Expectations are high for Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. The upcoming series is set in the 32nd century as the Federation is recovering from the Burn, an event that caused mass destruction and ruined warp travel. The USS Discovery crew helped the Federation rebuild, and the first Starfleet class to return to San Francisco's campus in over 120 years will be featured on the new show when it drops Jan. 15 on Paramount+.
Collider provided the first look (below) at Rebecca Quin, aka WWE superstar Becky Lynch, from the new Star Trek series. We don’t know much about her character. However, the image shows Quin in an Operations Gold uniform, her famed red hair in a bob with blue streaks, and she appears to be human. Quin wrote in the comments of the announcement posted on X:
"Everyone’s FAVORITE wrestler turned actor will be starring in one of the most ICONIC franchises in TV history. Star Trek: Starfleet Academy premieres in January on Paramount+. You can get a sneak peek of just how AMAZING I look here. Small correction Collider, I’m not one of WWE’s biggest stars, I’M THE BIGGEST!"
Everyone’s FAVORITE wrestler turned actor will be starring in one of the most ICONIC franchises in TV history. Star Trek: Starfleet Academy premieres in January on Paramount+. You can get a sneak peek of just how AMAZING I look here. Small correction Collider, I’m not one of…
— Rebecca Quin (@BeckyLynchWWE) November 25, 2025
The show already has some big names attached, with Oscar-winner Holly Hunter as the Academy’s chancellor and captain of the USS Athena. Paul Giamatti portrays the season's main villain, Nus Braka, who is half-Klingon, half-Tellarite. Plus, Robert Picardo is back as The Doctor! There are also voice appearances by Brit Marling as the ship’s computer and Stephen Colbert doing announcements for the Academy.
It’s not the first time a WWE star has made their way into Star Trek. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson had a memorable appearance on Star Trek: Voyager and Paul “the Big Show” Wight appeared on Enterprise. It’s a good part for one of the biggest wrestling names around, and Becky Lynch's presence should beef up Starfleet Academy! Lynch also talked to Collider in a separate interview published back in May about her role in Star Trek and Colm Meaney, too. She said:
"I’m on the bridge crew, and filming on the bridge, it was one of the most amazing sets I’ve ever been on. I grew up when Star Trek was one of the two shows that was on TV in Ireland, on whatever four channels we had, so it was always on in the background. I can’t say that I sat down and watched, but I did love the movies. And Colm Meaney. We all love Colm Meaney, any time he was on, you sit down and watch that."
Meaney, of course, played Miles O’Brien on Star Trek: The Next Generation and most notably on Deep Space Nine, where his Irish heritage was a key part of the character. It’s great to see Lynch living out both of her dreams as a wrestling star and being part of Star Trek. While we still need info on her character, if Lynch is half as entertaining in this role as she is in a wrestling ring, Star Trek fans are in for a great time.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy premieres Jan. 15, 2026, on Paramount+.