Ever since we heard that there would be a new Star Trek series coming to TV soon, fans have been wondering if any of the players from the previous shows would be making appearances. Well, we now know that Michael Dorn, who played Worf on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, won't be showing up, and we also know why. Rumors had circulated that he would be a part of CBS All Access' Star Trek: Discovery, but it looks like the price wasn't quite right for Dorn to join the show in any capacity.
According to TrekMovie, Michael Dorn spoke about the rumors that he'd appear in Star Trek: Discovery last Sunday during his "Evening With Michael Dorn" event at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater in Florida, where he's starring in a production of Antony and Cleopatra. Word from attendees at the event is that, while Dorn was briefly in talks to take a role in the new series, ultimately they simply didn't offer him enough money to take part. One attendee at that event was Orlando Sentinel theater critic and arts writer Matt Palm, who sent an email to TrekMovie which actually notes that Dorn specified in his talk that he was only offered less than 1% of what he'd made during his last contracted time playing Worf.
Now, I know Michael Dorn isn't as big a name, in general, as Patrick Stewart has become since his time on Star Trek: The Next Generation, but it sounds like the producers of Discovery were barely willing to pay the man for his time and the basic Star Trek history love his presence on the show would have imparted. Obviously, having not been privy to the talks that took place, we can't say how big a role Dorn would have had on the show, but since rumors were pointing toward him playing an ancestor of his famous character, it seems to make sense that he would have been at least a recurring player. So, that, and the general geek goodness of having Dorn work on a third Trek series, should have made the team behind Discovery work a bit harder to keep him interested. But, ultimately, if the money simply wasn't in the budget (whether that was because they didn't want to spend it or his casting would have legitimately put other aspects of production at risk) then it's hard to argue with that.
Well, it's a shame that we won't get to see Michael Dorn playing one of Worf's family members on Star Trek: Discovery, but at least we know that there will be other Klingons to watch on the show. The series is now filming, and is expected to hit CBS All Access sometime in late summer or early fall. Until then, be sure to check out our midseason premiere schedule and summer premiere schedule to see what else is hitting TV in the coming months.
