Denise Crosby was cast as Tasha Yar in Star Trek: The Next Generation, but the actress originally auditioned for a completely different role — one that she would have been better suited to play. Crosby had a short, but memorable, stint on TNG, being a part of the main cast for its debut season and then returning for some of the show’s most memorable episodes later on. The soft-spoken blonde left her mark on the Star Trek franchise in more ways than one — but the events almost played out differently.
Lieutenant Natasha Yar was the chief of security on the USS Enterprise-D when the Star Trek series debuted in 1987; however, TNG killed off Tasha Yar in season 1, largely because Crosby was dissatisfied with the role and wanted to leave the series. Crosby left on good terms, however, and was permitted to come back in guest roles: first in the season 3 time-travel episode “Yesterday’s Enterprise,” then in a Romulan-centered two-parter “Redemption” and “Redemption II.”
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Tasha Yar was the tough security chief with a tragic backstory; originally however, Denise Crosby had auditioned for a very different role: the ship’s counselor. According to a Paramount memo posted to Letters of Note, Denise was a front-runner to play Deanna Troi, with the note reading “Denise Crosby seems to be the only possibility for the role of “Troi” at this point.” Interestingly, Marina Sirtis, who would eventually be cast in the role, is not mentioned in the memo.
According to Star Trek lore, Marina Sirtis was asked to audition for The Next Generation because of her “exotic” appearance: Aliens inspired Gene Roddenberry to make a tough, sexy character like Private Jenette Vasquez (Jenette Goldstein). It’s unclear why, but at some point, Gene Roddenberry changed his mind and switched the two parts; Sirtis was cast as the counselor and Crosby became the security chief. The problem was, however, that Crosby never quite fit into the role: unlike Worf, who had a dominating and aggressive presence on screen, Crosby was muted and soft-spoken. To make matters worse, TNG offered little opportunity for Crosby to explore her character — apart from some cringe-worthy backstories in one of the show’s worst episodes, “The Naked Now.” As a result, Crosby far too often faded into the background.
The very aspects that made Crosby forgettable as Tasha in The Next Generation would have been perfect in the role of Troi. Her gentle yet stern demeanor is exactly the right balance one would expect from a military counselor serving aboard a starship. And Although Sirtis’ Deanna Troi is a beloved Star Trek character, there’s evidence that she too would have fared better in the original casting. Sirtis was initially considered for Lt. Macha Hernandez — an early version of Tasha Yar — who was aggressive and feisty like Aliens‘ Private Vasquez. Sirtis has the chops to pull this off: she demonstrates as much in the episode “Face of the Enemy,” in which she — under deep cover posing as a Tal Shiar — demonstrates her fierce, dominating side. Like Crosby, Sirtis struggled in the show’s first season — Troi was almost fired in TNG season 1 — but thankfully, she was able to continue on the show until it concluded after seven seasons.
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