Could Hemmer be returning in flashbacks on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds?

The season two premiere of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is on June 15.

New episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will appear on Paramount+ beginning June 15 when the series begins its second season. One fan favorite cast member, though, Lt. Hemmer (Bruce Horak) was killed off in “All Those Who Wander,” the ninth episode of season one. That doesn’t necessarily mean the actor is gone for good as we’ve already learned from co-executive producer Davy Perez who said Star Trek has a long tradition of reusing characters. But what about Lt. Hemmer himself? Is he gone for good?

Celia Rose Gooding (Cadet Uhura) may have answered that question in a recent panel at MCM Comic Con in London [via Trekmovie]. Gooding said she thought there was a lot more to learn about the relationship between Uhura and Hemmer and was really excited for fans to get to know the layers of Uhura through her relationship with Hemmer. It seems like the only way that could be done is to have Hemmer return in flashbacks.

"[Bruce Horak] is such a light and for Uhura to have that, especially given her past and her history with family and community, to have someone so near and dear to her in those moments of newness and trying to figure out who she is in Starfleet and what Starfleet means to her—to have that was so beautiful. And then to lose it was so heartbreaking but also so yummy for reasons I can’t explain just yet. I think that there’s a lot more to learn about their relationship even in Hemmer’s passing. And yeah, I’m just really excited for fans to get to know the layers of Uhura through her relationship with Hemmer and also her relationship with herself after Hemmer’s gone."

Bringing Lt. Hemmer back would be good for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

Even if Horak only appeared in a few scenes, it will give fans a sense of closure as he was so abruptly killed in season one when he sacrificed himself to save the crew from the Gorn. Plus, as I mentioned, he was a fan favorite and brought a much needed dish of sarcasm to the series much like DeForest Kelley did as Bones on Star Trek: The Original Series.

Lt. Hemmer was a talented engineer and was a mentor to Cadet Uhura who still wasn’t sure whether she belonged aboard the Enterprise or even in Starfleet. Hemmer helped her find her sense of purpose, but we’d love to see more interactions with them as he seemed to be the only one who understood her almost better than she understood herself. So we wouldn’t say no to seeing Hemmer again!