Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ premiere date is fast approaching, and Paramount+ subscribers are undoubtedly excited to see the cast of characters appearing in Season 1. With that said, the news that Paul Wesley is joining the series in Season 2 as James Kirk certainly raised some eyebrows, and left some wondering what that means for characters going forward.
Thankfully, Anson Mount strongly hinted to CinemaBlend that James Kirk’s arrival won’t impact Pike’s position, but there are still other questions, including whether Ethan Peck’s Spock and Paul Wesley’s Kirk will interact at all in Season 2. I asked Ethan Peck about the possibility of the two characters meeting, and while he didn't drop all the details, I did learn that the actor is very excited for audiences to see Wesley as Kirk.
I can’t tell you anything, but I will say that Paul is awesome and he has taken this so seriously. I think I see a lot of myself in him, and being burdened with this character and this responsibility. Which is really comforting for me because I care so much about it and I see that he does too. So, I’m really excited to see what he does and I’m excited for people to see him in the role.
Ethan Peck’s portrayal of Spock received much acclaim when he first appeared in Star Trek: Discovery Season 2, and even Leonard Nimoy’s daughter Julie approved of the performance. As such, it’s good to hear that Peck believes that Paul Wesley is just as passionate about doing justice to the role of James Kirk as he was Spock.
The high praise from Ethan Peck is especially encouraging since all indication so far is that Paul Wesley is both jazzed and honored to step into the role. Wesley shared a sweet exchange with the original Kirk actor William Shatner and also shared a story about meeting him previously. Getting a blessing from Shatner is about the best green light Wesley could’ve gotten, so at the very least, fans should keep an open mind heading into his Season 2 performance.
We don’t know what to expect when James T. Kirk arrives on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2, but based on recent comments from Anson Mount, it feels safe to assume that Kirk won’t take command of the Enterprise. Luckily, we do know a tad bit about Kirk’s past in Starfleet before he became a captain, so we can speculate on what he’ll be up to when the time comes. Until then, we still need to get ready for Season 1 and get ready to see all the hijinks the crew gets into.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds premieres on Paramount+ on Thursday, May 5. It’s one of many Trek shows arriving in 2022, so be sure to keep tabs on what’s coming up later this year.
