Brent Spiner considered quitting every year of Star Trek: The Next Generation

You can't say Brent Spiner's name without immediately thinking of Lt. Commander Data, the android he played for seven seasons on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Spiner has had multiple other roles throughout the course of his career, including Bob Wheeler on Night Court, which proved to be such a standout role the newly-rebooted Night Court brought him back this season. But the actor knows that won't be the role he'll be remembered for the most, but in a 2002 interview with IGN [via Slashfilm], Spiner admitted that he wasn't always sure that he was going to continue the role each season.

,There was even a point, before he got the part, where he told the casting director he was going to pass because the network said they wanted a robot who was very mechanical. Fortunately, they gave him the opportunity to audition anyway he wanted to, and he got the job. He took the role, knowing the series had been presold for one year for syndication. And though he enjoyed working with the people and the role, he admitted that every year he thought about getting out of his contract.

"IGNFF: So there was no point where you went, "Nah, I'm just getting a little tired with the role."

SPINER: Well, definitely... I did that every year. Seriously. Every year at the end of the year, I thought, "Yeah, I don't know if I'm going to come back and do another year. I'm going to get out of this contract.""

- IGNFF and Brent Spiner

Spiner was limited in his role as Data, but he made an android loveable. In fact, Data became one of the most popular characters on the series, and I can't even imagine what would have happened had he actually decided he wanted to leave The Next Generation. Now, the actor has accepted that he'll always been known for this character and has continued to appear in new Star Trek iterations like Star Trek: Picard. And most fans are hoping we haven't seen the last of Data.