Star Trek: Suzie Plakson Played Four Different Characters & No One Noticed
It's always fun for fans to see an actor appear multiple times across a franchise. This tends to happen in long-running series, like "Law & Order," where someone will play a criminal in one episode and then star as someone else entirely years later. While this could open the doors for multiverse theories, the most likely explanation is that the production liked working with an actor and wanted them to come back. That's probably the case with Suzie Plakson playing four different characters across three "Star Trek" series.
Her time in the franchise began by playing Lt. Selar, M.D., in a Season 2 episode of "Star Trek: The Next Generation." She would return to that series that same season, only this time playing the Klingon K'Ehleyr, which she would reprise in Season 4. In 1995, she played a female Q in "Star Trek: Voyager." And finally, she starred as the first female Andorian, Tarah, in "Star Trek: Enterprise." This makes her the only actress to play four different aliens. The only performer to have her beat is Jeffrey Combs, who played six different aliens across three shows.
Suzie Plakson has numerous other credits you might recognize her from
Suzie Plakson holds a unique distinction in "Star Trek" mythos, but it's far from her only claim to fame. She's appeared in numerous other television series, such as "Love & War" and "Mad About You." Her last acting credit was in 2014, reprising her role as Judy Eriksen in "How I Met Your Mother."
Through all this time, she hasn't forgotten her "Star Trek" roots. She's appeared at conventions and has regularly done Q&As with some of her old co-stars. But over the last few years, she's branched out into other artistic mediums. You can go to her website to see everything she's been up to, including releasing her own music. In 2019, she published an original fantasy novel, "The Return of King Lillian." She's also an active sculptor.
It's obvious Plakson is a multitalented artist who's not interested in being pigeonholed to one label. But "Star Trek" viewers will forever remember her as one of the most memorable and engaging recurring stars in the franchise. And truly invested "Star Trek" fans may be interested in downloading her audiobook, "The Poor Dead K'ehleyr Show," which consists of 35 minutes of her discussing some behind-the-scenes factoids of her time playing various aliens.