At the end of 2014, Star Trek celebrated the 50th anniversary of filming its first pilot, and the beginning of 2015 marked the 20th anniversary of Star Trek: Voyager's premiere. Add to these milestones that 2016 will be the 50th anniversary of the original series' premiere and the long legacy of Star Trek has never been more prominent.

The franchise brought compelling stories to our TV screens for decades and had numerous memorable characters. When thinking about the iconic characters from Star Trek's entire run on television, it's easy to name many of the main characters as some of the best on TV. The great thing about Star Trek, however, is that there are an equal number of fantastic performances among the recurring side characters that truly shine beyond the main cast.

We might not have seen these characters every week, but when they did appear, they were unforgettable, sometimes much more intriguing than the regular players, and often left us hoping they'd appear again the next week! Here's our list of the most interesting recurring characters across all the series, counting down the very best of the bunch, and including interviews with Grace Lee Whitney, Dwight Schultz, Andrew Robinson, Chase Masterson and more!