, Dukat became one of Star Trek’s most complex and interesting villains.

Dukat eventually became head of the Cardassian Union and allied with the Dominion, later retaking control of Deep Space 9 and plunging the Federation into the Dominion War. After the death of his daughter, Tora Ziyal (Melanie Smith), and the loss of the Dominion War, Dukat slowly descended into madness, allowing himself to be possessed by a Pah-wraith. While possessed, Dukat visited the Bajoran Temple on Deep Space Nine and killed Lt. Commander Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell) simply for being in his way. After an intense confrontation with Sisko, the Emissary of the Prophets, in DS9’s series finale, Dukat was thrown into the Fire Caves, the eternal prison that houses the Pah-wraiths.

1 Burt Ryan

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Season 6, Episode 13 – “Far Beyond The Stars”

In one of DS9’s best episodes, Captain Benjamin Sisko imagines himself as a science fiction writer from the 1950s named Benny Russell. The other actors from DS9 appear as the rest of the humans in Sisko’s imagined version of 20th-century New York. Marc Alaimo plays Burt Ryan, a racist police officer who, along with his partner Kevin Mulkahey (Jeffrey Combs), harasses Benny Russell. Officers Ryan and Mulkahey are also responsible for the death of Jimmy (Cirroc Lofton), a young street kid, and Russell suffers a beating trying to come to the aid of his friend. Not only is “Far Beyond The Stars” a phenomenal episode of television, but it also exemplifies the kind of social commentary at which Star Trek excels, with a powerful message that remains relevant today.

Star Trek

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Star Trek is one of pop culture’s biggest multimedia franchises, spanning multiple movies, TV shows, books, comics, video games, and various other media. The franchise was created by Gene Roddenberry and started with the 1960s TV series starring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy. Over the decades, several equally popular series have come out since as Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Discovery.

Created by

Gene Roddenberry

First Episode Air Date

September 8, 1966