Television history is full of side characters who walked through the door one day and walked out with the show by the end. Sitcoms can get dominated by these types of characters — the Steve Urkel types — but science fiction shows have a long and rich history of dynamic side characters, too. The more expansive sci-fi shows got, the more likely it was for a one-off character, or someone who only showed up once in a while as a guest, to gain a bigger and better following.
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Sci-fi shows also had the handy benefit that their story arcs usually meant that a popular side character wouldn’t overwhelm the show, like a lot of sitcom side characters did. Whenever any of these ten side characters popped up, it was a welcome surprise, but they rarely outstayed their welcome. Sci-fi also allowing for a more diverse base of characters — be they androids, aliens, or something even stranger — meant that side characters often had more chance of a ‘life’ beyond their first appearance than side characters on most dramas. Here are 10 side characters that stole their sci-fi shows.
1) The Rani – Doctor Who (Classic)
While the Rani might be considered one of the Doctor’s arch-enemies, she was originally introduced in 1985 as a way to comedically subvert the long-time rivalry between the Doctor and the Master. Her backstory became that she was an old schoolmate of them both back when they were all young Time Lords. Kate O’Mara’s performance as The Rani was probably what ultimately pushed the character past the standard Time Lord figure: she was sardonic and not altogether inclined to respect the Doctor (or the Master). She was also driven purely by science, even if it meant any ethical respects went out the window; she was the rare example of a Classic Who villain who surpassed the dying era she made her debut in. Fans clamored for her to make a return for years, and she finally did in the most recent series of Doctor Who, having been regenerated into Archie Panjabi.
2) Alfred Bester – Babylon 5
If we’re being fair to Babylon 5, it’s hard to pick just one side character who stole the show, but Alfred Bester was probably the one who did it the most consistently. An amoral, legalistic Psi Cop who made it his personal mission to persecute or just plain annoy most of the main cast, Bester was actually the rare Babylon 5 side character who never made it into the main credits, but who appeared in every season. Walter Koenig as Bester only made 13 appearances total, but every one of them was a treat. Bester might have just been another Babylon 5 villain, except for the fact that sometimes he made alliances with the crew, especially when Earth fell into fascism. If Babylon 5 had ever been in a position to have a spinoff, it would’ve more than likely been about the The Telepath War, which Bester was a major player in. Koenig of course, wanted to play Bester because he was the polar opposite of Star Trek‘s Pavel Chekov, who’s an example of a side character who became a main character, in the end.
3) Elim Garak – Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Babylon 5 get compared to one another a lot: they both started in the early nineties, they both featured a last outpost of peace-style space station, and they were both filled with unique and compelling side characters. Picking the Deep Space Nine side character who stole the show seems a bit of a losing battle; people are going to disagree no matter who gets picked. However, most fans would agree that the former spy turned tailor Elim Garak is probably the most prominent side character who stole the show. He benefits from a daring performance by Andrew J. Robinson, a dynamic relationship with most of the main crew, and the feature of being the only Cardassian who is still a full-time resident on the station after the rest of his people have left. Garak was never wholly an ally, nor wholly an antagonist: he was complicated, and he showed that even one of Trek‘s most villainous alien species had heart to spare.
4) Richard Woolsey – Stargate franchise
The Stargate franchise wasn’t a stranger to compelling guest characters, but they didn’t usually stick around for long. Richard Woolsey, who made his first appearance in Stargate SG-1 Season 7, and lasted as a recurring character until the final season of Stargate Atlantis, probably wasn’t a character most people were expecting to actually have an impact. He was a human, he was mostly a bureaucrat, and he was played by Trek regular (Robert Picardo, of Star Trek: Voyager). He started out as an antagonist to the rebellious SG-1 crew, but quickly became an ally. Voyager fans will know Picardo from his role as the Emergency Medical Hologram (the EMH), who, despite being utterly prickly the whole seven years, was still one of the show’s more interesting characters. It tracks, then, that Woolsey became a fan favorite, who even got compilations showing off his best moments.
5) Doctor Sherman Cottle – Battlestar Galactica
Every space opera show, it feels, has a doctor in the main cast. In Battlestar Galactica, they did indeed have a doctor, but Sherman Cottle was never a lead, despite his consistent appearances in the series. Still, whenever he did appear, often with a cigarette, he brought a human quality to a show, while excellent, that sometimes eschewed humanity in favor of sheer survival. He wasn’t a perfect example of a doctor, but in that way, he fit in well with BSG‘s core philosophy of imperfect people making imperfect choices in impossible scenarios. He was a reliable presence in a show where many characters were completely unreliable. To see him is a relief, even if he might think that’s a ridiculous thing to think.
6) Wilfred Mott – New Doctor Who
In his original run as the new Doctor Who‘s showrunner, Russell T. Davies enjoyed showing the various companions’ family. These were real people the Doctor was stealing away to have adventures, he argued, but that point probably hit the most consistently with Donna Noble’s grandfather, Wilfred Mott. He was a conservative old British Army vet, who, despite being a source of humor, was never the butt of the joke. The actor, Bernard Cribbins, had appeared in the original Doctor Who back in the 60s, and had even been considered as a replacement for the Doctor at one point, but he never got a consistent role until he appeared in “Voyage of the Damned” in 2007.
Mott arguably steals the show during RTD’s era; despite not being an official companion, bringing heart and warmth, and fans were delighted when he appeared in the 60th-anniversary specials. Although Bernard Cribbins has now died, Wilfred Mott will live on in fans’ hearts — and perhaps even in future appearances: his last canonical appearance, in 2023’s “The Giggle” utilized a double and archival material.
7) Carl Elias – Person of Interest
When the world is facing an existential threat from all-knowing, all-powerful AIs, sometimes you have to team up with a crime boss. Carl Elias was most certainly not one of Person of Interest‘s most ethical figures, but he was definitely the most interesting side character to both work with and against Team Machine. He gets along with most of our heroes, despite being willing to cross lines most of them wouldn’t; he was witty, and he saw a certain degree of humor in how absurd things often got in the PoI-verse. It didn’t hurt that he was played by beloved character actor Enrico Colantoni, bringing heart and brains to a role that could’ve been just another killer.
8) Clarissa Mao – The Expanse
One of the perils of adaptation is simply not knowing when your show will end. Clarissa Mao was almost a character doomed to exist simply in Season 3 of The Expanse‘s original run, despite having a bigger importance in the (at the time) unadapted books. If her story had ended there, she still would’ve stolen the show: she’s a sister seeking revenge for both her sister’s tragic death (Julie, who kicked the story of The Expanse off) and the ruination of her family (due to her father’s unethical experiments). She’s done unspeakable things to herself to get as far as she does in her revenge plot.
Clarissa gets a redemption arc, ultimately, in the final three Expanse seasons from Amazon Prime. She even becomes a part of the Roci‘s crew in the end. She steals the show, in part, because she’s a reminder of the show’s ideology that there aren’t really monsters: there are people who do monstrous things, but there’s always a chance people can be saved. That her redemption comes with the help of Amos, the show’s steely and scary good guy, is further proof of that.
9) Emily Grace – Westworld
“These violent delights have violent ends.” The Shakespeare quote Westworld lived and died by works well when thinking about Emily, the Man-in-Black’s daughter, who, despite being completely human, was programmed and plotted almost as well as the android hosts her father William was obsessed with figuring out. Her story ends in tragedy, of course, and no matter how she tries to break her family’s heartbreaking cycle, she’s not going to manage it. She is her father’s daugher: often ruthless, and endlessly curious. Her arc in Season 2 is a reminder of the younger William’s brighter qualities, and when she’s killed by her father, it creates a ripple effect through the rest of his arc.
10) Lee Jung-Gil – For All Mankind
It was a special delight when For All Mankind, Apple TV+’s retelling of the space race, had the North Korean ujunaut Lee Jung-Gil play a bigger role in the fourth and most recent season. He made his first appearance in Season 3’s penultimate episode, where it’s revealed that he‘s actually the first human on Mars, despite all the fuss about it being the US versus the USSR earlier in the season.
In For All Mankind‘s timeline, North Korea managed to send a probe to Mars and actually man it (although most believed it was unmanned). Lee Jung-Gil was part of a two man crew, but he’s the only who survives. He, of course, survives for seven months before being rescued by the show’s heroes. Because he landed first, it means North Korea has a certain claim to some part of the Mars base that eventually gets built. He returns in Season 4 and becomes an unexpected ally (one of the show’s specialties). Hopefully, he makes another comeback in Season 5; despite his quiet exterior, he’s one of the most daring characters the show has, currently.
Who’s a side character on a sci-fi show that stole the show for you, personally? Let us know in the comments below!
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