Celebrate this Star Trek anniversary.
It may be hard to believe, but next week, it will have been 54 years since the original Star Trek series debuted in the US. To celebrate the pop culture icon, on 8 September, CBS has online events planned that will take place over 24 hours. The current home of all things Star Trek announced that there will be several panels, a Star Trek marathon, a Twitch pub quiz and more.
The panels will serve as the focal point for the celebration, encompassing 9 discussions over the course of three and a half hours with Wil Wheaton (TNG’s Wesley Crusher) and Mica Burton (Daughter of LeVar Burton) splitting hosting duties throughout the event. Every iteration of Trek from the last 54 years will be represented in the panels, to include the newest inductees, Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Lower Decks, as well as the yet-to-be-released show, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
While some actors from every show have been included in the panels, there’s already a bit of drama behind the scenes, as it seems Marina Sirtis, who returned to her TNG role of Deanna Troi for Star Trek: Picard, was not invited to participate. Jonathan Frakes, who also returned to his TNG role of Will Riker for Picard will attend that panel, along with Patrick Stewart.
I suppose my invitation got lost in the mail! 😳 https://t.co/ydydZ1ELF3
— Marina Sirtis (@Marina_Sirtis) September 4, 2020
Boldly Going…
A franchise that has always prided itself on diversity and inclusion, CBS also announced that Star Trek: Discovery season 3 will introduce the first non-binary and transgender characters in franchise history. In an interview with GLAAD, Barrio revealed that they are being introduced alongside Ian Alexander (The OA and The Last of Us Part II), who will be playing a trill. When we meet them, both Barrio and Alexander are suffering from memory loss. As such, the audience will be learning about the characters right along with them.
Welcome Blu del Barrio and @ianaIexander to the #StarTrekFamily! They will be playing Adira, Star Trek's first non-binary character, and Gray, Star Trek's first transgender character in #StarTrekDiscovery Season 3. Learn more about Blu in this @glaad Q&A: https://t.co/gd54tVl8p0 pic.twitter.com/WroJ32n7Cp
— Star Trek on CBS All Access (@startrekcbs) September 2, 2020
Discovery star, Anthony Rapp, tweeted support for the announcement. “I cannot wait for you all to meet these beautiful souls and wonderful artists,” he said. “I am so so so proud of them and happy that they are a part of our show.”
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#StarTrekUnitedGives Campaign
There was one other big announcement from CBS. For every person that tweets #StarTrekUnitedGives on 8 September, CBS All Access will donate $1 towards “organizations who do the real-world work of championing equality, social justice and the pursuit of scientific advancements.” The organizations included in the donation are the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME) and the Equal Justice Initiative. That fundraising will go all the way through 11:59pm PST.
It’s shaping up to be a helluva celebration. If you’re a fan of Trek, there’s more of it on television than you can shake a stick at. Getting to spend 24 hours with some of your favorite stars and shows is awesome enough. Being able to support worthy causes is just icing on the cake. Now, if only they could get their film franchise moving again…
BUT, WHAT DO YOU THINK!? Will you be taking part in the celebration? Let us know in the comments below!
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