Star Trek‘s newest series, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, features a perfect blend of familiar faces and new characters. The latest Discovery spinoff it continues to press on into the far future of the Star Trek timeline; it’s set in the 32nd century, shortly after the reformation of the Federation. It features the first class at the new Starfleet Academy, naturally meaning we’ve got a cast that blends older established teachers and rookie students. Think of it like Star Trek‘s version of Hogwarts.
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Naturally, there aren’t quite as many cameos as you would get if Starfleet Academy was set a few centuries earlier; don’t expect Captain Picard cameos (although there’ll certainly be a lot of Easter eggs). Here’s everything you need to know about the cast, characters, and races you’ll encounter in Starfleet Academy.
Returning Star Trek Actors
Starfleet Academy‘s biggest returning character is undoubtedly the Doctor, the Emergency Medical Hologram introduced in Star Trek: Voyager who’s gradually morphed into a mentor figure for younger characters. The Doctor is played by Robert Picardo, the American actor also known for shows like Stargate, Dickinson, and The Mentalist. Picardo is delighted to be making his live-action Star Trek return, gleefully describing himself as the franchise’s Yoda.
Picardo is joined by two stalwarts from Discovery. Mary Wiseman is back as the human Sylvia Tilly, Michael Burnham’s close friend who left Discovery to help reestablish the Federation in the main series. Tilly has always been a fan favorite, but there’s no word on whether we’ll have much more than a cameo.
Actor and comedian Tig Notaro is also back as Jett Reno, the human engineer who was picked up by the USS Discovery in Season 2 and joined the crew on their impromptu time travel mission. Another popular character, Reno is infamous for her dry wit, and is sure to clash massively with the younger cast.
Starfleet Academy’s Teaching Staff & Crew
First up is Oscar-winning actress Holly Hunter, whose career involves everything from The Piano to The Incredibles (where she voices Elasti-Girl). Hunter is playing Chancellor Nahla Ake, the woman responsible for running Starfleet Academy. Ake is half-Lanthanite, a long-lived humanoid race introduced in Strange New Worlds who had lived among humans for millennia before they were discovered in the 22nd century. This means Ake is old enough to remember what the Federation used to be, which will surely help her to present a vision of hope.
She’s joined by British voice-actor Gina Yashere, who plays Commander Lura Thok. Half-Klingon and half-Jem’Hadar, the character of Thok is – in Yashere’s words – “funny in her seriousness.” As Yashere told TrekMovie, “she’s so hardcore and so strong and so serious, but there are very funny moments. If you see the first few episodes, there are some hilarious moments, even though she hasn’t got a clue that she’s hilarious.”
Finally, stuntwoman Nicole Dickinson is no stranger to Star Trek, working as a stunt double for Mary Chieffo in Discovery seasons 1 and 2. Now she’s playing Lt Rork, Starfleet Academy’s academic liaison. Other cast include:
- Rebecca Quin (WWE’s Becky Lynch): Lt Ya (Human)
- Michael Brown: Lt Dandrin (Appears human)
- Tricia Black: Lt Atlee (Unknown Humanoid Species)
- Avah Blackwell: Lt Haile (Deakohn)
- Ken Barnett: Lt Driss (Human)
- Joseph Chu: Ensign Weldu (Human)
Starfleet Academy’s Cadets
Relative industry newcomer Sandro Rosta plays Caleb Mir, the human main character in Starfleet Academy. As the Starfleet Academy trailer confirmed, Caleb was separated from his mother years ago, and he’s joined up with an agenda; he believes the Academy is the only way he can find her again. Caleb offers a unique lens into the Academy, in that he’s very much the outsider who isn’t sure whether he wants to be an insider.
Zoë Steiner is best known for her role in Significant Other, and she’s joined Starfleet Academy as the Betazoid Tarima Sadal. Betazoids are a classic race from The Next Generation (Deanna Troi being the most famous example), and they’re noted for their powerful empathic abilities. “The writing is just so complex and nuanced; they’ve given me and everyone really fleshed-out characters with a clear and complex emotional arc,” Steiner told TrekCore.
Kerrice Brooks (On My Block, How We Roll, My Old Ass) plays SAM, a sentient hologram known as a Series Acclimation Mil. SAM has been programmed as a 17-year-old but she’s actually only four months in age, meaning she approaches the world with a sense of wide-eyes-wonder. Brooks has quipped that she feels all the responsibility of Spider-Man in establishing a whole new race.
You may recognize George Hawkins from Tell Me Everything, Boiling Point, and Gassed Up. In Starfleet Academy, he’s playing the Khionian Darem Reymi. An aspiring captain from a wealthy homeworld, Darem is fiercely competitive and wants to prove himself the best. The Khionians are another new alien race, and their true nature and abilities are being kept secret ahead of the premiere.
Bella Shepard already has an established career behind her, appearing in Orange is the New Black, The Wolf Pack, and The Wilds. She’s Genesis Lythe, the daughter of an admiral, determined to make a name for herself. Genesis is a Dar-Sha, another new race who’s currently a mystery. Speaking at SDCC 2025, Shepard hinted she’s spent a lot of time working with prosthetics in this role.
Finally, X-Factor USA contestant Karim Diane (Start Up, Solve, One Of Us Is Lying) is the Klingon Jay-Den Kraag. An atypical Klingon, he’s no warrior, but rather is something else – and isn’t quite sure how to fit in. “It is a dream to be a part of a show that is saying something,” Diane told TrekCore. “the message of, you know, envisioning an optimistic future for everybody, to understand that our strength is in our diversity. Diversity! Did you hear that part? Diversity!”
Starfleet Academy’s Villain
Accomplished American actor Paul Giamatti is no stranger to science-fiction, and he’s well-known for everything from American Splendor to Barney’s Version (which earned him a Golden Globe). He’s playing Nus Braka, a ruthless pirate who’s half-Tellarite and half-Klingon. This makes him quite an unusual character, given Tellarites have customarily been treated as allies; in fact, the Tellarites were one of the founding members of the Federation.
Key Guest Stars in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
In addition, Starfleet Academy features several key guest stars:
- Oded Fehr returns as Starfleet’s Admiral Charles Vance, a Human character introduced in Star Trek: Discovery and a key diplomat associated with Starfleet.
- Orphan Black and She-Hulk stalwart Tatiana Maslany plays Caleb’s Human mother.
- The remarkable Brit Marling (The OA, Murder at the End of the World) is the voice of the Athena’s computer.
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