Worf
Worf, son of Mogh is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise, portrayed by actor Michael Dorn. He appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, seasons four through seven of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and the third and final season of Star Trek: Picard, as well as the feature films Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek: Nemesis.
Worf is the first Klingon main character to appear in Star Trek. In 11 seasons as a regular character on TNG and DS9, plus appearances as a recurring character in Picard, Worf has appeared in more Star Trek franchise episodes than any other character.
Casting
Initially, Worf was not intended to be a regular character, as Gene Roddenberry wanted to avoid "retreads of characters or races featured prominently in the original Star Trek series". Accordingly, a cast portrait released in June 1987 to promote the upcoming series did not include Worf. Several "tall, slim, black actors" auditioned for Worf before Michael Dorn came along. Not only did the Worf character become a regular on The Next Generation, he was continued on the Deep Space Nine series for four more seasons and talk of a spin-off Worf show continued even into the 2010s.He made his debut in 1987 in "Encounter at Farpoint", and last appeared in character in 2023 in Picard season 3. Dorn as Worf made 283 on-screen appearances, the most of any actor in the Star Trek franchise.
Family history
Worf was orphaned as a child as a result of the Khitomer Massacre, and raised by Helena and Sergey Rozhenko. In one episode, the character says he was raised on the farm world Gault and in others he says he was raised in Russia near the Ural Mountains. He experiences conflicts between his upbringing and his desire to honor his biological heritage. He has two brothers, each with their own respective backstories, as well as two adoptive human parents, and one son. Important Star Trek episodes for Worf's family include "The Bonding", "Sins of the Father", "Family", "Reunion" and "Homeward" in The Next Generation, and "Sons of Mogh" and "You Are Cordially Invited" in Deep Space Nine.The House of Mogh was a family of high social and political rank, and was for a time represented on the Klingon High Council. In Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Colonel Worf appears as the legal advocate of Captain James T. Kirk and Dr. Leonard McCoy after they are accused of killing Chancellor Gorkon of the Klingon High Council. He was also a member of the Klingon delegation at Camp Khitomer. Although not explicitly stated, he was intended to be Worf's grandfather and namesake.
Worf has a son named Alexander with a half-human half-Klingon woman named K'Ehleyr, a character introduced in "The Emissary"; however, she is later killed in "Reunion", a "sequel" to that episode and part of the Worf story arc, leaving Worf as a single parent. Alexander has to live aboard Enterprise-D when K'Ehleyr is killed. After TNG ends, Worf gets moved to the Deep Space Nine space station where he eventually marries the Trill symbiont Jadzia Dax. On DS9, Worf misses the Enterprise-D "family" that he had, often bemoaning the cut-rate work ethic and unfriendliness on the wayward outpost.
The episode "Sins of the Father" introduces Worf's long-lost brother Kurn, who is also an orphan of the House of Mogh. Worf's adoptive parents have a biological son, Nikolai Rozhenko, with whom Worf grew up. Nikolai and Worf talk in "Homeward", where it is revealed that Worf will likely have a nephew or niece.
In "The Bonding", Worf adopts an orphan boy into the House of Mogh. In the first Star Trek episode written by screenwriter Ron Moore, the orphan Jeremy has a special Klingon ceremony to be adopted into Worf's family.
Join me in the R'uustai, the Bonding. You will become part of my family now and for all time. We will be brothers.
Storylines
Backstory
Worf was born in 2340 on Qo'noS as the son of Mogh. Five years later, his parents moved to the Khitomer colony. Worf's parents were killed during a surprise attack by the Romulans on the Khitomer outpost. The colony's distress call was answered by the Federation starship USS Intrepid. Chief Petty Officer Sergey Rozhenko found Worf in the rubble and took him in after failing to find any living relatives. Rozhenko and his wife Helena raised him on a small farm colony on the planet Gault, a world of about 20,000 inhabitants, almost all of them human. Worf also has a human brother, Nikolai, with whom he often quarreled. He also spent time on Earth in his parents' native city of Minsk, later recommending it to Miles O'Brien as one of his favorite places on Earth.Worf did not take the Rozhenkos' last name, preferring to be addressed by the Klingon designation, "Worf, son of Mogh". However, his son, Alexander Rozhenko, who was raised by the Rozhenkos after his mother, K'Ehleyr, died, did use their surname. Although Worf was raised by humans, he considered himself a Klingon at heart and studied in-depth the ways of his people. As an adult, his mannerisms and personality, as well as his innate sense of honor, became more Klingon than human.
Worf's brother Kurn, barely a year old at the time of the Khitomer attack, had been left behind on the Klingon homeworld Qo'noS by his parents. Lorgh, a friend to House of Mogh, was charged with the care of the younger son, originally expecting Mogh's stay at the Khitomer outpost to be short-term. Lorgh adopted Kurn after the attack, but informed Klingon authorities that he had died with the rest of the family. Kurn was not revealed as being alive until both brothers were adults.
In 2357, Worf entered Starfleet Academy. He graduated in 2361 and was commissioned with the rank of Ensign, becoming the first Klingon officer in Starfleet. Although Worf took immense pride and a sense of honor from serving in Starfleet, most other Klingons shunned and belittled his choice of vocation.
In 2359, he became briefly involved with K'Ehleyr who was the daughter of a Klingon father and a human mother.
''The Next Generation''
In 2364, Worf was assigned to the USS Enterprise-D as relief flight control and tactical officer with the rank of lieutenant junior grade under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard. The next year, he was made Acting Chief of Security following the death of Tasha Yar, even though he believed that a promotion due to the death of a comrade was not honorable. The next year, he transferred to operations division and was formally made Chief of Security.In 2365, he renewed his relationship with K'Ehleyr when she came aboard the Enterprise as a Federation emissary on an urgent mission. He proposed marriage but was rejected.
In 2366, he was promoted to Lieutenant. After an accident caused the death of Lt. Marla Astor, Worf brought the orphaned Jeremy Astor into the House of Mogh through the rite of R'uustai.
Worf learned of Kurn's existence when Kurn was assigned to the Enterprise as an exchange officer. Kurn specifically asked for the Enterprise so he could observe his brother. He then revealed his true identity, informing Worf that the House of Mogh's rival Duras accused their father of betraying the Klingon Empire by helping the Romulans attack Khitomer. When they and the Enterprise crew discovered that it was in fact Duras's father who betrayed the Empire, Worf, realizing that the powerful House of Duras could not be publicly shamed without throwing the Empire into civil war, accepted a ritual discommendation from the Klingon High Council. While Worf decided to accept this dishonor, it was decided to keep Kurn's true identity secret in order to protect his honor .
In 2367, K'Ehleyr returned with Klingon Chancellor K'mpec who had come to meet with Captain Picard. When she came aboard, Worf learned he had a son named Alexander. She wanted to marry him but Worf refused because he did not want to share his dishonor with her and their son.
After K'mpec's death, she assisted Captain Picard with the rite of succession. K'Ehleyr was eventually murdered by Duras when she found evidence of his involvement in the effort to discredit Worf. Exercising his right of vengeance, Worf fought and killed Duras with a bat'leth in a duel, allowing Duras's political opponent Gowron to become chancellor.
A civil war erupted when the Duras's son Toral challenged Gowron. Worf believed Gowron was the legitimate ruler and convinced his brother to bring forces loyal to him into battle on Gowron's behalf. Worf resigned from Starfleet to fight for Gowron and served on his brother's ship. Gowron won the war after Starfleet exposed Romulan support for the House of Duras. In appreciation of his support, Chancellor Gowron restored Worf's honor, allowing Kurn a seat on the High Council as the recognized brother and representative of the House of Mogh. Once the war was over, Worf regained his Starfleet commission, recognizing that he did not fully belong to Klingon society.
In 2369, while the Enterprise was at Deep Space Nine, Worf investigated a claim that his father might still be alive in a Romulan prison camp. His father was not there, but a number of Klingons were living there with the Romulans. Unable to return home with honor, as Klingons are supposed to commit suicide rather than be taken prisoner, they stayed and strayed from their way of life. Worf's visit had a profound effect on the children of the prisoners and many chose to leave with him.
Worf's visit to the camp caused him to reconsider his own beliefs. He visited the monastery at Boreth to meditate. One day, a man appeared before him claiming to be Kahless the Unforgettable who had returned to lead the Empire once more. Worf was willing to consider the idea that Kahless was genuine because he believed the Klingons had lost their ways. Gowron was skeptical. He questioned Kahless about details of his memories, which Kahless could not recall, and then challenged Kahless to combat, defeating him easily. The loss forced the clerics to reveal that they had created a clone of Kahless and implanted ancient scriptures of Kahless's battles as his memories. Despite this, Worf became convinced that the Klingons would make a leap of faith and accept him as the legitimate heir of Kahless. He convinced the Klingons to appoint the new Kahless as Emperor. While real power remained with Gowron as head of government, the Emperor would be the formal head of state and teach the stories of Kahless. Gowron was induced to go along with this arrangement when Worf threatened in private otherwise to oppose him publicly, which Gowron, still not fully in control of the Empire, could not afford..
Worf avoided romantic attachments with non-Klingons during his first few years onboard the Enterprise-D. As Worf explained to both Commander Riker and Guinan, he felt that non-Klingon females would be too fragile, and that he would have to restrain himself too much. He eventually developed strong feelings for Counselor Deanna Troi, and explored a relationship with her for a time, which at times strained his relationship with her former romantic interest, Commander Riker. Worf and Troi seemed to end their relationship following the destruction of the Enterprise-D at Veridian III and Worf's reassignment to Deep Space Nine.