Some past Star Trek actors may even make guest appearances.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy’s season 1 finale “Rubincon” was a must-see, warp-speed thrill ride, which didn’t rely on killing any main characters, or even guest stars, to try and heighten the stakes. However, with the announcement that Paul Giamatti’s Nus Braka and Tatiana Maslany’s Anisha Mir won’t return for season 2, there’s an opening for new players during the upcoming sophomore year, which is exactly what Alex Kurtzman is promising. The executive producer and SFA co-showrunner said in an interview via Collider:
“There will be the introduction of some new characters that are going to shake things up a lot, and we have some really, really fun guest stars in season 2 that haven't been announced yet. That's all I'm going to say.”
Kurtzman also made it clear in the new interview that the War College will be featured again in season 2, so the new characters could be cadets from either the WC or Starfleet Academy. Hopefully, though, Kurtzman and co-showrunner Noga Landau found a worthy villain to fill Nus Braka’s scheming shoes during sophomore year. After all, replacing the award-winning Giamatti won't be an easy feat, and I hope they didn't let the fandom down.
In another new interview, Kurtzman was asked if any Star Trek actors from other series might show up in season 2, just as Robert Picardo, Tig Notaro, and Mary Wiseman all reprised their former roles. The executive producer was quite coy, but he did say (via TV Insider), “Yes, there are new cast members and some new, really exciting guest stars. How about I leave it at that?”
If I conducted that interview, I would have pushed for a juicy spoiler. However, in fairness, Kurtzman isn’t going to give up any season 2 surprises this early on. After all, Starfleet Academy’s first go-round just concluded.
Personally, I’d love to see a time-traveling James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Sulu (George Takei), and/or Chekov (Walter Koenig). How about Data (Brent Spiner) or Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan)? What do you think? Share the character(s) you'd like to watch return in Starfleet Academy season 2 with us on the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages.
Live long and prosper, Trekkies!