The classic ‘80s sci-fi series, Quantum Leap, is one those shows that was cancelled before it could get a proper ending, much to the detriment of its loyal fans. Though the original version starring Scott Bakula as quantum physicist Dr. Sam Beckett and the late Dean Stockwell as his best friend, Al Calavicci, never got to wrap things up (either in the form of a movie or a continuation), the show itself now has a reboot series.
If you watched or plan to watch Quantum Leap following its NBC debut on Monday, September 19th, you may be wondering where you’ve seen the actors who make up the new cast before. Well, worry not, because we are about to break down why the cast of one of the most promising 2022 fall TV shows look so familiar…
Raymond Lee (Dr. Ben Song)
Raymond Lee leads the Quantum Leap cast as Dr. Ben Song, a brilliant quantum physicist, who, like Scott Bakula’s Dr. Sam Beckett, finds himself leaping from person to person through time as he attempts to right their wrongs and change their lives for the better, as well as all of history.
Those who saw Top Gun: Maverick, which absolutely crushed at the box office upon its May 2022 release, should recognize Lee from his portrayal of fighter pilot LT Logan “Yale” Lee. The actor also appeared alongside Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum earlier in the year in The Lost City.
Over on the film side of things, Lee is probably best remembered for his turn as Sam on the AMC+ streaming series, Kevin Can F**K Himself. He was also a member of the Made for Love cast, after appearing on shows like Prodigal Son, Here and Now, and Mozart in the Jungle, to name only a few.
Caitlin Bassett (Addison Augustine)
Newcomer Caitlin Bassett appears on the Quantum Leap cast as Addison Augustine, Dr. Ben Song’s guide as he is traveling from person to person throughout time. And, as the show’s first trailer suggests, before she was Ben’s hologram companion, the two shared a romantic bond of some kind.
Unlike the rest of the Quantum Leap cast who have appeared in a variety of film and TV projects over the years, the NBC reboot is Bassett’s first professional acting gig. According to NBC, Bassett was selected from over 40,000 applicants to join the 2020 ABC Discovers Talent Showcase following a seven-year stint in the military, split between U.S. Army Intelligence and the National Security Agency. After completing three combat tours during her service, Bassett began to take theater classes.
Nanrisa Lee (Jenn Chou)
Next up is Nanrisa Lee, who shows up on the Quantum Leap cast as Jenn Chou, a digital security expert who is trying to find out why Ben Song leaped into the past, as well as how to bring him back home.
Prior to landing a role on NBC’s Quantum Leap reboot, Lee made a name for herself on the Amazon original series, Bosch, a couple years before the show was cancelled by the streaming service. In the years following that, Lee has appeared on everything from The Morning Show to American Housewife and Star Trek: Picard to Promised Land, as well as a couple dozen other TV roles on shows like Grey’s Anatomy, How to Get Away with Murder, CSI: Vegas, Good Girls, and Impeachment: American Crime Story, to name a few.
In that same stretch of time, Lee has appeared in several feature films, including Tall Trees, The Happys, The Aliens, Clocking the T, 4/20, A Lot of Nothing, and First Love.
Mason Alexander Park (Ian Wright)
Then there is Mason Alexander Park, who takes on the role of Ian Wright, the intelligent computer programmer who helps the team with the “Ziggy” artificial intelligence program that Dr. Ben Song uses to leap from person to person and throughout time.
Park landing one of the more prominent roles on NBC’s new reboot of Quantum Leap is the latest in a string of hits for the actor over the course of the past few years. In August 2022, Park joined The Sandman cast as Desire, their second major role in a Netflix original series in as many years. In 2021, Park was cast as Gren in the live-action adaptation of Cowboy Bebop, which was unfortunately cancelled after only one season. Following the cancellation of that series, the show’s cast reacted to the decision not to move forward, with Park going on Twitter to say they were gutted by the news.
Over the years, Park has also appeared on shows like The Legend of Vox Machina, Acting for a Cause, Bucket and Skinner’s Epic Adventures, and iCarly (the original, not the Paramount+ reboot), as well as several stage productions, including Mary Poppins, South Pacific, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and several others.
Ernie Hudson (Herbert ‘Magic’ Williams)
And, rounding out the main portion of the Quantum Leap cast is Ernie Hudson, who takes on the role of Herbert “Magic” Williams, the man who has been put in charge of the Quantum Leap program by the United States military.
Though he is in no need of an introduction, it’s not going to hurt anyone if we just spend some time going over Hudson’s impressive list of accomplishments on the small screen and silver screen. First and foremost is Hudson’s portrayal of Winston Zeddemore in the Ghostbusters franchise, a character that went from someone looking for a “steady paycheck” to a successful businessman who looked to be leading the next generation in the Ghostbusters: Afterlife ending. Hudson’s other prominent film appearances include The Crow, The Basketball Diaries, and The Hand That Rocks the Cradle.
Hudson has also had a ton of success on TV throughout his career, with some of his standout roles being on shows like the HBO prison drama Oz, St. Elsewhere, Law and Order, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, Desperate Housewives, and Modern Family.
You can see these actors and more in action when Quantum Leap airs at 10 p.m. ET, Mondays on NBC. Episodes are also available to stream for those with a Peacock subscription.
