Will Star Trek: Deep Space Nine return as a revival or reboot?

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine characters have been conspicuously absent from the newer Star Trek series.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is one of the most beloved of the Star Trek series. It was the darkest of the series that wasn’t afraid to tackle the tough stuff head on. While all of the newer series on Paramount+ today have been reconnecting with past series like Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine characters have been absent from them all.  Although Lower Decks will be paying an animated visit to the station in its upcoming season, it isn’t quite as satisfying as it would be to see some of the familiar characters in live action.

Recently, Alex Kurtzman discussed, in a roundabout way, bringing these characters back. He didn’t come out and say that anything was definitive, only that “conversations were being had.” And he called Captain Sisko a “critcal, critical figure.” So while it sounds like he’s interested in returning the captain to a series, what isn’t clear is if that character would be portrayed by Avery Brooks.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine could be rebooted with new actors.

It’s a horrifying thought because who wants to see Captain Sisko without Brooks or Colonel Kira without Nana Visitor? But if one or more of the actors aren’t interested in returning to their previous roles, would Kurtzman then turn to a reboot instead of bringing any familiar faces back?

Let’s consider this. Deep Space Nine wasn’t about Utopia. It didn’t show the best parts of living in the future. Characters struggled with war, enslavement, economic injustice, racism, and terrorism. It wasn’t a series about space exploration, and that lessened its popularity in the eyes of some viewers. The ratings for the series weren’t as strong as those that were enjoyed by Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Now that all of Trek is on streaming, a revival of the series is certainly an option if enough actors are onboard, but there would be the cost of securing those actors as well as the per episode cost to create the updated effects. And it would be done so without knowing if such an undertaking would be more successful this time around. On the other hand, a reboot of the series with new characters could lower some of the overhead and give Paramount+ the chance to see if a new Deep Space Nine would work with perhaps investing in one or two of the original characters.

Personally, I’m not interested in a reboot of any Star Trek series, and I’m not so sure a revival of Deep Space Nine would work, either. When the series ended, many of the main characters had departed from the station, including Captain Sisko, Worf, Odo, and Chief O’Brien. So that doesn’t leave very many original characters to bring back to a revival. And Deep Space Nine was a work of art, and reviving it could ruin its legacy.

We don’t know what Alex Kurtzman has in mind when it comes to this series, but those of us who love it don’t want to see it or the characters that brought it to life damanged. So if Star Trek has any interest in another series set on a space station, perhaps it would be better off starting over with a new station and a new cast.