Deep Space Nine Wouldn’t Work Without Star Trek’s Chief O’Brien

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine literally wouldn’t have worked without the show’s most important character, Chief Miles O’Brien (Colm Meaney). Having started out in Star Trek: The Next Generation, O’Brien was transferred to DS9 when it became apparent that Colm Meaney was too great an actor to spend all his time in transporter room 3. Meaney’s post-Star Trek career backs this up, as he’s gone on to star in a swathe of acclaimed movies such as Layer Cake, Law Abiding Citizen, and The Journey. Meaney’s considerable acting talent is presumably why O’Brien was often at the center of DS9‘s most grueling existential nightmares.