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March 15 (UPI) — The Vampire Diaries alum Paul Wesley will play Captain James T. Kirk in Season 2 of the Paramount+ series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, the streaming service announced Tuesday.
The iconic character was first introduced on Star Trek: The Original Series and was famously portrayed by William Shatner. Chris Pine played the same role in J.J. Abrams’ rebooted Star Trek films.
“Paul is an accomplished actor, an astonishing presence and a welcome key addition to the show,” executive producer Alex Kurtzman and showrunners Henry Alonso Myers and Akiva Goldsman said in a joint statement. “Like all of us, he is a lifelong Star Trek fan and we are excited by his interpretation of this iconic role.”
The news comes ahead of the series’ scheduled May 5 premiere. The latest Star Trek spinoff was renewed for a second season in January, with that season already in production in Toronto.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will travel back in time to follow Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) at the helm of the USS Enterprise.
Multiple actors are set to reprise their roles from Star Trek: Discovery‘s second season, which was set around the same time, including Rebecca Romijn as Number One and Ethan Peck as Science Officer Spock.
The first season of the series will focus on the trio before Captain Kirk boards the USS Enterprise, as the group explores new worlds around the galaxy.
