Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is now in production. The new Paramount+ series has also added five new actors to its cast. Babs Olusanmokun, Christina Chong, Celia Rose Gooding, Jess Bush, and Melissa Navia are joining Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn, and Ethan Peck on the latest series addition to the Trek universe. This series follows the early adventures of the Starship Enterprise before Captain James T. Kirk took the helm.
Paramount+ revealed more about the newest Star Trek series in a press release.
“Paramount+, the new streaming service from ViacomCBS, today announced five new cast members joined the upcoming Original Series STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS. Babs Olusanmokun (Black Mirror, Dune), Christina Chong (Tom and Jerry, Black Mirror), Celia Rose Gooding (Jagged Little Pill), Jess Bush (“Skinford,” “Les Norton”) and Melissa Navia (“Dietland,” “Billions”) will join as series regulars. A teaser video featuring the series’ cast was also released today, announcing that production on the series is officially underway in Toronto, Canada.
“In a career, there is never enough work that is pure joy. I feel that my friend Alex Kurtzman along with David Stapf at CBS Studios and Julie McNamara at Paramount+ have given me just that by letting me haunt the stock rooms of my favorite candy store and I am grateful,” said Akiva Goldsman, co-showrunner and executive producer of STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS. “With a hell of a cast and undying love for the original series, we boldly go.”
“I’m incredibly grateful to be working alongside Akiva and our brilliant, multi-faceted cast to help bring the adventures of the Starship Enterprise to new life,” said Henry Alonso Myers, co-showrunner and executive producer of STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS. “For someone who’s been dreaming of spaceships and alien worlds since I was little, this show is a dream come true.”
Babs Olusanmokun’s notable television credits include his roles in Netflix’s Black Mirror, Marvel’s The Defenders, HBO’s Emmy-winning miniseries The Night Of and History’s 2016 remake of the miniseries Roots. His film credits include the upcoming and highly anticipated “Dune” and “Wrath of Man.”
Christina Chong can currently be seen in the live-action adaption of the classic Hanna-Barbera cartoon, Tom and Jerry and in The CW’s Bulletproof. Chong’s other television credits include Black Mirror, Doctor Who, the BBC’s Ill Behaviour, the ABC event mini-series Of Kings and Prophets, the hit BBC series Line of Duty, SYFY’s Dominion, Halo: Nightfall and Fox’s event `mini-series 24: Live Another Day. Film credits include “Christmas Eve,” opposite Patrick Stewart, and “Johnny English: Reborn.”
Celia Rose Gooding starred as Frankie Healy in “Jagged Little Pill,” a musical inspired by Alanis Morissette’s award-winning album, until the Broadway shutdown in 2021, and received a 2020 Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her work. Past theater roles also include “Urinetown” and “Fame.”
Jess Bush starred as Helen in the indie feature “Skinford” and appeared in the recurring guest role of Kendall in the Channel 10 series Playing for Keeps. Bush also played the role of Bella in the Australian series “Halifax – Retribution.” In addition, Bush went on to guest star on the ABC series Les Norton opposite Rebel Wilson and David Wenham.
Melissa Navia’s recent television credits include a recurring role on AMC’s critically acclaimed series Dietland and guest roles on Showtime’s Billions and Homeland. In March 2020, she made her Off-Broadway debut in the much-applauded “Bundle of Sticks” at INTAR Theatre.
STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS is based on the years Captain Christopher Pike manned the helm of the U.S.S. Enterprise. The series will feature fan favorites from season two of STAR TREK: DISCOVERY, Anson Mount as Captain Christopher Pike, Rebecca Romijn as Number One and Ethan Peck as Science Officer Spock. The series will follow Captain Pike, Science Officer Spock and Number One in the years before Captain Kirk boarded the U.S.S. Enterprise, as they explore new worlds around the galaxy.
The series premiere was written by Akiva Goldsman with the story by Akiva Goldsman, Alex Kurtzman and Jenny Lumet. Goldsman and Henry Alonso Myers serve as co-showrunners, with Goldsman directing the premiere episode. Goldsman, Kurtzman and Lumet will serve as executive producers in addition to Alonso Myers, Heather Kadin, Frank Siracusa, John Weber, Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth. Aaron Baiers, Akela Cooper and Davy Perez will serve as co-executive producers. Akiva Goldsman remains an executive producer and a key part of the creative team on STAR TREK: PICARD as well. The series is produced by CBS Studios, Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment. The series is distributed by ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group.
STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS will join the Star Trek Universe on Paramount+ in the U.S., which includes current and upcoming seasons of the original series STAR TREK: DISCOVERY, STAR TREK: PICARD, the animated series STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS and the upcoming all-new animated kids’ series STAR TREK: PRODIGY. The Star Trek Universe on Paramount+ also includes all 726 episodes from the six classic Star Trek series and a selection of Star Trek films.”
Check out a cast teaser from the set below.
What do you think? Are you excited to see Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on Paramount+?
I like Picard and Discovery and all the rest but I hope this series (Strange new world ) stays for it’s 5 year limit or more. Don’t drop it please. No bad language or personal preferences to muck down the plot.
I liked the actor who played Capt. Pike but he is at the mercy of the woke script writers. They’ve already remade the Klingons, changed uniforms dozens of times, turned Seven of Nine gay (even though she had married Chakotay) and given the Discovery more technology (even before season 3) than ships from TNG, DS9, and Voyager – 100 years into the future! Canon is an unknown concept to these people. Call it “Star Trek” and that is “good enough,” right? After seeing the hack job they did with Discovery, I’m not hopeful.
Thanks for typing this. I abandoned Star Trek before Discovery had even been named because it looked like it was going to Wammen Trek. As new info was released my suspicions were confirmed so I’ve never viewed a single episode. I’ve heard people say “it wasn’t that bad” but I have no interest watching a lot of awful looking for a few mediocre positives. Then this show popped up (or should I say pooped down) into my tvseriesfinale email. So I just checked who the ‘stars’ will be and their faces alone gave me the unsettling feeling this was going… Read more »
I forgot about 7 of nine maybe they will let her change her ways. She was never that way on Voyager so who does that please??
I think it should air on a channel everyone can get
I hope that this is more like a series. Each episode self contained. While I enjoy the other recent incarnations (Discovery and Picard) I miss episodic television. I’d rather have lots of short stories and adventures instead of a 10 episode long season that’s just a miniseries. Of course I’ll watch, regardless, ha but holding out hope for something like episodes of Original, Next Generation, DS9, Voyager or Enterprise.
I’m sure it will be the most PC Star Trek of all time.
it already is, based on the casting
All shows are going to be like that for at least a few years. They’ve already stated as much. I hope they like dwindling viewers, advertising, and of course PROFITS. I’ve never seen a single episode of Discovery (I call it Tampon Trek), and I won’t be watching this one either. Maybe one day this Kurtzman guy will have enough money for effective ADHD medication and move on to something more aligned to his talents, like GI Joe commercials.