It looks like Kate Mulgrew won’t be the only Star Trek: Voyager castmember returning to the Star Trek franchise in the upcoming animated series Star Trek: Prodigy!
Robert Beltran, who played Chakotay on Voyager, appeared at the 55-Year Mission convention in Las Vegas on Sunday, August 15 and dropped the big news that he is returning to the Star Trek franchise two decades after Voyager wrapped up. While on stage with his Voyager castmates, Garret Wang, Roxann Dawson and Jeri Ryan (via Zoom), the actor stated:
"I’m working on this voiceover animation thing that Kate [Mulgrew] is doing — Star Trek: Prodigy."
Beltran prefaced the news by saying “I don’t know if I’m supposed to say this or not yet.”
While it’s not clear if Beltran will reprise the role of Chakotay on Prodigy, it would be the logical assumption. Beltran played Chakotay on Voyager for all seven seasons of the series and has been a fixture on the Star Trek convention circuit in recent years. He is also involved with the Voyager documentary To The Voyage, which was successfully crowdfunded back in March.
Prodigy was given a two-season order by Paramount+ and the first season arrives this fall, so Beltran could appear in either season. This revelation is the first known legacy actor joining Kate Mulgrew on Prodigy. The series is set in the Delta Quadrant on an abandoned experimental Starfleet ship commandeered by alien teens, so if Beltran is reprising his Voyager role, it would likely be via hologram like Mulgrew's character.
Developed by Emmy® Award winners Kevin and Dan Hageman (Trollhunters and Ninjago) the CG-animated series STAR TREK: PRODIGY is the first Star Trek series aimed at younger audiences and will follow a motley crew of young aliens who must figure out how to work together while navigating a greater galaxy, in search for a better future. These six young outcasts know nothing about the ship they have commandeered – a first in the history of the Star Trek franchise – but over the course of their adventures together, they will each be introduced to Starfleet and the ideals it represents.
Star Trek: Prodigy was first announced in July of 2020, with Kate Mulgrew’s involvement being revealed in October. The series will star Brett Gray as Dal, Angus Imrie as Zero, Jason Mantzoukas as Jankom Pog, Ella Purnell as Gwyn, Dee Bradley Baker as Murf, Rylee Alazraqui as Tok-Tahk and Kate Mulgrew as she returns as a holographic Kathryn Janeway, serving as the starship’s (U.S.S. Protostar NX-76884) built-in emergency training hologram.
The 10-episode first season of the series is expected to premiere later this year on the Paramount+ streaming service, and will air on Nickelodeon soon after. It will be broadcast on the CTV Sci-Fi Channel in Canada and will be available on a delay through Sky TV and Paramount+ in Europe in 2022.
STAR TREK: PRODIGY is from CBS’ Eye Animation Productions, CBS Studios’ new animation arm; Nickelodeon Animation Studio, led by President of Animation, Ramsey Naito; Secret Hideout; and Roddenberry Entertainment. Alex Kurtzman, Heather Kadin, Katie Krentz, Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth serve as executive producers alongside co-showrunners Kevin and Dan Hageman. Ben Hibon directs, co-executive produces and serves as the creative lead of the all-new animated series. Aaron Baiers also serves as co-executive producer.
Originally published: August 16, 2021.
Sources: TrekNews.net, TrekMovie.com, Bleeding Cool.
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