She is boldly going to be remembered by fans as “the first female captain.”
The Star Trek franchise will soon celebrate its 60th anniversary. However, one of the series’ most intriguing and memorable characters wasn’t even introduced on television until nearly 30 years after The Original Series first aired on NBC. And despite smaller appearances by the USS Saratoga’s commander (Madge Sinclair) and the Enterprise-C’s Rachel Garrett (Tricia O'Neil), Kathryn Janeway will always be remembered as the saga’s first female captain — and actress Kate Mulgrew is honored to have portrayed such an iconic character.
“It’s an extraordinary privilege to play the first female captain, and to learn the significance it has had, particularly on women in STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics] is amazing and deeply gratifying,” Mulgrew said in an interview (per TV Insider). “At the same time, it did define me in a way I wasn’t prepared for. People always lead with Captain Janeway, whatever the conversation is. That continues to surprise me, but it has had a global impact.”
I, like many lifelong Trekkies and Trekkers, love the character of Captain Janeway, who first graced the bridge of the USS Voyager in the fan-favorite show’s 1995 premiere “Caretaker.” The iconic actress also showed up briefly in the feature film Star Trek: Nemesis (2002), this time as Admiral Janeway. However, this was hardly the end of Mulgrew's role and importance to the franchise.
When the animated series Star Trek: Prodigy debuted in 2021, Mulgrew reprised her most famous part as both the USS Protostar’s Hologram Janeway and again as Admiral Janeway, who was part of an epic Voyager reunion in season 2, as both Chakotay (Robert Beltran) and The Doctor (Robert Picardo) played integral roles alongside these versions of Janeway.
Are you as much of a Janeway fan as I am? And who wouldn’t enjoy watching the character return in a new Star Trek series or film? Share your thoughts and comments with us on Mulgrew’s important contributions to the beloved science fiction franchise via the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages.
Live long and prosper, Trekkies!
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