It’s some exciting Star Trek news to end the year on! Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, which just wrapped production on its fifth and final series, has cast two actors in legendary roles. Actor Thomas Jane (The Expanse) will portray Doctor Leonard “Bones” McCoy. Additionally, he’ll be joined by stage actor Kai Murakami, who takes on the role of Hikaru Sulu. Both characters originated in Star Trek: The Original Series and served under Captain James T Kirk.
However, before we get too excited, there is one key detail. Both of these legendary Star Trek characters will only appear in the finale of the fifth and final season. Therefore, don’t expect them to join the USS Enterprise and work alongside series lead Anson Mount as Captain Christopher Pike. The late DeForest Kelley portrayed Doctor McCoy. George Takei portrayed Hikaru Sulu in various Star Trek media projects.
Who are the New Cast for Strange New Worlds?
Sci-Fi fans might know the name of Thomas Jane. While he’ll be jumping into the Star Trek Universe for the first time, the actor is no stranger to science fiction. Jane previously appeared in the first few seasons of The Expanse as Detective Miller. Jane’s credits in film include “Boogie Nights,” “Deep Blue Sea,” “The Punisher, and “The Mist.”
Kai Murakami is making his TV debut in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Previously, he has performed on stage with the Royal Shakespeare Company and worked in performance capture on the video games “Assassin’s Creed” and “Rise of the Ronin.”
The casting of Jane may signal the creatives’ desire to continue the Star Trek Universe with a new story on the USS Enterprise. Strange New Worlds series creators previously floated the idea of a “Year One“, which would follow the USS Enterprise under Captain James T Kirk, who is portrayed by Paul Wesley in Strange New Worlds. Akiva Goldsman, a co-executive producer, has previously expressed interest in a “Star Trek: Year One” show that would follow Kirk. Doctor McCoy is a key character needed for the series.
Set a Course…
Captain Christopher Pike’s USS Enterprise adventures continue with both the 10-episode Season 4 and the 6-episode Season 5 coming in the future. Season 4 is expected to arrive sometime in 2026, likely not long after the first season of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy finishes in March. However, we likely won’t see Season 5 until 2027.
Season 5 of Strange New Worlds may have finished filming, but there is still some way to go in the series’ post-production. The benefit of filming Season 4 and 5 back-to-back is that it should make the pipeline a little smoother for the teams involved. Still, it seems this era of the Star Trek Universe is, sadly, coming to a close in the not-so-distant future!
Will we hear more about the future of the Star Trek: Universe in 2026? With it being Star Trek’s 60th Anniversary and Skydance taking control of Paramount, Trekkies can look forward to news about the next era of the Star Trek Franchise. Let’s hope so!
More From Trek Central
🔥 – A Monster Wrap-Up of Strange New Worlds Season 3
📰 – Review – Star Trek: Khan – Episode 9 ‘Eternity’s Face’
🔎️ – Celebrating ‘Family’ – TNG’s Boldest Episode Turns 35
Join the Star Trek conversation via our social media platforms:
- Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TrekCentral
- Patreon – https://www.patreon.com/TrekCentral
- Instagram – https://instagram.com/TrekCentral
- BlueSky – https://bsky.app/profile/trekcentral.net
- Twitter – https://twitter.com/TheTrekCentral
- YouTube – https://youtube.com/TheTrekCentral
- Mastodon – https://mastodon.social/@[email protected]
- Discord – https://discord.gg/fF2heMbfW8
