10 One-Off Star Trek Characters Who Never Left
9. Admiral William Ross
When Barry Jenner first heard of the role of Admiral Ross, he pursued it with a vengeance. He wasn't interested in doing, what he described, as a technically proficient audition, one that might suit a read-through, but not display any real depth to the character. Instead, he took the script and developed an entire backstory.
He saw Ross as a soldier, one who had risen up through the ranks while watching lots of friends lose their lives. This, Jenner felt, was key to the building blocks of his personality. Unlike many of the other Admirals that Star Trek had previously shown, this man truly understood war.
He got to work on A Time To Stand, and it was in working with Avery Brooks that he began to get the hint that he would be returning to the role. He told Brooks that he was only there for the day, while Brooks assured him it was far more likely that he would be there for the long haul. Once the producers saw his performance, they sided with Brooks and quickly wrote more scenes for Ross to appear in.
In all, Admiral Ross appeared in twelve episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, making him the Starfleet Admiral to have had the most appearances, without changing rank along the way, like a certain Admiral/Captain Kirk.