Ten strange, unexpected, and interesting Star Trek guest stars

King Abdullah II bin al-Hussein of Jordan

Abdullah was heir apparent to the throne when he appeared on Voyager in 1996. The cameo was a surprise arranged by his United States advisor, but because he was not a member of the Screen Actors Guild, he was limited to an unnamed non-speaking role, making his participation a sort of an easter egg for Trekkies who also happen to be Jordanian royal watchers.

Although his character never had a name, we can tell from the pips on his uniform that he was a lieutenant, junior grade in the science division. He was also adorned with Star Trek’s signature pointy sideburns, which he surely understood the significance of. After filming, Abdullah threw a party for the cast, and invited them to his kingdom, Robert Picardo and Ethan Philips took up the offer, and they were delighted to find that he’d put on a mini-convention for fans.

Covering heads of state, even princes and kings can be a dull affair, so the appearance is often brought up in interviews, to lighten the mood, leading to him telling the BBC in 2001 “I

don’t think I’m going to live that one down”. However, he can’t be too embarrassed by it, in 2011 Abdullah became the majority investor in a 1.5 billion dollar Star Trek theme park in the Jordanian city of Abaqua. But alas, construction ceased in 2015, and the park never opened.