“Test audiences and executives did not believe that a woman could be in its position of command.”
Times have certainly changed, and for the better, since Star Trek made its first appearance on television screens back in 1966. Dating even further back by just a couple of years was the show’s first pilot, which wouldn’t even air in its entirety until 1988. Among the cast of “The Cage,” was, of course, Majel Barrett, who was the first actress to portray the character of Number One.
Fast forward over 60 years later: Number One is now portrayed by Rebecca Romijn on Strange New Worlds. And the actress discussed the character’s much-needed evolution while attending this year’s Italian Global Series (IGS). Romijn said (per The Playlist): “According to what I heard, test audiences and executives did not believe that a woman could be in its position of command.”
Romijn, who first portrayed the part of Una Chin-Riley, aka Number One, during the season 2 episode of Star Trek: Discovery, “An Obol for Charon,” continued by saying:
“So, they scrapped it. And it’s taken this long for us to finally get to flesh out these characters, 60 years later. The longest pilot-to-series jump in history, I would have to say. So, I think that in keeping with [creator Gene] Roddenberry’s original vision, we now finally get to have an Enterprise bridge crew that is full of women and men, of course. It’s a mixed bag as it always should have been.”
Some of my favorite interviews and documentaries over the years have been the ones that brought up Roddenberry deciding to keep Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy), who also appeared in “The Cage,” as a character aboard the USS Enterprise — and marrying Barrett when he was told to choose between them for his Star Trek.
Personally, as Strange New Worlds has proven, Number One and Spock can successfully coexist on a television series. And if female characters had been afforded more respect in the 1960s, I’m sure Barrett would have proven to be an excellent first officer under William Shatner’s Captain James T. Kirk.
If Barrett had continued playing Number One on The Original Series, I doubt she would have ended up providing the voice of the Enterprise, to say nothing of portraying Christine Chapel. Given the way history played out, both Barrett and Romijn will forever be immortalized in Star Trek history. However, Romijn will always be Number One in our hearts, as far as Una Chin-Riley goes.
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Live long and prosper, Trekkies!
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