Michael Dorn’s return to Star Trek with Deep Space Nine was done for more than storytelling purposes

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine brought Michael Dorn in to reprise his Worf character, but why?

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was a good show before Season 4, but with Season 4, it became a great show. The cast was settling in nicely, with Odo, Quark Julian Bashir, Benjamin Sisko, Jadzia Dax, and Kira Nerys all becoming favorites of the fandom, and secondary characters like Gul Dukat, Nog, Rom, and Elim Garak rounding out the cast nicely.

While it was fine, dare I say a bit dull from time to time, it was a good show. Then season four came and raised the level of expectations. The show got an infusion of new characters, new story arcs, and a new endgame; war.

The Klingons broke from the Federation/Klingon treaty and started a mini-war over the area. This was just a setup for the bigger war, the Dominion War, which occurred due to the weakened Federation forces after engaging with the Klingons.

Added to all of this, was the return of Michael Dorn to his iconic character of Worf. With The Next Generation over and his time being freer now (aside from filming), the decision was made to bring Worf in full-time, but why?

Why was Michael Dorn added to the Deep Space Nine crew?

Worf’s arrival really added a lot of flavor to the show, but why was he brought in at all? Well, it depends on who you ask. Some believe that Worf was added to regain the Next Generation fandom that did not adopt Deep Space Nine with the same desire.

Others cite Rick Berman as pushing for it to happen. The Klingon storyline was apparently first pitched, with the Empire battling the Federation but some believed it needed a twist, and that brought Worf into the fold.

Some believe that it was just a rating ploy, but technically, everything is a ratings “ploy” as the goal is to have as many people watching your show as possible.

There are even a few who thought Dorn campaigned to be brought into more shows. He has famously championed for a Captain Worf spinoff show, so this may have been something that really appealed to him as a possibility.