In the long history of Star Trek, only two actors have played James Tiberius Kirk: William Shatner and Chris Pine. However, Paramount+ has announced that we'll soon be meeting an all-new incarnation of the iconic Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has added The Vampire Diaries alum Paul Wesley to its ensemble cast, and he'll make his debut as Captain Kirk during the show's second season.
“Paul is an accomplished actor, an astonishing presence and a welcome key addition to the show,” said executive producer Alex Kurtzman and showrunners Akiva Goldsman and Henry Alonso Myers in a statement. “Like all of us, he is a life-long Star Trek fan and we are excited by his interpretation of this iconic role.
Get a first look at our new Kirk in the Captain's chair below along with the recently released trailer.
This is an unusual move (season 1 hasn't even aired yet), but the streaming service is clearly trying to build as much hype for Strange New Worlds as possible.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is set to debut this May, and also stars Anson Mount as Christopher Pike, Rebecca Romijn as Number One, Ethan Peck as Mr. Spock, Babs Olusanmokun as Doctor M'Benga, Christina Chong as L'an Noonian-Singh, Celia Rose as Nyota Uhura, Jess Bush as Nurse Christine Chapel, and Bruce Horak as Hemmer.