5 Actors Who Regretted Leaving Star Trek
4. Lycia Naff
Lycia Naff was cast in Star Trek: The Next Generation as a potential love interest for Geordi La Forge. The writers had the idea that he and Ensign Sonya Gomez would fall in love with each other over the course of the series. The endgame was to be Geordi making the decision to get potentially life threatening surgery to restore his sight in order to properly see the love of his life.
Unfortunately, given her comedic introduction - spilling cocoa all over Captain Picard - and the writing and direction Naff received, she was seen more as comic relief than love interest. In an interview with the official Star Trek website, the actor stated that she was "super bummed" to be let go.
Since leaving the Enterprise, Naff has had a fairly eclectic career; playing the three-breasted prostitute in Total Recall and as an undercover reporter who broke the Bill Cosby story back in 2014. Whilst disappointed not to play out the intended romantic subplot, her main regret appears to be the film Chopper Chicks in Zombietown, released in the same year as her short-lived role on Star Trek as Gomez.
Naff eventually made a comeback of sorts in the season 2 finale of Lower Decks, with a promotion to Captain Gomez.