Northern Exposure guest stars
340 actors have guest-starred in Northern Exposure across 110 episodes and 6 seasons. The most-credited is William J. White, Dave the Cook in 46 episodes. 120 of them have also guest-starred in five or more of the other shows in this catalogue.
Who came back most
| Actor | Character | Eps |
|---|---|---|
| William J. White | Dave the Cook | 46 |
| Moultrie Patten | Walt | 37 |
| James L. Dunn | Hayden Keyes, Shorty | 19 |
| Earl Quewezance | Eugene | 17 |
| Diane Delano | Officer Barbara Semanski | 12 |
| Richard Cummings Jr. | Bernard Stevens | 12 |
| Adam Arkin | Adam | 10 |
| Anthony Edwards | Mike Monroe | 10 |
| Grant Goodeve | Rick Pederson | 10 |
| Gary Taylor | Gary, Len, Lenny | 9 |
| Doug Ballard | Ronald Arthur Bantz | 8 |
| George Barril | Owen | 8 |
| Don McManus | Erick Reese Hillman | 7 |
| Apesanahkwat | Lester Haines | 5 |
| Armenia Miles | Mrs. Whirlwind, Mrs. Anku | 5 |
| Graham Greene | Leonard Quinhagak | 5 |
| Valerie Mahaffey | Eve | 5 |
| Bob Morrisey | Gil Le Fleur, Caterer, Dr. Carver | 4 |
| Simon Templeman | Cal Ingraham | 4 |
| Al Denbeste | Patient, Bar Patron | 3 |
| Brian T. Finney | Fisherman, Singing Drunk, Teak | 3 |
| Charmaine Craig | Heather Haines | 3 |
| Harry Pringle | Crow Flies Straight, Masello, Morning Star | 3 |
| Jerry Adler | Rabbi Alan Schulman | 3 |
| John Aylward | Charles 'Red' Murphy, Businessman | 3 |
Northern Exposure guest stars by season
| Season | Guests | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 45 | Grant Goodeve, John Aylward, Adam Arkin, Anne Gordon, Anthony Curry, Armenia Miles, Art LaFleur, Brandon Douglas, Buffalo Child, Charlie Russo, Christa Miller, Darryl Fong and 33 more |
| Season 2 | 36 | Grant Goodeve, Alan Fudge, Albert J. Hood, Beverly Leech, Carolyn Byrne, Cathy Bryan, Dana Andersen, David Hrolicka, Diane Delano, Don McManus, Dorothy Hanlin, Doug Ballard and 24 more |
| Season 3 | 78 | William J. White, Adam Arkin, Gary Taylor, Diane Delano, Richard Cummings Jr., Valerie Mahaffey, Brian T. Finney, Bryson G. Liberty, Harry Pringle, Robert Zenk, Al Hood, Allan Miller and 66 more |
| Season 4 | 79 | William J. White, Anthony Edwards, Richard Cummings Jr., Moultrie Patten, Doug Ballard, Al Denbeste, Don McManus, Gary Taylor, Kermit Cole, Ralph P. Martin, Adam Ant, Adam Arkin and 67 more |
| Season 5 | 94 | William J. White, Moultrie Patten, George Barril, Apesanahkwat, Diane Delano, Earl Quewezance, Graham Greene, James L. Dunn, Adam Arkin, Clark Sandford, Don McManus, Doug Ballard and 82 more |
| Season 6 | 97 | Moultrie Patten, James L. Dunn, Earl Quewezance, Diane Delano, George Barril, Bob Morrisey, Charmaine Craig, Apesanahkwat, Armenia Miles, Jerry Adler, Richard Cummings Jr., Simon Templeman and 85 more |
Guest stars you know from somewhere else
The hardest-working character actors in this show's guest cast, ranked by how many other shows in this catalogue they have also guest-starred in. Not the most famous names, the most prolific ones.
| Actor | In Northern Exposure | Other shows |
|---|---|---|
| John Billingsley | Patient | 38 |
| Don McManus | Erick Reese Hillman | 37 |
| Alan Fudge | Father Duncan | 32 |
| Dennis Cockrum | Auctioneer | 32 |
| Brian George | Arthur Prabnanda | 29 |
| Mark Pellegrino | Rolf Hauser | 28 |
| Stephen Root | Brother Timothy | 27 |
| Sean O'Bryan | Kenny | 26 |
| Gary Basaraba | Willie | 25 |
| Joel Polis | Matthew Miller | 25 |
| Ralph Manza | Cesare Trapani | 24 |
| Debra Mooney | Jane Stowe O'Connell | 23 |
| Joanna Cassidy | Solvang Planey | 23 |
| Lisa Waltz | Stephie O'Connell | 23 |
| John Aylward | Charles 'Red' Murphy, Businessman | 22 |
Played more than one character
| Actor | Characters | Eps |
|---|---|---|
| Gary Taylor | Gary, Len, Lenny | 9 |
| Bob Morrisey | Gil Le Fleur, Caterer, Dr. Carver | 4 |
| Brian T. Finney | Fisherman, Singing Drunk, Teak | 3 |
| Harry Pringle | Crow Flies Straight, Masello, Morning Star | 3 |
| James L. Dunn | Hayden Keyes, Shorty | 19 |
| Armenia Miles | Mrs. Whirlwind, Mrs. Anku | 5 |
| Al Denbeste | Patient, Bar Patron | 3 |
| John Aylward | Charles 'Red' Murphy, Businessman | 3 |
| Robert Nadir | Pete Gilliam, Wolf | 3 |
| Al Hood | George Tuck, Tomato Inspector | 2 |
Shares a cast with
- Northern Exposure and ER — 55 shared actors
- L.A. Law — 46 shared actors
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation — 36 shared actors
- Murder, She Wrote — 32 shared actors
- Quantum Leap — 28 shared actors
- Matlock — 26 shared actors
- Seinfeld — 26 shared actors
- The X-Files — 26 shared actors
Cast data from TVmaze, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.