Jonathan Frakes Actor and director Jonathan Scott Frakes portrayed Commander William T . Riker on , episodes of , , and , and in four . He also directed a number of " The Next Generation " , " Deep Space Nine " , and " Voyager " episodes , along with two " Star Trek " films , and . He and David Carson are the only people to have directed " Star Trek " television and film productions . He has more recently worked as a director on , having directed the tenth installment of the series , . Along with Marina Sirtis , Armin Shimerman , John de Lancie , Michael Ansara , and Richard Poe , he is one of only six actors to play the same character in three different live action " Star Trek " series . Personal . Frakes , whose father was a college professor who taught English and literature , was born in , and raised in nearby . He began acting at a young age in junior high and high school plays . Following high school , Frakes enrolled at Pennsylvania State University as a psychology major , and during his time at Penn State became involved with an off - campus professional theater group ; this experience eventually led to Frakes changing his major to theater arts . Upon completion of his studies , a Bachelor of Fine Arts and Theater Arts , Frakes spent two summers studying drama at Harvard University , where he performed at the Loeb Drama Center . On 28 May 1988 , he married the actress Genie Francis ( Laura Spencer on " General Hospital " , on which a pre - Spock Leonard Nimoy starred in 1963 and on which Corbin Bernsen starred long after playing Q2 ) after working together in the television mini - series " North and South . " Francis is the daughter of the late character actor Ivor Francis , and the colony mentioned in , Ivor Prime , may have been named after Frakes ' s father - in - law . Frakes portrayed the brother of fellow " Star Trek " actors Kirstie Alley and James Read in " North and South " and " North and South : Book II " . The sequel also starred DS9 guest star Jim Metzler . Frakes previously met Francis filming the drama series " Bare Essence " in 1983 . Television career . Prior to " Star Trek : The Next Generation " , Frakes appeared in numerous TV roles . In 1977 , he co - starred on the medical soap opera " The Doctors " and between 1978 and 1985 held numerous guest roles on various shows such as " Fantasy Island " , " The Dukes of Hazzard " , " Quincy , M . E . " , " Highway to Heaven " , " The Waltons " , and " The Fall Guy . " Frakes also held a guest role in a 1982 episode of " Hill Street Blues " . The series featured many " Star Trek " personalities including James B . Sikking in the recurring role of Lieutenant Howard Hunter and Barbara Bosson as Fay Furillo . The series also featured guest roles by Jonathan Banks , Merritt Butrick , Miguel Ferrer , Larry A . Hankin , Tim Culbertson , and Christopher Doyle . Brent Spiner also appeared in the 1985 episode " The Life and Time of Dominic Florio Jr " . In 1985 , Frakes was cast as Damon Ross on the prime - time soap opera , a role for which he became very well known . Later that year he starred as a villainous steel industrialist in the 1985 mini - series " North and South " . The series co - stared Kirstie Alley as well as a cameo role by the famous country music singer Johnny Cash . In 1994 , while working on " Star Trek " , Frakes returned to his previous role in " North and South : Book II " . From 1998 to 2002 , he was the host of " Beyond Belief : Fact or Fiction " . " Star Trek " . Frakes auditioned seven times over six weeks for the part of Riker . ( TNG Season 1 DVD special feature " Selected Crew Analysis – Casting " ) He was cast in the role , first appearing in the pilot episode in 1987 . Frakes portrayed the role of Riker for the next seventeen years in various " Star Trek " series and films . For the " Deep Space Nine " episode , Frakes filmed his scenes between Wednesday and Tuesday on Paramount Stage 4 , 17 , and 18 . According to the call sheet , he received a hair and beard cut prior to filming on 5 October 1994 . The call sheets also distinguish the parts of " Will Riker " and " Tom Riker " in the cast section by using the numbers 9A and 9B . He recorded an audio commentary for the " " DVD , a film in which he both starred and directed . His efficient filming style on the set earned him the nickname of " Two - Takes Frakes " . Several of his costumes from his appearances in " Star Trek " were sold off on the It ' s A Wrap ! sale and auction on eBay , including the episodes , , , and . He personally feels that the " Star Trek : The Next Generation " episode is the worst segment of " Star Trek " that he worked on , while is his favorite " Next Generation " episode that he directed . Frakes pitched his own spin - off " Star Trek " show , but CBS rejected it due to the perceived over saturation of the franchise . Further work . His non - " Star Trek " feature - film directing credits include , , and all three of movies . He has also directed various television episodes , including shows such as " Roswell " , " Dollhouse " , " Castle " ( including an episode , " The Final Frontier " , that featured a large number of " Trek " references ) , " The Good Guys " , and " NCIS : Los Angeles " . He has also directed several episodes of " The Librarians " , a spinoff of the film series , which films in the Portland , Oregon area . In these works , he frequently makes cameo appearances . He has also co - written a book , . Frakes was later a member of The Sunspots , along with Patrick Stewart , Michael Dorn , and LeVar Burton . They appeared as the background vocals for " It ' s a Sin to Tell a Lie " on Brent Spiner ' s 1991 album " Ol ' Yellow Eyes is Back " . Frakes is also credited with playing trombone for " Riker ' s Mailbox " on the 1994 Phish album , " Hoist " . Appearances as William T . Riker . Jonathan Frakes is the only " Star Trek " regular cast member besides Majel Barrett to appear in four modern " Star Trek " series : " Star Trek : The Next Generation " , , , and . " Star Trek " directorial credits . Jonathan Frakes has directed several " Star Trek " episodes , and , more recently , two movies .