Imagine growing up watching Star Trek: The Original Series and thrilling to the adventures of Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, and the rest of the brave crew of the USS Enterprise, only to grow up and be cast as the antagonist in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. It's enough to move one to tears.
That's exactly what happened to Paul Giamatti when he was cast as Nus Braka, the foil for Captain Nahla Ake and her crew of cadets. According to TrekMovie.com, Giamatti talked about winning the role during Trek Talks 5, which benefits the Hollywood Food Coalition. Giamatti recalled, “I didn’t play it cool at all. That’s completely like, I think I even, like, wept at some point."
Giamatti continued by saying:
"I am no, I was unabashedly on, I didn’t cover up any of my so enthusiasm. It’s ridiculous. I mean, honestly, it’s, it’s a genuine, like, wish fulfillment thing. [I] mean, I’ve gotten to do all kinds of great things. I swear to God, this is I don’t need to — I mean, if this was it for me, I’d be, like, I have achieved what? How can I do better than this?”
This is an especially poignant quote considering the recent cancellation of Starfleet Academy, which, despite an online petition calling to save the show, will not return after season 2.
Giamatti probably isn't the only Star Trek kid to grow up and make it part of their full-time career. There are cosplay kids who became actors, fan-fiction writers who became bloggers and authors, and gamers who became set designers.
That's the beauty of Star Trek, because no matter how long a series might last, it will always inspire future generations to create, play, and imagine a better future for humanity.
For more Star Trek content, visit the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages. And season 1 of Starfleet Academy is now streaming on Paramount+.
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