Did the DS9 producers consider adding Andrew Robinson to the main cast?

[Cap'n Calhoun]

Just spotted this at TV Tropes:

"Garak was intended as a single-episode character who eventually becomes incredibly important to the show's plot and Myth Arc. He is never billed as a member of the main cast, despite having that importance in the show. Andrew Robinson was given the opportunity, but declined the offer, and remains as a special guest star."

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FakeGuestStar

I'm having trouble verifying this elsewhere, which wouldn't surprise me much since TV Tropes can be hit and miss... but I do feel like I've read in a behind-the-scenes book or interview that they at least considered promoting Robinson to main cast. I've been looking on-and-off for this for years but haven't been able to locate it. (I thought it was the Deep Space Nine Companion, but I haven't been able to find anything skimming it, though I'm still not ruling it out.)

Has anyone run into any sources for this? Or am I (and TV Tropes) making this up?

 

[Bad Thoughts]

I remember hearing about Behr wanting to bring Robinson in, but I can't remember where. It might have been a podcast appearance promoting the documentary fundraiser.

 

[somebuddyX]

Personally, I doubt it's true for three reasons. One, I think storywise they think him as the outsider who pops in every so often suits the character better and more exposure would dilute it. Two, probably budgetary reasons would preclude it. Three, he and a lot of characters show up so often towards the end that the line between main and guest star was probably paper thin anyway so what's the point. Some guest stars appeared more than Cirroc Lofton. Even if they'd moved Cirroc to guest star I'd think you'd move someone else into his spot like Nog rather than Garak.
I reckon Ira could have idly toyed with it but never seriously considered it. Of course I could be totally wrong on all of this!

 

[Oddish]

I expect if they did, it was late in the series. There probably wasn't really enough for Garak to do before the Dominion war began.

 

[at Quark's]

Personally, I doubt it's true for three reasons. One, I think storywise they think him as the outsider who pops in every so often suits the character better and more exposure would dilute it.

This. I'm glad he was used somewhat sparingly, so that he had something interesting to add in nearly any appearance he was in.

(Also, I'm wondering, are there some rules about how often main cast members are supposed to appear in the series at a minimum? )

 

[Takeru]

Three, he and a lot of characters show up so often towards the end that the line between main and guest star was probably paper thin anyway so what's the point.

I wouldn't call the line paper thin. The most episodes he appeared in in a season was 7 episodes in season 7, he appeared in 37 episodes total (4 as mirror Garak), he didn't appear nearly as often as many assume and I think that's because his appearances were usually very memorable, they wouldn't have been as memorable had he been a series regular and shoved into episodes to fulfill contractual obligations instead of being used when the writers had an actual role for him.

 

[ATimson]

Also, I'm wondering, are there some rules about how often main cast members are supposed to appear in the series at a minimum?

Their individual contracts will specify a minimum number of episodes. Some might be contracted to appear in all the episodes, others only half.

 

[Lynx]

They should have added him.
He became more and more involved as the series went on as Garak became a very important character.

 

[at Quark's]

Their individual contracts will specify a minimum number of episodes. Some might be contracted to appear in all the episodes, others only half.

Interesting. Would such contracts also specify the minimum number of 'A-stories', perhaps? (I mean, suppose Garak were part of the main cast, then the episode The Wire, where he is the main character, would be quite different from an episode where he appears in a single scene and gets to say perhaps two lines, but it would still count for an episode in the contract?).

 

[Cap'n Calhoun]

Would such contracts also specify the minimum number of 'A-stories', perhaps

I don't believe so. Back in the sixties they finished up Grace Lee Whitney's contract with what amounted to a cameo in "The Conscience of the King". Seems like that would be hard to enforce in any case. Though her contract was 7 out of 13 episodes (7/16 according to some sources) and she ultimately appeared in eight episodes. Maybe "The Corbomite Maneuver" preceded the contract? Given she'd already been fired I doubt they would've brought her back for the extra scene just because.

I know less about the 80's/90's-era contracts, but back with TOS they tended to contract for x/13 episodes. E.g., in season 1 Shatner and Nimoy were contracted for 13/13, Kelley was 7/13, and Doohan had a "handshake contract" for 5/13 that was boosted to a written contract of 9/13 for season 2. (These Are the Voyages lists most of these as x/16, but all other sources I've seen referred to 13.)

I don't know if this was the actual rationale or not, but it seemed like half-season orders of 13 episodes were relatively normal for the sixties (and up through the nineties), and most of these numbers are equivalent to more common percentages or fractions. 5/13 (39%) guarantees 1/3, 7/13 (54%) guarantees 1/2, 9/13 (69%) guarantees 2/3, and of course 13/13 guarantees appearing in every episode. But that's somewhat speculative.

 

[kkt]

Interesting. Would such contracts also specify the minimum number of 'A-stories', perhaps? (I mean, suppose Garak were part of the main cast, then the episode The Wire, where he is the main character, would be quite different from an episode where he appears in a single scene and gets to say perhaps two lines, but it would still count for an episode in the contract?).

Were there episodes in which Garak appeared just to say two lines in one scene? If his part was that minor, seems like they'd probably just write him out of the episode.

 

[The Wormhole]

The story I always heard (though I don't know if there's truth to it) is that Robinson declined the offer to be main cast on the grounds that as a recurring character, the writers would only use Garak when they had story content for him, while if he were main cast, they'd be obligated to use him in every episode, which he felt would dilute the character.

Were there episodes in which Garak appeared just to say two lines in one scene?

Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges. Okay, he has more than two lines, but he is only in one scene that's mostly just fluff.

 

[Richard S. Ta]

I can believe he declined and opted to stick with 'Special Guest Star'. Actors often like to keep that because it makes their name more prominent in the credits.

Same with some actors liking their names to be first or last in the credits.

 

[Cap'n Calhoun]

I can believe he declined and opted to stick with 'Special Guest Star'.

Interestingly, despite the TV Tropes assertation that he "remains as a special guest star", he was only credited as "Special Guest Star" in (I believe) eight out of his 37 appearances... all in season 4, except for one in season 5 ("Things Past") and in the series finale. (And that episode "promoted" several guest stars to "Special Guest Star," including Rosalind Chao and Penny Johnson, who were always credited as regular guest stars until then.)

So if he was looking for a prominent "Special Guest Star" credit, it didn't happen; he was credited as a regular guest star for most of seasons 5-7.

 

[Richard S. Ta]

Fair enough.

 

[Obsidian_Phil]

I think (though could be misremembering) that there was something in the DS9 companion where Ira Steven Behr said around season 3 he was considering making Garak a regular, but when Worf was added, that put an end to it.

 

[AntonyF]

Personally, I doubt it's true for three reasons. One, I think storywise they think him as the outsider who pops in every so often suits the character better and more exposure would dilute it. Two, probably budgetary reasons would preclude it. Three, he and a lot of characters show up so often towards the end that the line between main and guest star was probably paper thin anyway so what's the point. Some guest stars appeared more than Cirroc Lofton. Even if they'd moved Cirroc to guest star I'd think you'd move someone else into his spot like Nog rather than Garak.
I reckon Ira could have idly toyed with it but never seriously considered it. Of course I could be totally wrong on all of this!

This is everything I would have said.

The budget thing in particular, they have a set number of cast. Kes had to go for Seven, Dax had to go for Dax.

Worf's addition was probably the one counter to this.