It’s been a long while since we’ve heard anybody command “Engage!” on TV (at least in the Star Trek capacity), but that’s about to change.
CBS’ upcoming Star Trek: Discovery has finally confirmed its captain: British actor Jason Isaacs, who played Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies and supplied a voice in animated sci-fi/fantasy series Star Wars Rebels (among many, many other roles). Isaacs will be playing Captain Lorca.
Star Trek: Discovery follows the continued adventures of the USS Discovery, and it’ll be reminiscent of the same ol’ Trek — namely a lot of exploration of alien worlds, civilizations and extraterrestrial life forms. Of course, this is 2017, so the viewer can expect contemporary plot lines and issues relevant to a modern audience.
Not much has been revealed about Captain Lorca, except that he’ll be steering the USS Discovery through the universe.
WATCH BELOW: Star Trek: Discovery teaser trailer
There has been a lot of upheaval behind the scenes of Discovery, with the premiere date originally set for January 2017, then May 2017, and now it’s planned to premiere near the end of the year.
CBS chairman Les Moonves claims that Star Trek isn’t something to rush out; it’s imperative to ensure its quality, given the worldwide fan base and number of eyeballs on the project.
“It’s important to get it right,” Moonves said recently to investors. “Star Trek is the family jewels. We’re not going to rush it in. There’s a lot of post-production. But I’m very confident based on what I’ve seen so far.”
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Aside from the constant delays, there has also been some trouble on the directorial side. Original showrunner Bryan Fuller (Star Trek: DS9, Star Trek: Voyager writer) bailed from the series in October of last year, cutting all ties.
Isaacs is joining an ever-burgeoning cast, which now includes Sonequa Martin-Green (The Walking Dead) as Lieutenant Commander Rainsford, Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) as captain of another ship, the Shenzhou, James Frain (Gotham, The Tudors) as Spock’s dad Sarek and Doug Jones (Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinth) as science officer Saru.
Star Trek: Discovery premieres on CBS in the late summer/early fall of 2017, and will be available on CBS All Access (which requires a monthly subscription) for audiences in the U.S. Bell Media has the rights to the show in Canada.