star trek spock age

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Star trek: how old was spock when he died (both times).

Spock died twice in the Star Trek timeline but confusingly, the Vulcan died in two separate realities and his second death was earlier than his first.

• Spock died at the age of 55 in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan due to radiation poisoning.
• Spock was resurrected in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and continued to serve in Starfleet.
• In the alternate Kelvin timeline, Ambassador Spock died at the age of 161 in Star Trek Beyond, following the death of Leonard Nimoy.

Here's how old Spock (Leonard Nimoy) was when he died, which happened twice and in two different Star Trek realities and timelines. The quintessential Star Trek character, Mr. Spock was portrayed by the late Leonard Nimoy from 1966 to 2013. Although many actors have played Spock at different ages, most notably Zachary Quinto in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek movies and Ethan Peck in Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , Nimoy's Vulcan is the singular legend who embodies the best qualities of Star Trek.

The half-Vulcan/half-human Spock was born on January 6, 2230. After graduating from Starfleet Academy, Ensign Spock was assigned to the USS Enterprise under the command of Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) in 2250. Spock remained aboard the Enterprise for the rest of his Starfleet career , most notably serving as both First Officer and Science Officer alongside his best friend, Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) from 2265 onward. Spock left Starfleet for a time to pursue the Vulcan Kolinahr discipline but he rejoined the Enterprise in Star Trek: The Motion Picture . Afterward, Spock was promoted to Captain and commanded the Enterprise when it was turned into a Starfleet Academy training vessel. Spock ceded the Captain's chair to Admiral Kirk when their old adversary, Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalban), stole the planet terraforming Genesis Device.

What Happened To William Shatner & Leonard Nimoy’s Friendship?

Spock's first death in star trek ii: the wrath of khan, "remember.".

The events of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan took place in 2285: Khan and his genetically-engineered followers commandeered the USS Reliant and used the Genesis Device to exact revenge on Admiral Kirk. When both starships were damaged following a pitched battle in a nebula, a suicidal Khan detonated the Genesis Device to kill Kirk. With no time to don a contamination suit, Spock repaired the Enterprise's radioactive warp core, allowing the starship to escape the explosion and the resulting formation of the Genesis Planet. Tragically, the heroic Vulcan succumbed to radiation poisoning. Spock was 55 years old when he died in Star Trek II , which is relatively young considering Vulcans can live up to 200 years old. Spock's father Sarek (Mark Lenard), for example, was 203 when he died in 2368 during Star Trek: The Next Generation season 5.

I have been and always shall be your friend. Live long and prosper.

However, Spock was resurrected by the Genesis Planet ; his rebirth involved him aging from an infant back to his 55-year-old self by the time Kirk and the Enterprise crew reunited Spock with his katra (his Vulcan soul) in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Returning to Starfleet, Spock served alongside Captain Kirk aboard the USS Enterprise-A until their final mission in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , where they ensured galactic peace between the Klingon Empire and the United Federation of Planets. Afterward, Spock left Starfleet and became a Federation ambassador. In the 24th century TNG era, Spock was secretly living on Romulus and attempting to negotiate the reunification of the Vulcan and Romulan people.

How Spock Ended Up In J.J. Abrams' Star Trek Kelvin Timeline

Spock time-traveled and entered an alternate reality.

As seen in Star Trek 2009 , Ambassador Spock's tenure on Romulus is the key to the events that created the alternate Kelvin timeline and led to the ultimate fate of the Vulcan legend. When the Romulan sun went supernova in the 2380s, Spock tried to use red matter to stop it but he was sent back in time to the 23rd century. The alternate Kelvin timeline was created by the arrival of Spock's enemy Nero (Eric Bana) in 2233 when the Romulan destroyed the USS Kelvin. Spock arrived 25 years later, in 2258, and aided the younger version of Spock (Zachary Quinto) and Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) in defeating Nero. Trapped in the past and in an alternate timeline, Ambassador Spock decided to help repopulate Vulcan, which Nero destroyed in his rampage.

A year later, the younger Spock contacted Ambassador Spock for advice on how to defeat Khan (Benedict Cumberbatch) in Star Trek Into Darkness . This was Leonard Nimoy's final performance as Spock.

Spock's Second Death In Star Trek Beyond

Leonard nimoy's real-life death happened in 2015.

As a result of the real-life death of Leonard Nimoy in 2015, Ambassador Spock's death was written into 2016's Star Trek Beyond . The elder Spock died off-screen on New Vulcan on January 2, 2263. Ambassador Spock was 161 when he died in the Kelvin timeline , although his final death chronologically happened 12 years before his original Prime timeline death in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan . The United Federation of Planets in the Prime timeline also had no knowledge that Spock time-traveled and died in an alternate reality; he was considered missing in 2387 during the Romulan supernova crisis.

Star Trek: Discovery season 3 established that the Temporal Wars made the Federation aware of the Kelvin Timeline's existence, hinting that they also could have learned the fate of Ambassador Spock.

Spock Is Alive & Well In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

It's doubtful star trek will kill spock again..

Leonard Nimoy's beloved incarnation of Spock is gone, but the younger version of the Vulcan lives on with Ethan Peck's portrayal in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds . Peck plays the younger version of Nimoy's Spock in Star Trek 's Prime Timeline, unlike Zachary Quinto's Spock who lives a different life in an alternate reality. Just like Star Trek: Discovery 's reintroduction of Lt. Spock established that he has an adopted sister, Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green), Strange New Worlds deepens the past and history of Leonard Nimoy's Spock , especially regarding his relationships with T'Pring (Gia Sandhu) and Nurse Christine Chapel (Jess Bush).

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 depicted the canonical first meeting between Lt. Spock and Lt. James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley), the beginning of their lifelong friendship. Indeed, it was Ensign Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) who introduced Spock to Kirk, laying the foundation of what would become the legendary crew of the USS Enterprise in Star Trek: The Original Series . With Spock having died twice in the Star Trek movies in two different timelines and realities, it's doubtful Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will kill off the Vulcan a third time .

Star Trek: The Original Series movies are streaming on Max.

Star Trek: The Original Series and J.J. Abrams' Star Trek 2009 , Star Trek Into Darkness , and Star Trek Beyond are streaming on Paramount+.

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Leonard Nimoy, Spock of ‘Star Trek,’ Dies at 83

The man who was spock, leonard nimoy, best known for playing the character spock in the star trek television shows and films, died at 83..

Is there a more famous TV gesture than the Vulcan Salute? You know the one. Leonard Nimoy, who popularised the gesture in his role as Mr. Spock on the 60s TV series Star Trek, both lived long and prospered, before dying at the age of 83. In an age where the word is overused, the half-man, half-alien was truly an iconic character. Pointy ears. Upturned eyebrows. Bowl haircut. Maddingly logical. Frustratingly dispassionate. The show was cancelled after three seasons - shocking for how famous it has become - and Nimoy went on to star in the show Mission: Impossible and hosted “In Search Of...” a series that investigated mysteries and paranormal phenomena. He also had a memorable role as a psychiatrist in the 1978 remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. The following year, he and his fellow Star Trek crew would go on to star in the first of six feature films based on the series, 2 of which Nimoy directed. Anyone who’s ever been defined by a single accomplishment can understand why Nimoy was at points ambivalent about his legacy. This was a man who wrote two autobiographies, and cheekily titled them “I Am Not Spock” and “I am Spock.” But Nimoy truly embraced the role, turning in many cameos that traded on his character. He appeared in both the Star Trek reboot and its sequel and happily attended fan convention after fan convention. To paraphrase one of the franchise’s most famous (and, come on, moving) scenes, Leonard Nimoy was, and always will be, Mr. Spock.

By Virginia Heffernan

• Feb. 27, 2015

Leonard Nimoy, the sonorous, gaunt-faced actor who won a worshipful global following as Mr. Spock, the resolutely logical human-alien first officer of the Starship Enterprise in the television and movie juggernaut “Star Trek,” died on Friday morning at his home in the Bel Air section of Los Angeles. He was 83.

His wife, Susan Bay Nimoy, confirmed his death, saying the cause was end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Mr. Nimoy announced last year that he had the disease, attributing it to years of smoking, a habit he had given up three decades earlier. He had been hospitalized earlier in the week.

His artistic pursuits — poetry, photography and music in addition to acting — ranged far beyond the United Federation of Planets, but it was as Mr. Spock that Mr. Nimoy became a folk hero, bringing to life one of the most indelible characters of the last half century: a cerebral, unflappable, pointy-eared Vulcan with a signature salute and blessing: “Live long and prosper” (from the Vulcan “Dif-tor heh smusma”).

Mr. Nimoy, who was teaching Method acting at his own studio when he was cast in the original “Star Trek” television series in the mid-1960s, relished playing outsiders, and he developed what he later admitted was a mystical identification with Spock, the lone alien on the starship’s bridge.

Yet he also acknowledged ambivalence about being tethered to the character, expressing it most plainly in the titles of two autobiographies: “I Am Not Spock,” published in 1975, and “I Am Spock,” published in 1995.

In the first, he wrote, “In Spock, I finally found the best of both worlds: to be widely accepted in public approval and yet be able to continue to play the insulated alien through the Vulcan character.”

“Star Trek,” which had its premiere on NBC on Sept. 8, 1966, made Mr. Nimoy a star. Gene Roddenberry, the creator of the franchise, called him “the conscience of ‘Star Trek’ ” — an often earnest, sometimes campy show that employed the distant future (as well as some special effects that appear primitive by today’s standards) to take on social issues of the 1960s.

His stardom would endure. Though the series was canceled after three seasons because of low ratings, a cultlike following — the conference-holding, costume-wearing Trekkies, or Trekkers (the designation Mr. Nimoy preferred) — coalesced soon after “Star Trek” went into syndication.

The fans’ devotion only deepened when “Star Trek” was spun off into an animated show, various new series and an uneven parade of movies starring much of the original television cast, including — besides Mr. Nimoy — William Shatner (as Captain Kirk), DeForest Kelley (Dr. McCoy), George Takei (the helmsman, Sulu), James Doohan (the chief engineer, Scott), Nichelle Nichols (the chief communications officer, Uhura) and Walter Koenig (the navigator, Chekov).

When the director J. J. Abrams revived the “Star Trek” film franchise in 2009, with an all-new cast including Zachary Quinto as Spock, he included a cameo part for Mr. Nimoy, as an older version of the same character. Mr. Nimoy also appeared in the 2013 follow-up, “Star Trek Into Darkness.”

Nimoy Explains Origin of Vulcan Greeting

As part of the yiddish book center wexler oral history project, leonard nimoy explains the origin of the vulcan hand signal used by spock, his character in the “star trek” series..

His zeal to entertain and enlighten reached beyond “Star Trek” and crossed genres. He had a starring role in the dramatic television series “Mission: Impossible” and frequently performed onstage, notably as Tevye in “Fiddler on the Roof.” His poetry was voluminous, and he published books of his photography.

He also directed movies, including two from the “Star Trek” franchise, and television shows. And he made records, singing pop songs as well as original songs about “Star Trek,” and gave spoken-word performances — to the delight of his fans and the bewilderment of critics.

But all that was subsidiary to Mr. Spock, the most complex member of the Enterprise crew, who was both one of the gang and a creature apart, engaged at times in a lonely struggle with his warring racial halves.

In one of his most memorable “Star Trek” performances, Mr. Nimoy tried to follow in the tradition of two actors he admired, Charles Laughton and Boris Karloff, who each played a monstrous character — Quasimodo and the Frankenstein monster — who is transformed by love.

In Episode 24, which was first shown on March 2, 1967, Mr. Spock is indeed transformed. Under the influence of aphrodisiacal spores he discovers on the planet Omicron Ceti III, he lets free his human side and announces his love for Leila Kalomi (Jill Ireland), a woman he had once known on Earth. In this episode, Mr. Nimoy brought to Spock’s metamorphosis not only warmth, compassion and playfulness, but also a rarefied concept of alienation.

“I am what I am, Leila,” Mr. Spock declares after the spores’ effect has worn off and his emotions are again in check. “And if there are self-made purgatories, then we all have to live in them. Mine can be no worse than someone else’s.”

Born in Boston on March 26, 1931, Leonard Simon Nimoy was the second son of Max and Dora Nimoy, Ukrainian immigrants and Orthodox Jews. His father worked as a barber.

From the age of 8, Leonard acted in local productions, winning parts at a community college, where he performed through his high school years. In 1949, after taking a summer course at Boston College, he traveled to Hollywood, though it wasn’t until 1951 that he landed small parts in two movies, “Queen for a Day” and “Rhubarb.”

He continued to be cast in little-known movies, although he did presciently play an alien invader in a cult serial called “Zombies of the Stratosphere,” and in 1961 he had a minor role on an episode of “The Twilight Zone.” His first starring movie role came in 1952 with “Kid Monk Baroni,” in which he played a disfigured Italian street-gang leader who becomes a boxer.

Mr. Nimoy served in the Army for two years, rising to sergeant and spending 18 months at Fort McPherson in Georgia, where he presided over shows for the Army’s Special Services branch. He also directed and starred as Stanley in the Atlanta Theater Guild’s production of “A Streetcar Named Desire” before receiving his final discharge in November 1955.

He then returned to California, where he worked as a soda jerk, movie usher and cabdriver while studying acting at the Pasadena Playhouse. He achieved wide visibility in the late 1950s and early 1960s on television shows like “Wagon Train,” “Rawhide” and “Perry Mason.” Then came “Star Trek.”

Mr. Nimoy returned to college in his 40s and earned a master’s degree in Spanish from Antioch University Austin, an affiliate of Antioch College in Ohio, in 1978. Antioch University later awarded Mr. Nimoy an honorary doctorate.

Leonard Nimoy won a worshipful global following as Mr. Spock in the television and movie juggernaut “Star Trek.” Mr. Nimoy, who was teaching Method acting at his own studio when he was cast in the original “Star Trek” TV series in the mid-‘60s, relished playing outsider characters, and he developed what he later admitted was a mystical identification with Mr. Spock.

“Star Trek,” which had its premiere on NBC on Sept. 8, 1966, made Mr. Nimoy a star. Gene Roddenberry, the creator of the franchise, called him “the conscience of ‘Star Trek.’”

In addition to starring roles in television programs, movies and onstage, Mr. Nimoy made records on which he sang pop songs as well as original songs about “Star Trek” and gave spoken-word performances — to the delight of his fans and the bewilderment of critics. In 1968 he performed on “The Dick Clark Show” in Los Angeles.

Mr. Nimoy and his first wife, Sandra Zober, arrived for the Emmy Awards in Santa Monica, Calif., in 1969. He was nominated for four Emmys during his career, although he never won. His marriage to Ms. Zober ended in divorce. 

Mr. Nimoy expressed ambivalence about his being forever tethered to the unflappable, cerebral, pointy-eared Vulcan. His double consciousness was reflected in the titles of two autobiographies: “I Am Not Spock,” published in 1977, and “I Am Spock,” published in 1995.

In “I Am Not Spock,” Mr. Nimoy wrote, “In Spock, I finally found the best of both worlds: to be widely accepted in public approval and yet be able to continue to play the insulated alien through the Vulcan character.”

From left, Mr. Nimoy with the director Robert Wise, the producer Gene Roddenberry and the actors DeForest Kelley and William Shatner on the set of the movie “Star Trek” in 1978. Mr. Nimoy later directed two Star Trek movies, “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock” (1984) and “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” (1986), which he helped write. 

Mr. Nimoy appeared in numerous made-for-TV movies. He received an Emmy nomination for the 1982 movie “A Woman Called Golda,” in which he portrayed the husband of Golda Meir, the prime minister of Israel, who was  played by Ingrid Bergman.

Mr. Nimoy appeared in an episode of “T.J. Hooker” with his “Star Trek” co-star, William Shatner, in 1983. He later appeared with Mr. Shatner in two commercials for Priceline.com.

Mr. Nimoy directed two of the “Star Trek” movies, “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock” (1984) and “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” (1986), pictured, which he helped write.

When the director J.J. Abrams revived the “Star Trek” film franchise in 2009, with an all-new cast, he included a small part for Mr. Nimoy, as an older version of Spock. Mr. Nimoy and his wife, Susan Bay, arrived for the film’s premiere in Los Angeles.

Mr. Nimoy wrote poetry voluminously and was also an accomplished  photographer. “Secret Selves,” a series of photographs in which he encouraged people to reveal their hidden natures any way they chose, was exhibited at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in 2010.

Mr. Nimoy gave the Vulcan salute after he was awarded an honorary doctor of Humane Letters degree during Boston University’s commencement ceremony in 2012.

“To this day, I sense Vulcan speech patterns, Vulcan social attitudes and even Vulcan patterns of logic and emotional suppression in my behavior,” Mr. Nimoy wrote years after the original “Star Trek” series ended.

But that wasn’t such a bad thing, he discovered. “Given the choice,” he wrote, “if I had to be someone else, I would be Spock.”

Mr. Nimoy directed the movies “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock” (1984) and “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” (1986), which he helped write. In 1991, the same year that he resurrected Mr. Spock on two episodes of “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” Mr. Nimoy was also the executive producer and a writer of the movie “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.”

He then directed the hugely successful comedy “Three Men and a Baby” (1987), a far cry from his science-fiction work, and appeared in made-for-television movies. He received an Emmy nomination for the 1982 movie “A Woman Called Golda,” in which he portrayed the husband of Golda Meir, the prime minister of Israel, who was played by Ingrid Bergman. It was the fourth Emmy nomination of his career — the other three were for his “Star Trek” work — although he never won.

Mr. Nimoy’s marriage to the actress Sandi Zober ended in divorce. Besides his wife, he is survived by his children, Adam and Julie Nimoy; a stepson, Aaron Bay Schuck; six grandchildren and one great-grandchild; and an older brother, Melvin.

Though his speaking voice was among his chief assets as an actor, the critical consensus was that his music was mortifying. Mr. Nimoy, however, was undaunted, and his fans seemed to enjoy the camp of his covers of songs like “ If I Had a Hammer .” (His first album was called “Leonard Nimoy Presents Mr. Spock’s Music From Outer Space.”)

From 1977 to 1982, Mr. Nimoy hosted the syndicated series “In Search Of ...,” which explored mysteries like the Loch Ness monster and U.F.O.s. He also narrated “Ancient Mysteries” on the History Channel and appeared in commercials, including two with Mr. Shatner for Priceline.com. He provided the voice for animated characters in “Transformers: The Movie,” in 1986, and “The Pagemaster,” in 1994.

In 2001 he voiced the king of Atlantis in the Disney animated movie “Atlantis: The Lost Empire,” and in 2005 he furnished voice-overs for the computer game Civilization IV. More recently, he had a recurring role on the science-fiction series “Fringe” and was heard, as the voice of Spock, in an episode of the hit sitcom “The Big Bang Theory.”

Mr. Nimoy was an active supporter of the arts as well. The Thalia, a venerable movie theater on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, now a multi-use hall that is part of Symphony Space, was renamed the Leonard Nimoy Thalia in 2002.

He also found his voice as a writer. Besides his autobiographies, he published “A Lifetime of Love: Poems on the Passages of Life” in 2002. Typical of Mr. Nimoy’s simple free verse are these lines: “In my heart/Is the seed of the tree/Which will be me.”

In later years, he rediscovered his Jewish heritage, and in 1991 he produced and starred in “Never Forget,” a television movie based on the story of a Holocaust survivor who sued a neo-Nazi organization of Holocaust deniers.

In 2002, having illustrated his books of poetry with his photographs, Mr. Nimoy published “Shekhina,” a book devoted to photography with a Jewish theme, that of the feminine aspect of God. His black-and-white photographs of nude and seminude women struck some Orthodox Jewish leaders as heretical, but Mr. Nimoy asserted that his work was consistent with the teachings of the kabbalah.

His religious upbringing also influenced the characterization of Spock. The character’s split-fingered salute , he often explained, had been his idea: He based it on the kohanic blessing , a manual approximation of the Hebrew letter shin, which is the first letter in Shaddai, one of the Hebrew names for God.

“To this day, I sense Vulcan speech patterns, Vulcan social attitudes and even Vulcan patterns of logic and emotional suppression in my behavior,” Mr. Nimoy wrote years after the original series ended.

But that wasn’t such a bad thing, he discovered. “Given the choice,” he wrote, “if I had to be someone else, I would be Spock.”

An earlier version of this obituary, using information from Antioch College, misstated the name of an institution that awarded Mr. Nimoy an honorary doctorate. It was Antioch University, not Antioch College.

An obituary on Saturday about the actor Leonard Nimoy misstated the year his first autobiography, “I Am Not Spock,” was published. It was 1975, not 1977.

How we handle corrections

Daniel E. Slotnik and Peter Keepnews contributed reporting.

Leonard Nimoy, ‘Star Trek’s’ Spock, Dies at 83

By Terry Flores

Terry Flores

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Leonard Nimoy lived up to his longtime catchphrase: Live long and prosper. Having achieved success in many arenas during his lifetime, the actor, director, writer and photographer died Friday in Los Angeles of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was 83.

Most widely known for his performance as half-human, half-Vulcan science officer Spock on the classic sci-fi TV show “ Star Trek ” and its many subsequent film and videogame incarnations, Nimoy was also a successful director, helming “Star Trek” pics “The Search for Spock” and “The Voyage Home,” as well as non-“Star Trek” fare; an accomplished stage actor; a published writer and poet; and a noted photographer. He also dabbled in singing and songwriting.

But despite his varied talents, Nimoy will forever be linked with the logical Mr. Spock. Spotted by “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry when he appeared on Roddenberry’s NBC Marine Corps. skein “The Lieutenant,” Nimoy was offered the role of Spock and co-starred in the 1965 “Star Trek” pilot “The Cage.” NBC execs liked the concept but thought the pilot too cerebral, so they ordered a second pilot of the Desilu production with some script and cast changes (only Nimoy made it through both pilots). The series finally bowed on NBC in the fall of 1966. After three seasons, it was canceled in 1969 but would go on to be a hit in syndication, spawning films and other TV iterations and gaining a huge following of fans known as Trekkers or Trekkies.

After the series wrapped, Nimoy joined the fourth season of spy series “Mission: Impossible” as master-of-disguise Paris, leaving after the fifth season. He went on to star in the 1971 Western “Catlow,” with Yul Brynner and Richard Crenna, and the 1978 remake of “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” with Donald Sutherland and Jeffrey Goldblum. The actor also made a series of TV films throughout the ’70s and received an Emmy nomination in 1982 for his role as Golda Meir’s husband in telepic “A Woman Called Golda.”

Also during the ’70s, Nimoy narrated the docuseries “In Search of …,” which investigated unexplained events, paranormal phenomena and urban legends long before these matters become the common fodder of pop culture.

Then the siren call of “Star Trek” beckoned again and Nimoy returned to the role of Mr. Spock for 1979’s “Star Trek: The Motion Picture.” The film opened well at the box office, and though not well reviewed, it did spawn enough interest for Paramount to greenlight sequels that would continue into the 1990s: “The Wrath of Khan” (1982), “The Search for Spock” (1984), “The Voyage Home” (1986), “The Final Frontier” (1989) and “The Undiscovered Country” (1991). Nimoy was in all of them, albeit briefly in “The Search for Spock.”

Nimoy also appeared as Spock in a couple of episodes of series spinoff “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” several videogames based on the property and the J.J. Abrams-helmed “Star Trek” reboot, playing Spock Prime to Zachary Quinto’s young Spock in the 2009 film and its sequel.

After directing several TV projects, including episodes of “Rod Serling’s Night Gallery” and his “Star Trek” co-star William Shatner’s “T.J. Hooker,” Nimoy signed on to helm “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock.” Variety said the production was “helmed with a sure hand by debuting feature director Leonard Nimoy, who also appears briefly but to good effect as the indestructible half-human/half-Vulcan Spock.” The review went on to say “Nimoy’s direction is people-intensive with less of the zap and effects diversions of competing films.” He went on to direct the next pic in the series, “The Voyage Home,” as well as four other feature films, including the 1987 comedy “3 Men and a Baby,” starring Tom Selleck, Ted Danson and Steve Guttenberg, and the Diane Keaton-Liam Neeson drama “The Good Mother” (1988).

Nimoy also had a long history of stage work. He appeared on Broadway in “Full Circle,” directed by Otto Preminger, in 1973, and as a replacement for Anthony Hopkins as Martin Dysart in “Equus.” In 1996 he directed “The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far From the Tree” on the Rialto. But he also starred in many regional productions — he played Stanley Kowalski in a 1955 Atlanta production of “A Streetcar Named Desire” — and starred in several touring shows: He was Tevye in “Fiddler on the Roof” in 1971, Sherlock Holmes in a play of that name in 1976 and Vincent Van Gogh in solo show “Vincent: The Story of a Hero,” which he also produced and directed, in 1978-80.

Leonard Simon Nimoy was born in Boston; his parents were Jewish immigrants from the Ukraine, and the language at home was Yiddish. He developed an interest in acting at an early age, first appearing on stage at 8 in a production of “Hansel and Gretel.” He took drama classes for a while at Boston College, and after leaving home to pursue his career in Hollywood, he landed his first lead role in the 1952 film “Kid Monk Baroni.”

After serving in the Army from 1953-55, he appeared in small roles in a few films, but mostly found roles in TV series, appearing in episodes of “Dragnet,” “Sea Hunt,” “Bonanza,” “Wagon Train,” “Rawhide,” “The Twilight Zone,” “The Untouchables,” “The Outer Limits,” “The Virginian,” “Get Smart” and “Gunsmoke” before rising to fame in “Star Trek.”

Most recently, he recurred on Fox sci-fi series “Fringe” as maniacal, genius professor William Bell, and he voiced Spock for a 2012 episode of “The Big Bang Theory.”

In addition to his work on “In Search Of…,” Nimoy lent his resonant, intelligent voice to a variety of films, TV projects and documentaries, including A&E docu series “Ancient Mysteries.”

He wrote two autobiographies. The first, published in 1977, was called “I Am Not Spock.” Though “Star Trek” fans thought he was distancing himself from the beloved character, Nimoy had always enjoyed playing the character but was also using the book to talk about other aspects of his life. The book features dialogue between the thesp and Spock and touched on a self-proclaimed identity crisis because he became so associated with his character. In his second autobiography, “I Am Spock” (1995), he embraced that association.

He also wrote several books of poetry, including “You and I,” “Warmed by Love” and “A Lifetime of Love: Poems on the Passages of Life.” Some of his poetry books featured his photos.

Nimoy studied photography at UCLA in the 1970s, and his work as a photographer was shown in museums, art galleries and in published works, including “The Full Body Project: Photographs by Leonard Nimoy” and “Shekhina.” He was active in philanthropy and endowed Hollywood’s Temple Israel’s Bay-Nimoy Early Childhood Center.

In music, Nimoy released five albums on Dot Records, the first of which was space-based music and spoken word, “Mr. Spock’s Music From Outer Space.”

Nimoy was married twice, first to actress Sandra Zober. They divorced in 1987. In 1988, he married Susan Bay, an actress who is the cousin of helmer Michael Bay.

He is survived by his wife; two children from his first marriage, son Adam, a director, and daughter Julie; a stepson; and several grandchildren.

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Leonard Nimoy, Star Trek's Spock, dead at 83

Actor, author and director died of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Leonard Nimoy reminisces about Star Trek and Spock

Social sharing.

Leonard Nimoy, the actor, author and director best known for his portrayal of the ultra-logical character Spock in the TV series Star Trek,  has died at the age of 83.

His wife, Susan Bay Nimoy, confirmed to the New York Times that her husband died Friday morning at their Los Angeles home of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Nimoy said last year that he had been diagnosed with lung disease and was "doing OK."

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Nimoy's poignant last tweet, sent on Feb. 22, reads, "A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory."

Nimoy played Spock on the original Star Trek series from 1966 to 1969, and resurrected the iconic character in a host of subsequent movies, video games and cameo appearances spanning decades.

"I loved him like a brother," co-star William Shatner said Friday. "We will all miss his humour, his talent, and his capacity to love."

Co-star George Takei shared his condolences on Facebook Friday afternoon.

"Today, the world lost a great man, and I lost a great friend. We return you now to the stars, Leonard ... I shall miss you in so many, many ways," he wrote.

"Leonard Nimoy truly did live long and prosper. To celebrate his life and work, let us share in some of his best moments as the character we all took into our hearts, Mr. Spock."

"Live Long and Prosper, Mr. Spock!" tweeted Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, aboard the International Space Station.

The character's trademark ears, steeply arched eyebrows, well-known Vulcan proverb "Live long and prosper," as well as Nimoy's trademark Vulcan salute helped cement him as a pop culture icon.

It wasn't just the trademark ears or the steeply arched eyebrows — which rose higher when Spock was confronted with disconcerting emotion — or the impressive divided-finger salute or the "Live long and prosper" catchphrase.

It was how Nimoy staunchly turned what could have been a caricature into a dignified, inspiringly intellectual and even touching figure, a half-human, half-Vulcan who was a multicultural and multiethnic touchstone, well before it was hip.

His half-human, half-Vulcan character was the calm counterpoint to Shatner's often-emotional Captain Kirk on one of television and film's most revered cult series.

"He affected the lives of many," Adam Nimoy said. "He was also a great guy and my best friend."

Asked if his father chafed at his fans' close identification of him with his character, Adam Nimoy said, "Not in the least. He loved Spock."

However, Nimoy's ambivalence to the role was reflected in the titles of his two autobiographies, I Am Not Spock (1975) and I Am Spock (1995).

Identifying with Spock

After Star Trek ended, the actor immediately joined the hit adventure series Mission Impossible as Paris, the mission team's master of disguises. From 1976 to 1982 he hosted the syndicated TV series In Search of ...  which attempted to probe such mysteries as the legend of the Loch Ness Monster and the disappearance of aviator Amelia Earhart.

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He played Israeli leader Golda Meir's husband opposite Ingrid Bergman in the TV drama A Woman Called Golda and Vincent van Gogh in Vincent , a one-man stage show on the life of the troubled painter. He continued to work well into his 70s, playing gazillionaire genius William Bell in the Fox series Fringe .

He also directed several films, including the hit comedy Three Men and a Baby and appeared in such plays as A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tim Roof, Fiddler on the Roof, The King and I, My Fair Lady and Equus . He also published books of poems, children's stories and his own photographs.

But he could never really escape the role that took him overnight from bit-part actor status to TV star, and in a 1995 interview he sought to analyze the popularity of Spock, the green-blooded space traveller who aspired to live a life based on pure logic.

People identified with Spock because they "recognize in themselves this wish that they could be logical and avoid the pain of anger and confrontation," Nimoy concluded.

"How many times have we come away from an argument wishing we had said and done something different?" he asked.

'The role changed my career'

In the years immediately after Star Trek left television, Nimoy tried to shun the role, but he eventually came to embrace it, lampooning himself on such TV shows as Futurama, Duckman and The Simpsons and in commercials.

Of course the role changed my career— or rather, gave me one. — Leonard Nimoy

He became Spock after Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry was impressed by his work in guest appearances on the TV shows The Lieutenant and Dr. Kildare .

The space adventure set in the 23rd century had an unimpressive debut on NBC on Sept. 8, 1966, and it struggled during its three seasons to find an audience other than teenage boys. It seemed headed for oblivion after it was cancelled in 1969, but its dedicated legion of fans, who called themselves Trekkies, kept its memory alive with conventions and fan clubs and constant demands that the cast be reassembled for a movie or another TV show.

Trekkies were particularly fond of Spock, often greeting one another with the Vulcan salute and the Vulcan motto, "Live Long and Prosper," both of which Nimoy was credited with bringing to the character. He pointed out, however, that the hand gesture was actually derived from one used by rabbis during Hebraic benedictions.

When the cast finally was reassembled for Star Trek — The Motion Picture , in 1979, the film was a huge hit and five sequels followed. Nimoy appeared in all of them and directed two. He also guest starred as an older version of himself in some of the episodes of the show's spinoff TV series, Star Trek: The Next Generation .

"Of course the role changed my career— or rather, gave me one," he once said. "It made me wealthy by most standards and opened up vast opportunities. It also affected me personally, socially, psychologically, emotionally. ... What started out as a welcome job to a hungry actor has become a constant and ongoing influence in my thinking and lifestyle."

In 2009, he was back in a new big-screen version of Star Trek , this time playing an older Spock who meets his younger self, played by Zachary Quinto. Critic Roger Ebert called the older Spock "the most human character in the film."

Among those seeing the film was President Barack Obama, whose even manner was often likened to Spock's.

"Everybody was saying I was Spock, so I figured I should check it out," Obama said at the time.

Upon the movie's debut, Nimoy told The Associated Press that in his late 70s he was probably closer than ever to being as comfortable with himself as the logical Spock always appeared to be.

"I know where I'm going, and I know where I've been," he said. He reprised the role in the 2013 sequel Star Trek Into Darkness.

Making a career of acting

Born in Boston to Jewish immigrants from Russia, Nimoy was raised in an Italian section of the city where, although he counted many Italian-Americans as his friends, he said he also felt the sting of anti-Semitism growing up.

At age 17 he was cast in a local production of Clifford Odets' Awake and Sing as the son in a Jewish family.

Everybody was saying I was Spock, so I figured I should check it out. — Barack Obama on seeing the 2009

"This role, the young man surrounded by a hostile and repressive environment, so touched a responsive chord that I decided to make a career of acting," he said later.

He won a drama scholarship to Boston College but eventually dropped out, moved to California and took acting lessons at the Pasadena Playhouse.

Soon he had lost his "Boston dead-end" accent, hired an agent and began getting small roles in TV series and movies. He played a baseball player in Rhubarb and an Indian in Old Overland Trail .

After service in the Army, he returned to Hollywood, working as taxi driver, vacuum cleaner salesman, movie theatre usher and other jobs while looking for acting roles.

In 1954 he married Sandra Zober, a fellow student at the Pasadena Playhouse, and they had two children, Julie and Adam. The couple divorced, and in 1988 he married Susan Bay, a film production executive.

Besides his wife, son and daughter, Nimoy is survived by his stepson, Aaron Bay Schuck. Services will be private, Adam Nimoy said.

With files from CBC News

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Leonard Nimoy, actor who played Mr Spock on Star Trek, dies aged 83

Nimoy, who played the legendary character in the original Star Trek television series, died of pulmonary disease after being hospitalised earlier this week

• To a Star Trek fan like me, Leonard Nimoy meant everything

Leonard Nimoy: a life in clips

Leonard Nimoy, who enchanted generations of audiences with his depiction of Star Trek’s human-alien philosopher and first officer Mr Spock, has died at his home in Los Angeles. He was 83.

The actor died on Friday morning of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in Bel-Air, his wife, Susan Bay Nimoy, told the New York Times. He had been hospitalised at UCLA medical center with breathing difficulties days earlier.

Nimoy’s last tweet, sent on Monday, suggested he knew the end was near: “A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP.”

A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP — Leonard Nimoy (@TheRealNimoy) February 23, 2015

“Live long and prosper” was the Vulcan salutation which he made famous as Spock, and which he and fans carried into real life. Tributes to the actor, director, photographer, writer, poet, musician and teacher agreed he had indeed done so.

“I loved him like a brother,” William Shatner, who starred alongside him as Captain Kirk, wrote on Facebook. “We will all miss his humor, his talent, and his capacity to love.”

George Takei, who played Sulu, said the world had lost a great man. “And I lost a great friend. We return you now to the stars, Leonard. You taught us to ‘Live Long And Prosper,’ and you indeed did, friend. I shall miss you in so many, many ways.”

Even the US president took a moment on Friday to appreciate Nimoy’s most famous character. “Long before being nerdy was cool, there was Leonard Nimoy,” Barack Obama said . “I loved Spock,”

Nimoy announced last year that he was battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and attributed it to smoking, even though he gave up the habit long ago. With typical humour he tweeted last week: “I quit smoking 30 yrs ago. Not soon enough. I have COPD. Grandpa says, quit now!! LLAP.”

He enjoyed an enduring and eclectic career in the arts and in film behind the camera but it was as the pointy-eared, relentlessly logical sidekick to William Shatner’s Captain Kirk that Nimoy will be best remembered.

Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek , called Spock its “conscience”, a quizzical, alien and yet also humane moral sense which pervaded the original NBC series as well as subsequent big-screen outings, most recently in the rebooted films directed by JJ Abrams.

The actor, born in Boston to Ukrainian immigrants and Orthodox Jews, embraced the figure of the lone alien on the bridge of the Starship Enterprise, exploring the universe with more emotional, fully human characters.

His first autobiography, I Am Not Spock, published in 1977, said that as the Vulcan he found the best of both worlds, gaining public approval while still being able to play an other-worldly character. He published another biography, I Am Spock, in 1995.

“To this day, I sense Vulcan speech patterns, Vulcan social attitudes and even Vulcan patterns of logic and emotional suppression in my behavior,” Nimoy noted. It was not a complaint. “Given the choice, if I had to be someone else, I would be Spock.”

Tributes flooded Twitter.

“RIP Leonard Nimoy. So many of us at NASA were inspired by Star Trek. Boldly go...” said the US space agency @Nasa.

“He created a role that nobody else could play. Multitalented writer, actor, director. A terrific & sweet man,” tweeted the talkshow host Larry King.

Zachary Quinto, who plays the younger Spock in the rebooted films, said: “My heart is broken. i love you profoundly my dear friend. and i will miss you everyday. may flights…”

The music producer @kaskade tweeted: “Rest easy Leonard Nimoy. First guy to make being so weird so cool.”

The son of a barber, Nimoy’s origins were hardly exotic. He started acting in primary school and continued through community college and during a stint in the army, where he served as a sergeant and participated in shows at Fort McPherson in Georgia.

Discharged in 1955, he moved to California and worked as taxi driver, cinema usher and drama teacher before achieving notice on TV shows like Rawhide and Perry Mason before landing the role of Spock in the original NBC series, which debuted in 1966.

Nimoy was also an unlikely sex symbol. According to the Los Angeles Times , when he spoke at Ohio’s Bowling Green State University in the 1970s, a young woman asked: “Are you aware that you are the source of erotic dream material for thousands and thousands of ladies around the world?”

“May all your dreams come true,” he responded.

Spock made a rare foray into sensuality in episode 24 of the original series when aphrodisiacal spores on the planet Omicron Ceti III loosened his human side and a longing for Leila Kalomi, played by Jill Ireland.

The Vulcan salute, which Trekkers used at fan conventions and film screenings, Nimoy adapted from a gesture he remembered from attending an Orthodox synagogue in childhood.

Men chanted prayers at an altar with their arms raised and fingers parted between the ring and middle fingers and thumbs stuck out – a representation of the Hebrew letter shin, the start of Shaddai, a term for God, Nimoy said.

He embraced roles reflecting his Jewish heritage. In 1982 he appeared as the former husband of the Israeli prime minister Golda Meir in the TV movie A Woman Called Golda”. He also played a Holocaust survivor in the courtroom TV film Never Forget.

His photography book, Shekhina, pictured nude women, including a cover shot of a woman wearing Jewish ritual objects traditionally worn by men. Nimoy shrugged off complaints and said his his work was consistent with the teaching of the kabbalah. “I’m not introducing sexuality into Judaism. It’s been there for centuries.”

Only the most dedicated Trekkies embraced his forays into music, such as kitsch covers covers of songs like “If I Had a Hammer.” He titled his first album Leonard Nimoy Presents Mr. Spock’s Music From Outer Space.

Nimoy is survived by his older brother, Melvin, his ex-wife, Sandi Zober, their two children, Adam and Julie, six grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

NBC cancelled Star Trek after three seasons, citing low ratings, but its sci-fi adventures, optimistic world view and campy humour won a growing army of devotees who turned Spock and Kirk, plus Dr McCoy, Sulu, Uhura and Chekov, into pop culture legends.

Nimoy branched into directing, including two of the Star Trek features, and the 1987 hit comedy Three Men and a Baby.

His sonorous voice narrated the History channel’s Ancient Mysteries and provided the voice for numerous animated characters. In addition to his autobiographies he also published books of poetry and photography.

Flowers were due to be placed at his star on Hollywood Boulevard.

• Leonard Nimoy
• US television

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How Leonard Nimoy grew to love Spock as much as we did

To a Star Trek fan like me, Leonard Nimoy meant everything

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Leonard Nimoy's other achievement: Three Men and a Baby

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Actor Leonard Nimoy, 'Mr. Spock,' dies at 83

The legendary actor who made being logical sound cool in his "Star Trek" role as Spock, beloved by generations of fans, died at his home in Los Angeles Friday.

Actor Leonard Nimoy, beloved by geeks of all stripes for his role as Mr. Spock in the original "Star Trek" TV series, died Friday at age 83.

The legendary actor, famed for his role as first officer of the USS Enterprise on "Star Trek," died at his home in Los Angeles. He died of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, his son Adam said, according to CBS News . He had reportedly been hospitalized earlier this week.

Last February, Nimoy revealed on Twitter that he had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, which he attributed to years of smoking. He had given up the habit three decades earlier, but not soon enough, he tweeted.

Nimoy's "Star Trek" run from 1966 to 1969 was only part of his long career in movies, television, and on the stage. But for most, he will always be known as Spock, a star of one of television and film's most revered cult series. Half-human, half-Vulcan, his character was the calm counterpoint to William Shatner's more volatile Captain Kirk, and his gracious demeanor was familiar to those who met the actor.

Leonard Nimoy: A look back at his fascinating life (pictures)

He portrayed Spock in numerous "Star Trek" movies and voiced the character in cartoons and video games. In addition to "Star Trek" and "Star Trek: The Animated Series," Nimoy starred in "Mission: Impossible" and "Fringe." Nimoy also hosted of "In Search of..." and narrated "Ancient Mysteries." He directed various TV episodes and two "Star Trek" films -- "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" in 1984 and "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" in 1986 -- not to mention the popular comedy "3 Men and a Baby" in 1987.

Acting and directing weren't Nimoy's only talents, however. He released five records and sang " The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins " in 1967 and was an avid photographer and poet. He also penned two autobiographies: "I Am Not Spock" (1975) and "I Am Spock" (1995).

Emotional tributes to the actor from fans and former co-stars immediately flooded social media Friday.

"I loved him like a brother," his longtime co-star William Shatner tweeted .

"I loved him like a brother. We will all miss his humor, his talent, and his capacity to love." -William Shatner http://t.co/U8ZN98tVYp — William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 27, 2015

Actor Jonathan Frakes , who played First Officer Riker on "Star Trek: The Next Generation," tweeted, "RIP to the best First Officer. "

"My heart is broken," tweeted actor Zachary Quinto , who played a young Spock in the 2009 "Star Trek" reboot and in its sequel "Star Trek Into Darkness" in 2013, in which Nimoy reprised his role. "I love you profoundly my dear friend. And I will miss you every day."

Nimoy himself sent a poignant last tweet this past Sunday. "A life is like a garden," he wrote . "Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP"

LLAP, of course, stands for the Vulcan salutation "Live long and prosper."

It is with sadness that I heard of Leonard Nimoy's death. I was lucky to spend many happy, inspiring hours with him. He won't be forgotten. — Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) February 27, 2015

God Bless You, Leonard Nimoy... May Angels guide thee to thy rest! #agoodman #talented #funny #awesome — LeVar Burton (@levarburton) February 27, 2015

my heart is broken. i love you profoundly my dear friend. and i will miss you everyday. may flights... https://t.co/WPJmt1X4ox — Zachary Quinto (@ZacharyQuinto) February 27, 2015

We stood on your shoulders, and wouldn't have had a galaxy to explore if you hadn't been there, first. Thank you, Leonard, Rest in peace. — Wil Wheaton (@wilw) February 27, 2015

Every actor who has played Spock on 'Star Trek'

The saga of spock.

Ever since we saw the USS Discovery rendezvous with the USS Enterprise in the season one finale of "Star Trek: Discovery," fans have been frantic to find out more. We have since learned that Capt. Christopher Pike (to be played by Anson Mount) is at the helm of the ship made famous by "Star Trek: The Original Series," and this cosmic encounter is set in the "Star Trek" timeline before the events of the original series episode "The Cage," which means that somewhere on the NCC-1701 is a certain celebrated Vulcan science officer. With bated breath we waited; who would be cast as Spock? In August, "Discovery" representatives announced that Ethan Peck would appear in the role. Peck will be the ninth actor to have portrayed Spock either on television or in a film — and just in case you can't remember them all, here's the complete list. (Movie and TV credits are via the "Star Trek" fan reference site Memory Alpha and IMDb .)

Leonard Nimoy

• "Star Trek: The Original Series" (1966-1969) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek: The Animated Series" (1973-1974) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek: The Next Generation" — "Unification" parts I & II (1991) … as Ambassador Spock
• "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" (1979) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" (1982) … as Capt. Spock
• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock
• "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" (1986) … as Capt. Spock
• "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" (1989) … as Capt. Spock
• "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" (1991) … as Capt. Spock
• "Star Trek" (2009) … as Spock Prime
• "Star Trek: Into Darkness" (2013) … as Spock Prime

Billy Simpson

• "Star Trek: The Animated Series" — "Yesteryear" (1973) … as Young Spock

Carl Steven

• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock, age 9

Vadia Potenza

• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock, age 13

Stephen Manley

• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock, age 17

Joe W. Davis

• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock, age 25

Jacob Kogan

• "Star Trek" (2009) … as young Spock

Zachary Quinto

• "Star Trek" (2009) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek: Into Darkness" (2013) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek: Beyond" (2016) … as Mr. Spock

• "Star Trek: Discovery" (2019) … as Mr. Spock

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Ethan Peck Shares His Experience as Spock and the Devotion of Star Trek Fans

A ctor Ethan Peck, known for portraying the iconic role of Spock in “Star Trek: Discovery,” discussed his interactions with fans and the impact of the character in a recent interview with Esquire . Peck shared his perspective on the quasi-religious fervor that fans exhibit, saying, “People come to me at these conventions, and it’s almost like they want confirmation of some sort — to be seen by this character and this universe.” He acknowledged that his portrayal of Spock serves as a conduit for fans to connect with the broader narrative and ideals of the Star Trek universe, especially for those from marginalized communities who seek solidarity within the fandom.

Embodying the essence of Gene Roddenberry’s vision, Peck articulated his understanding of the responsibility tied to Spock’s character. “These people are so thrilled and excited and moved by the world that we are a part of as actors, and they come with such vulnerability — that’s very special and unique,” he expressed. His engagement with fans is a profound exchange, where he offers a tangible touchpoint to the hopeful and inclusive future Star Trek represents. The actor recounted a heightened encounter with this devotion through a “Star Trek” themed cruise, amplifying his already extraordinary experiences at fan conventions.

FAQ Section

What is ethan peck known for in the star trek series.

Ethan Peck is known for his portrayal of the legendary character Spock in “Star Trek: Discovery.”

What are Ethan Peck’s thoughts about Star Trek fans?

Ethan Peck finds the fans’ dedication and vulnerability special and recognizes the importance of the connection they seek with the Star Trek universe through his character Spock.

Has Ethan Peck compared his experience to that of a religious figure?

While he hasn’t used religious language explicitly, he acknowledges that the level of adoration and the role he plays for the fans can be likened to a religious figure.

Why do fans approach Ethan Peck at conventions?

Fans approach Ethan Peck at conventions to feel a close connection to the character of Spock, whom he represents, and by extension, the values and vision of the Star Trek universe.

Biography [ ]

The son of Skon , Sarek was born in 2165 and was willingly tutored by his own father. ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock ; TNG : " Sarek "; TOS : " Journey to Babel ") He had a pet sehlat named I-Chaya . ( TAS : " Yesteryear ")

Sarek's first child, Sybok , was conceived out of wedlock with a Vulcan princess . ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier ; SNW : " The Serene Squall ")

Later, Sarek, while serving as ambassador to Earth , wed a Human named Amanda Grayson in the late 2220s . ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier ; TOS : " Journey to Babel "; TAS : " Yesteryear ") A later recollection of Sarek's was that he had married her because, " at the time, it seemed the logical thing to do, " but in actuality he loved her. ( TOS : " Journey to Babel "; Star Trek )

Sarek, holding his newborn son Spock in 2230

Three years after their marriage, in 2230 , the two were in the city of ShiKahr where Amanda gave birth to Sarek's second son, Spock . ( TOS : " Journey to Babel "; TAS : " Yesteryear ") Upon first holding him, Sarek remarked that the newborn Spock was "so Human." ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier ) Sarek passed his pet sehlat I-Chaya on to Spock, and raised him and Sybok as brothers. ( TAS : " Yesteryear "; Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

Sarek in 2237

In 2237 , when Spock was aged seven, Sarek was involved in arranging for him to wed T'Pring , later in life. ( TOS : " Amok Time ") Sarek also gave Spock his first lesson in computers . ( TOS : " Journey to Babel ") However, as a seven-year-old, Spock was occasionally bullied by Vulcan children who claimed that Sarek had brought shame to Vulcan by marrying a Human. ( TAS : " Yesteryear ")

In an alternate timeline created by the death of Spock at an early age, Sarek separated from Amanda Grayson, and did not remarry after Grayson died. Also he had been Federation ambassador to seventeen different planets between 2237 and 2269 . ( TAS : " Yesteryear ")

When the Human parents of Michael Burnham were killed by Klingons , Sarek took her as a ward and raised her on Vulcan, where she became the first Human to ever attend the Vulcan Learning Center and the Vulcan Science Academy , the latter of which she entered in 2245 . ( DIS : " The Vulcan Hello ", " The Butcher's Knife Cares Not for the Lamb's Cry ") When Burnham was a child, the Learning Center was bombed by logic extremists and Burnham was rendered medically dead. Sarek came to her rescue and initiated a mind meld with Burnham, in order to revive her. As a result of this, a portion of Sarek's katra remained inside her mind, which later allowed him to communicate with her across interstellar distances. ( DIS : " Battle at the Binary Stars ", " Lethe ")

Sarek with Michael Burnham on board the USS Shenzhou in 2249

After Burnham's graduation from the Vulcan Science Academy, Sarek was forced to choose between Burnham and Spock on who should join the Vulcan Expeditionary Group . Sarek chose Spock over Burnham for this; he then arranged with Captain Philippa Georgiou of the USS Shenzhou that Burnham would serve on her ship after graduation. In 2249 , Sarek transported from Vulcan to the transporter room of the Shenzhou with Michael Burnham, and scolded her for being too rigid, refusing to follow human niceties by giving her hand to Georgiou; quietly he told Burnham to "behave" just before he departed from the ship. ( DIS : " Battle at the Binary Stars ", " The Butcher's Knife Cares Not for the Lamb's Cry ", " Lethe ")

However, he later regretted his favor to Spock; the latter decided to apply to Starfleet Academy instead of the Vulcan Science Academy, whereas Sarek wanted Spock to follow his father's teachings, just as he himself had followed the teachings of his own father. In 2250 , Sarek broke off his relationship with Spock and, for years to come, the two were estranged. ( TOS : " Journey to Babel ")

Role in the Federation-Klingon War [ ]

Right before the Battle of the Binary Stars in 2256 , Michael Burnham called Sarek over a subspace channel seeking information about how to handle the Klingons. Sarek narrated to her how the Vulcans had handled them after their first contact in 2016 : by firing first , cautioning her this solution was unique to them. Further, he cautioned her from letting the fact that Klingons killed her parents affect her judgement. ( DIS : " The Vulcan Hello ")

During the Federation-Klingon War , Sarek travelled from Vulcan to a secret meeting on Cancri IV with a supposedly dissenting Klingon faction which could end the war. However, his Vulcan cruiser was disabled by the pilot V'Latak , who was actually one of the logic extremists and attempted to assassinate him by turning his own body into a bomb; though Sarek survived, the ship was disabled inside the Yridia Nebula . Gabriel Lorca of the USS Discovery launched an unauthorized rescue mission; Sarek was too injured to continue and Admiral Katrina Cornwell went in his place. However, the meeting was actually a trap orchestrated by Klingon General Kol to capture Sarek, and Cornwell was captured instead. ( DIS : " Lethe ")

Sarek in 2257

In 2257 , after the Discovery returned from the mirror universe , Sarek met the mirror counterpart of Philippa Georgiou, who offered her help with the war. Sarek and Cornwell (who had been liberated from her captors) wished all information regarding the crossover to be buried. He then negotiated with the Federation Council, received approval of Georgiou's plan, and it was decided that they had no choice but to proceed. ( DIS : " The War Without, The War Within ")

After the end of the war, Sarek, with Amanda, visited Paris for the victory celebrations, where they met with Michael, now reinstated as a commander and appointed science officer of the Discovery . ( DIS : " Will You Take My Hand? ")

Control crisis [ ]

After the appearance of the red bursts in 2257, Sarek left the Discovery to return to Vulcan and was assigned to the Federation task force investigating the mysterious signals. ( DIS : " Brother ")

Sarek confronting his family in the sacred crypt

After discovering Spock had disappeared in that same year, Sarek began to search diligently for him, to no avail. As it turned out, Spock had secretly returned to Vulcan, with Amanda hiding him in a sacred crypt and was shielded from telepathic searches due to the presence of Katra stones . When Burnham returned to Vulcan to join in the search for Spock, Amanda led her in secret to the crypt, but Sarek followed them in secret. Sarek confronted his wife about her deception and was able to convince them that the best course of action was to turn over Spock to Captain Leland . ( DIS : " Light and Shadows ")

Later that year, when the crew of the Discovery was planning to escape to the future as part of a plot to escape Control , Sarek was able to pinpoint the location of the Discovery using Burnham's katra. There, Sarek and Amanda said their goodbyes to Burnham, expressing their love for each other. Sarek agreed to look out for Spock, albeit from afar, at Burnham's request. Following this farewell, Sarek and Amanda returned to Vulcan. Following the Discovery 's nine-century voyage, Sarek swore to never speak of Burnham or the Discovery again, using his status as an ambassador to avoid interrogation. ( DIS : " Such Sweet Sorrow ", " Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2 ")

Reminisces by Spock [ ]

In 2266 , his estranged son Spock was serving in Starfleet aboard the USS Enterprise . That year he noted Balok as being reminiscent of his father, even stating – at one point early in the first contact between the First Federation and the Enterprise – that he regretted not having learned more about Balok. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ")

While affected by polywater intoxication later that year, Spock remembered that he had respected Sarek and their Vulcan traditions but had been ashamed of his Human blood . ( TOS : " The Naked Time ")

In 2267 , while Captain James T. Kirk was attempting to aggravate Spock by making up false insults, he insisted that Sarek had been "a computer." ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise ") Later the same year, Spock evoked the authority of his father (as well as their male ancestors), while making an unsuccessful attempt to persuade T'Pau to prevent him battling Kirk in a kal-if-fee . ( TOS : " Amok Time ")

Coridan involvement and reconciliation [ ]

Sarek in 2268

Sarek's accomplishments as an ambassador of the Federation included the Coridanite admission debate of 2268 before the Federation Council. Sarek's involvement in the Coridan admission debate included attending multiple council sessions, at least one of which was before the conference on a neutral planet . ( TOS : " Journey to Babel ")

Shortly before he left Vulcan with his wife and a group of aides, Sarek suffered two heart attacks . He did not inform his wife of these incidents, though his physician prescribed Benjisidrine for the condition. During the council session en route to the Babel Conference Sarek met and debated with Tellarite Ambassador Gav , winning their argument. He did not speak with Spock until Sarek survived a series of heart attacks and surgery , and they talked again only after a transfusion of rare T-negative blood from his son. This event resulted in a brief retirement and a rekindling of their relationship. ( TOS : " Journey to Babel ") The conference finalized the admittance of Coridan into the Federation. Despite several minor quarrels, Sarek cast the final vote in favor of Coridan's admittance. ( TNG : " Sarek ")

Sarek and Spock remained on good terms as the Klingon détente bloomed in the 2280s . In 2285 , Sarek was briefed on Project Genesis and the report from James T. Kirk on the recent activation of the Genesis Device . That year Spock was left for dead on the Genesis Planet after sacrificing his life to save the USS Enterprise . Sarek, believing that Spock had put his katra in Kirk before he died, traveled to Earth to convince him to retrieve his son's body. It turned out it was Leonard McCoy who now possessed Spock's katra . On Vulcan, Sarek pushed for a fal-tor-pan , a fusion of Spock's katra and body; although aware of the dangers and complications of the ritual, Sarek stated that his logic was uncertain where his son was concerned. ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

Three months later , Sarek finally apologized to Spock for his original opposition to Spock's decision to join Starfleet, recognizing Spock's friends as people of good character. Sarek attended a meeting of the Federation Council that had put the Enterprise crew under accusation; he witnessed the controversy over the Genesis Device, especially the arguments from them that Kirk be extradited . Sarek defended the Enterprise , accusing the Klingon Ambassador that his navy had attacked the Enterprise , citing Kruge 's attack on the USS Grissom and the death of Kirk's son ; he was shocked that the ambassador proudly admitted his men indeed did so. ( Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home )

In 2287 , Sybok manipulated the starship USS Enterprise -A and reunited with his brother Spock. He caused an apparition in Spock's mind of his own birth; Spock saw his father holding him, commenting that the baby resembled a Human rather than a Vulcan. ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

Later career [ ]

Among Sarek's later accomplishments were his effort to bring about a Federation- Legaran treaty , which began in 2273 , and concluded in 2367, early treaties with the Klingon Empire ( Treaty of Alliance ), and the Treaty of Alpha Cygnus IX . ( TNG : " Sarek ")

Sarek in 2293

In 2293 , Sarek suggested that Spock initiate negotiations for a proposed Federation-Klingon Alliance with Chancellor Gorkon , hoping to bring together the two lifelong enemies after the destruction of the Klingon moon Praxis . That almost didn't happen, for Gorkon was assassinated. Captain Kirk and Doctor Leonard McCoy were arrested by the Klingons, having been framed for the chancellor's murder . Sarek was present in the Federation President 's office when several attempts to stop Kirk and McCoy being tried in Klingon territory were outlined, but he had to concede that the Klingons were within their legal rights and that the Federation could not interfere in their due process. Kirk and McCoy, with Spock's assistance, eventually escaped from imprisonment on Rura Penthe , and they arrived at the Khitomer Conference in time to prevent the assassination of the Federation President. ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country ) Afterwards, Sarek was involved with the Khitomer Accords , and further helped the Federation and Klingon Empire establish their almost one-hundred-year peaceful co-existence. ( TNG : " Sarek ")

Sometime after the Khitomer Conference, Spock left Starfleet and became an ambassador and representative of the Vulcans to the Federation. The two, however, split again over the Cardassian issue of the 24th century . Sarek was also dismissive of Spock's friendship with Romulan Senator Pardek , who he had met at Khitomer, and the prospects for a lasting Federation-Romulan peace. ( TNG : " Unification I ") By that time, Amanda had died, and Sarek had married another Human woman, named Perrin . Sarek was present at his son's wedding before they again stopped speaking to each other; it was at that event that Sarek first met Jean-Luc Picard . Soon after, Sarek studied Picard's career, describing his service record as "satisfactory", a choice of words Picard recognized as high praise from a Vulcan when he and Perrin later spoke of it. ( TNG : " Sarek ")

Later years [ ]

Picard meeting with Sarek, shortly before his death in 2368

In 2366 , Sarek was diagnosed with Bendii Syndrome en route to the Legaran Conference . As his emotional control became very weak, he mind melded with Captain Picard at the suggestion of his wife, Perrin. Sarek was then stable enough to conclude the negotiations for a treaty with the Legarans. He told Picard, " we shall always retain the best part of the other inside us. " ( TNG : " Sarek ")

In 2368 , Sarek was visited by Captain Picard. Picard, who had been assigned to investigate Ambassador Spock's disappearance, came to see Sarek and ask if he had any knowledge of a person Spock might contact on Romulus . During their brief conversation, Sarek regained a measure of control over himself and told the captain about Spock's Romulan friend Pardek. Before leaving, Captain Picard gave Sarek the traditional Vulcan salute and the first half of a phrase often accompanying it: "peace and long life." Sarek tried to respond but was overcome by his illness. Shortly thereafter, he died at the age of 203. ( TNG : " Unification I ")

When meeting with Ambassador Spock on Romulus, Picard learned that Spock and his father had never mind melded, and offered Spock the chance to share what Sarek had shared with him. The meld passed along Sarek's true feelings of love and admiration for his son that he had never allowed himself to convey in life. ( TNG : " Unification II ")

In 2370 , after Julian Bashir told Elim Garak , " Before you can be loyal to another, you must be loyal to yourself, " the Cardassian attributed the quote to Sarek, but it was actually Bashir's own. ( DS9 : " Profit and Loss ")

The 24th century starship USS Sarek was presumably named in honor of Ambassador Sarek. ( DS9 : " Favor the Bold ")

Alternate timelines and realities [ ]

In the mirror universe , Sarek was member of a multi-species rebellion against the Terran Empire in 2257 . ( DIS : " The Wolf Inside ")

Sarek in 2258 of the alternate reality.

In an alternate reality created by Nero's incursion, in 2258 Sarek was rescued by Spock when Vulcan was destroyed, but his wife Amanda Grayson was killed. ( Star Trek )

Sarek's skull in Q's alternate timeline.

In an alternate timeline where Humans ruled the totalitarian Confederation of Earth , Sarek served as director of the Vulcan Science Academy . According to Q , after an encounter with General Jean-Luc Picard , at some point before 2401 , Sarek was " decapitated on the steps of the Vulcan Science Academy in front of a crowd that included his wife and son. " Q found that to be a "nice touch." Sarek's skull was later mounted on display in General Picard's library at Château Picard . ( PIC : " Penance ")

Key dates [ ]

• 2165 : Born to Skon
• 2227 : Marries Amanda Grayson
• 2230 : His second son, Spock , is born
• 2237 : Arranges for Spock to marry T'Pring
• 2240s : Takes Michael Burnham as his ward
• 2249 : Transports Burnham to Captain Georgiou 's care aboard the USS Shenzhou
• 2250 : Becomes estranged from his son Spock
• 2256 : Targeted by logic extremists en route to a peace meeting with the Klingon Empire on Cancri IV
• 2257 : After Sarek's negotiations with the Federation Council, Georgiou's plan is passed. End of the Federation-Klingon War
• 2268 : Reestablishes contact with Spock while en route to the Babel Conference aboard the USS Enterprise ; survives a series of heart attacks and surgery , following a transfusion of rare T-negative blood from Spock
• 2273 : Begins to make contact with the Legarans in order to start relations with the United Federation of Planets
• 2285 : Appeals for the search and rescue of Spock
• 2286 : Finally accepts Spock's decision to join Starfleet
• 2293 : Becomes politically involved in Federation-Klingon relations, attending the Khitomer Conference
• 2366 : Diagnosed with Bendii Syndrome ; mind melds with Captain Picard to conclude negotiating a treaty with the Legarans
• 2368 : Visited by Picard; dies on Vulcan at the age of 203

Memorable quotes [ ]

" Isn't it unusual for a Vulcan to retire at your age? After all, You're only 102. " " 102.437 precisely, doctor. Measured in your years. I… had… other concerns. "

" Tellarites do not argue for reasons. They simply argue. "

" It does not require pride to ask that Spock be given the respect which is his due…not as my son, but as Spock. "

" Threats are illogical. And payment is usually expensive. "

" Emotional, isn't she? " " She has always been that way. " " Indeed. Why did you marry her? " " At the time, it seemed the logical thing to do. "

" What you seek has not been done since ages past, and then only in legend. Your request is not logical. " " Forgive me, T'Lar. My logic is uncertain where my son is concerned. "

" Kirk, I thank you. What you've done is – " " What I've done, I had to do. " " But at what cost? Your ship. Your son. " " If I hadn't tried, the cost would have been my soul. "

" We demand the extradition of Kirk! We demand justice! " " Klingon justice is a unique point of view, Mister President. "

" Your vessel did destroy USS Grissom . Your men did kill Kirk's son . Do you deny these events? " " We deny nothing. We have the right to preserve our race! " " Do you have the right to commit murder? "

" Your associates are people of good character. " " They are my friends. "

" Do you have a message for your mother? " " Yes. Tell her I feel fine. "

" These walls are too bright! "

" I have been accused of many things in my life, never an excess of emotion. "

" I saw you crying. " " I did not cry. " " I was there, I saw the tears. " " You exaggerate, captain. I recall only one tear. " " So you were emotionally affected by the music. " " That is not possible. " " You still haven't answered my question, Sarek. Is it logical for a Vulcan to cry? "

" The Legarans trust only me. They will not meet with any other member of the Federation. I must be allowed to complete my mission. There are no other logical solutions. "

" I will not be spoken to in such a manner! " " Do I hear anger in your voice? " " It would be illogical for a Vulcan to show anger! It would be illogical! Illogical! Illogical! Illogical! "

" A mind-meld can be a terrible intimacy, captain. "

" My wife, you will leave me now. I require solitude. "

" No! It is… it is… wrong. It is wrong! A lifetime of discipline is washed away, and in its place… (laughs briefly then grunts) Bedlam… nothing but bedlam! I am so old! Nothing left but dry bones… and dead friends. Tired. Oh, so tired. "

" I will take my leave of you now, Captain. I do not think we shall meet again. " " I hope you are wrong, Ambassador. " " We shall always retain the best part of the other inside us. " " I believe I have the better part of that bargain, Ambassador. Peace and long life. " " Live long and prosper. "

" Sarek, you will listen! " " Go from me!! " " Picard is here. " " No more chaos!! No more. " " I will leave you alone with him. He will either acknowledge you, or he won't. "

" Sarek, I have come a long way to see you. " " I will not answer!! " " I must talk to you about your son. " " I wish no one with me!! " " About Spock. "

" I never knew what Spock was doing. When he was a boy, he would disappear for days into the mountains. I asked him where he had gone, what he had done, he refused to tell me. I insisted that he tell me. He would not. I forbade him to go. He ignored me. I punished him. He endured it, silently. But always he returned to the mountains. One might as well ask the river not to run. But secretly I admired him, the proud core of him that would not yield. "

" Sarek… We're a part of each other. I know that he has caused you pain. But I also know… that you love him." " Tell him, Picard… " [Sarek struggles to perform the Vulcan salute. Picard assists him, then returns the hand gesture] " Peace and long life. " " Live long and… and… Live long and… [starts sobbing] Spock… my son… " " …and prosper. "

Appendices [ ]

Appearances [ ].

• " The Vulcan Hello "
• " Battle at the Binary Stars "
• " The Wolf Inside "
• " The War Without, The War Within "
• " Will You Take My Hand? "
• " Brother "
• " Light and Shadows "
• " Perpetual Infinity " (archive footage)
• " Such Sweet Sorrow "
• " Stormy Weather " (picture only)
• TOS : " Journey to Babel " (First appearance)
• TAS : " Yesteryear "
• Star Trek III: The Search for Spock
• Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
• Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
• Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
• " Unification I "

Background information [ ]

Identifying actors [ ].

Sarek was primarily played by Mark Lenard , except in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier , where young Sarek was played by Jonathan Simpson , though voiced by Lenard. In a deleted scene from 2009 's Star Trek , the character was played by Ben Cross , who played his alternate counterpart in the film . In Star Trek: Discovery , Sarek is portrayed by James Frain .

Casting and first episodes [ ]

The first canonical evidence of Sarek was a very vague reference in " Where No Man Has Gone Before ", an allusion that was specifically Spock mentioning "one of [his] ancestors" who had married a Human female. From then on, Sarek was usually referred to in a more direct fashion, consistently described as Spock's "father" in later episodes of the first season .

A description of Spock in an early- 1966 publicity booklet released by NBC (and reprinted in Inside Star Trek: The Real Story ) suggested that his father not only was an extraterrestrial who had married a woman from Earth but also was possessed of "a precise, logical turn of mind" which Spock inherited.

During the run of the series, Sarek was referred to in the past tense in all but one episode; in " The Squire of Gothos ", Spock tells Trelane , " My father is from the planet Vulcan. " Sarek's occupation as an ambassador was first established in " This Side of Paradise ", whose teleplay was written by D.C. Fontana . This reference was a prime motive for Fontana later writing " Journey to Babel ". ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 1, Issue 2 , p. 84) While she did so, Fontana conceived the rift between Sarek and Spock, including it in the episode. ( Starlog issue #118, p. 18) It was also in that installment that Sarek was finally named.

Sarek's name was inspired by a memo in which Robert H. Justman proposed to Gene Roddenberry that Vulcan names should be no longer than five letters, begin with "S", and end with "k". ( I Am Spock , hardcover ed., pp. 72 & 73)

The script of " Journey to Babel " included the following description of Sarek: " Because of Vulcan longevity, it is impossible to tell Sarek's age. He appears no more than late forties. He is actually one hundred two – middle age for a Vulcan […] Sarek's speech is almost without inflection. " ( Star Trek Magazine  issue 155 , p. 40) A scene cut from the same episode's final draft script would have established that Sarek's father was himself a well-renowned Vulcan ambassador, named Shariel. ( The Star Trek Compendium , 4th ed., p. 89)

Mark Lenard was cast in the role of Sarek apparently because he had made a good impression with the producers by playing the similarly pointed-eared Romulan commander in " Balance of Terror ". ( I Am Spock , hardcover ed., p. 71) D.C. Fontana recalled, " When we were casting in second season for 'Journey to Babel' and I was then the story editor and I had written that script, Gene said, 'What do you think about Mark Lenard for Sarek?' and I said, 'Whoopy-do! Let's go!' You know, I was all for it. He was perfect, again." (" Balance of Terror " Starfleet Access , TOS Season 1 Blu-ray ) Lenard was forty-three when he was cast for the part in "Journey to Babel". ( Star Trek: The Original Series 365 , p. 218)

Mark Lenard was artificially aged to play Sarek for the Vulcan's introductory appearance. " In those days, " he reflected, " they needed to fix my hair up with a little grey and they put wrinkles around my eyes, and then, of course, the ears. " ( Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home - The Official Poster Magazine , p. 56)

By way of research before playing Sarek, Mark Lenard quizzed Spock actor Leonard Nimoy , shortly after they first met. " Mark was very curious about Vulcans and wanted to know as much as he could about them, " Nimoy recalled, " so we discussed this at length on the set. " Lenard found it easy to perform the Vulcan salute and helped devise the intimate ritual of Vulcan finger-touching . ( I Am Spock , hardcover ed., p. 71) He also developed a large degree of knowledge about the character of Sarek. In a 1987 interview, Lenard mused over Sarek's personality and his reaction to Spock opting to join Starfleet rather than the Vulcan Science Academy, commenting, " Sarek, like many people of strength and societal importance, believes in the superiority of the Vulcan way […] And the fact that Sarek's son, whom he nurtured and taught, the one who expresses the best that is the Vulcan society, should go off and share all this knowledge with others hurt him deeply, I think. " ( Starlog issue #117, p. 46)

The fan response to Sarek was immediate and, for two weeks after the initial telecast of "Journey to Babel", Mark Lenard's fan mail was even more numerous than that being sent to Leonard Nimoy. ( The World of Star Trek , 3rd ed., p. 146) Nimoy himself also approved of how Lenard portrayed Sarek in Star Trek: The Original Series , later stating, " Mark had a real sense of the dignity and authority the character needed. " ("To Boldly Go… Season Two", TOS Season 2 DVD & Blu-ray ) Nimoy also expressed, " The great dignity that he brought to the role of Sarek earned him a permanent place in the hearts of Star Trek fans. " ( I Am Spock , hardcover ed., p. 71)

In a deleted scene filmed for " Elaan of Troyius ", it was revealed that Sarek was an accomplished musician. He placed first in an all-Vulcan music competition; second place was awarded to Spock. ( The Star Trek Compendium , 4th ed., p. 197; [1] )

The character of Sarek proved so popular that D.C. Fontana intended to bring him back for the third season, and included the Vulcan ambassador in her original story outline for " The Enterprise Incident ". In this version, Sarek was escorted by the Enterprise for a diplomatic mission, and later helped in negotiating with the Romulan commander (who, in this outline, was a male), gaining time for Kirk and McCoy (both being surgically altered to look Romulan) to perform their covert mission. However, comments made by Robert H. Justman regarding the outline made Fontana realize that Sarek didn't serve much purpose in the story, on the contrary, he was taking attention away from the main storyline and the other characters, especially Spock (whose relationship with the commander, soon to be turned female, became a pivotal point in the episode), and was basically there only for "fan service". Hence, Fontana soon eliminated him from the episode. ( These Are the Voyages: TOS Season Three )

Finally, Fontana was able to bring Sarek back for her 1973 Star Trek: The Animated Series episode " Yesteryear ". ( Star Trek Magazine Special 2015 , p. 72) In the script of that installment, Sarek was initially described as "distinguished looking". The same teleplay later characterized him as having a "deceptively quiet, unhurried voice" that Spock "would recognize in an instant anywhere." The "Yesteryear" script went on to further describe Sarek thus; " He is a tall, broadshouldered Vulcan, obviously in physical trim. His sharply planed, strong features and deepset eyes make him attractive. " Before Mark Lenard was available for that animated episode, James Doohan recorded the character's lines of dialogue for the installment. It was intended that his voice would serve as Sarek's in the episode, though Lenard's voice was thereafter looped over Doohan's recordings. ( Star Trek: Communicator  issue 119 , p. 78)

Initial film appearances [ ]

In a story written by Jon Povill and proposed to become the first Star Trek film , a societal upheaval on Vulcan included one of the Vulcans arguing that Sarek should be confined. ( Lost Voyages of Trek and The Next Generation , p. 11) Sarek was also to have been mentioned by name during the Kolinahr scene in Star Trek: The Motion Picture and was included in the shooting script for that movie, though not in the film's final version. [2]

Sarek's inclusion in Star Trek III was arranged by Harve Bennett . ( Starlog issue #117, p. 49) In an early story outline that Bennett wrote for the film, Sarek was a prime minister on Vulcan during a politically critical situation, as a Vulcan faction had reverted to the primitive behavior of their ancestors. Upon the Enterprise visiting the planet, Sarek rescued a landing party from an attack by the rebellious faction, though his attitude toward the newcomers was somewhat cold and angry. Sarek told Kirk, in the prime minister's quarters, that many Vulcans were unhappy with the Federation having such a powerful weapon as the Genesis Device; though elected prime minister as a peacemaker, Sarek was barely retaining order. It was also at this point, rather than on Earth, that Sarek admonished Kirk for not returning Spock's body to Vulcan and inquired as to how Kirk had known Spock had not been in a transcendental state. Sarek finally instructed Kirk to bring him Spock, and advised the admiral to hope that he would still be there when Spock arrived. [3] Although Sarek additionally appears in the film's conclusion, this was not true of the outline. ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 3, Issue 8 , p. 30; Trek: The Unauthorized Story of the Movies , p. 84)

Mark Lenard was very happy to reprise his role of Sarek in Star Trek III . He later reminisced, " I was given a wonderful part in the film […] [As director, Leonard Nimoy] really gave me some great opportunities to bring my character to life; I got to play an equal part in giving ideas for Sarek. " ( Star Trek: Communicator  issue 137 , p. 48) With Lenard having become a frequent guest at Star Trek conventions by that point, fans rejoiced when he reappeared as Sarek in the movie. ( Star Trek Compendium , 4th ed., p. 89)

In reprising the role of Sarek, Lenard explained, " When I came in for the makeup tests for Star Trek III , nobody really knew how to do Sarek's look. They had a few general ideas. I brought a picture in to show them what the hair looked like. The original makeup artists from the TV series are gone; Fred Phillips has retired. We had to dig up 'Journey to Babel' and run it, just to see what the makeup was like, to look at the angle of the eyebrows. " Regarding his new look, Lenard continued, " You may have noticed that the ears have changed. They used to be much bigger; now, they're more delicate […] I like the new look. Aesthetically, it fits the face a little better. Also, the movie screen is so much bigger than the TV screen that you can be more delicate, things don't need to be emphasized so much. " Finally, Lenard added, " Agewise, I had been made to look older back during 'Babel', but when I came in for tests this time, Leonard Nimoy thought I looked just about right. But then they did the makeup test. Leonard looked as it and said, 'Mark, you look more like my brother than my father!' So, they whitened my hair some more, applied a stronger age makeup – all in the name of fatherhood. " ( Starlog #86, September 1984 )

Spock and Sarek at the Federation Council in 2286

Sarek's chat with Spock in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home was conceived a little differently from how it turned out. In the earliest version of the discussion, Sarek basically admitted that, though he would never understand Spock's half-Human nature, he nonetheless accepted him. " It was originally much more bonding, but they [the producers] removed about half a page of dialogue, which changed things quite a bit, " related Steve Meerson , who was originally assigned to co-write the film's script. ( The Making of the Trek Films , 3rd UK ed., p. 64)

Sarek was talked about amid a story conference in which William Shatner , Harve Bennett and David Loughery tried to work out the details of the plot for Star Trek V: The Final Frontier . At one point, Shatner voiced interest in Sarek's motives for marrying Amanda, following the death of Sybok's mother. Even though Loughery reminded Shatner that this event had been commented on in the series, Loughery did not consider this usable story material for the film, finding it superfluous to the storyline. Despite this, Shatner again briefly mentioned Sarek's relationship with Amanda as a potential element of the movie's backstory. The group briefly contemplated that Sarek may have fathered Sybok during his marriage to Amanda, bearing the child out of wedlock to another woman, but the team then opted for Sybok having been born before Sarek married Amanda. Sarek was also considered as having motivated Sybok's departure from Vulcan, out of fear regarding Sybok's influence on Spock. An alternative to this involved both of Sarek's children choosing to leave but Sarek then confronting Spock with an implied threat that, if Spock did decide to depart, he would be completely disowned by his own father. ( Captain's Log: William Shatner's Personal Account of the Making of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier , pp. 64 & 65) The film's eventual backstory concerning Sybok and Sarek's relationship with a Vulcan princess has long been considered apocryphal by some sources, which included Gene Roddenberry . ( citation needed • edit )

Depictions in TNG and final film [ ]

In " The Big Goodbye ", an illustration of Sarek was seen when Data was assimilating the Dixon Hill novels. This illustration was from the FASA RPG module The Federation .

Sarek's initial reappearance on Star Trek: The Next Generation originally came about because Gene Roddenberry – having at first been determined to separate that Star Trek series from the original one – became confident to try a character crossover between the series. This was due to The Next Generation gaining popularity by its third season . In hindsight, Mark Lenard reminisced, " I was in Gene's office and he said, 'You know, it's about time that Sarek comes back. After all, Vulcans age very slowly.' I thought that was a good way to put it, not that they live a long time, but that they age very slowly – because it took them another year and a half before they found a script for me to play! " ( Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , paperback ed., p. 136)

Although Sarek's previous appearances in the third and fourth Star Trek films could have been the last times he was featured in the franchise, Marc Cushman had other notions in 1988 , when Gene Roddenberry heard his idea for a plot involving the character. Cushman pitched Roddenberry a story in which the Vulcan ambassador had to be brought out of retirement for one final mission but was, unbeknown to those around him, in the initial stages of a debilitating neurological illness. ( Star Trek Magazine Special 2015 , pp. 72 & 74) Early in TNG's second season and six months after the 1988 Writers Guild strike began, Roddenberry notified Cushman that, although he wanted to do something with the story, he was reconsidering whether the plot's main character was to be Sarek. " He asked me to take Sarek out of the script, " said Cushman, " and make it a different Vulcan, or a member of a different race that has telepathic abilities. " Roddenberry's interest in excising Sarek from the story was because he wanted the plot to focus more on the regular characters of TNG and had changed his mind about linking the two Star Trek series together at such an early stage in the series run of TNG, still wanting it to stand on its own. " I didn't see where removing Sarek was going to improve the story, or get me more work with the show, " continued Cushman, " so I handed the outline off to Jake Jacobs , who was a writer I'd done some work with in the past. " Though Jacobs submitted a revised version of the plot to Roddenberry, neither Sarek nor the story he was to have been featured in were included in TNG Season 2. ( Star Trek Magazine Special 2015 , p. 75)

Sarek was present in an initial form of the story for third season installment " Yesterday's Enterprise ", written by Trent Christopher Ganino and Eric A. Stillwell . Recalled Stillwell, " Gene Roddenberry had circulated a memo saying […] that Mark Lenard might be interested in making a guest appearance. " [4]

This early version of "Yesterday's Enterprise" began with Sarek arriving at the time planet aboard the Enterprise -D. As a dignitary, he planned to rendezvous with a Vulcan archaeological team that had been using the Guardian of Forever , on the planet, to study ancient Vulcan history at the time of Surak , known as the Time of Awakening . Sarek not only intended to congratulate the archaeologists but also personally escort them back to Vulcan aboard the Enterprise , but before they could leave the planet's surface, the team accidentally altered the timeline so that Surak died before his time. ( The Making of Yesterday's Enterprise , pp. 29-31) After being captured as a spy, Sarek convinced a wary Captain Picard – fundamentally altered by the changes in the timeline – to let him travel back in time, via the Guardian, and replace Surak during the Time of the Awakening, in order to restore history. In this way, the story would have accounted for Sarek's name being so similar to the name Surak.

However, Michael Piller vetoed the use of Sarek (as well as the Guardian of Forever) in this instance. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (1st ed., p. 117)) This was because Piller considered the character to be a gimmick from the original series that he'd rather avoid. [5] Eric A. Stillwell later reflected that Piller rejected the inclusion of Sarek while "telling me he had no interest in doing a story about Spock's father," though this attitude was to ultimately turn out to be "rather ironic." ( The Making of Yesterday's Enterprise , p. 34)

At the start of TNG's third season, Michael Piller, taking on the responsibilities of running the show due to Gene Roddenberry's health failing, actually wanted to return Sarek to the story which had been pitched by Marc Cushman. ( Star Trek Magazine Special 2015 , p. 76) Sarek was reincorporated into the story after the writing staff decided that the guest character in that episode would be a member of Starfleet Command or of the Federation . In order to make the premise fit more easily into the science-fiction genre, someone suggested that a Vulcan experiencing psychological difficulties, due to some form of disease, might have extreme telepathic impact. " From that point it was really short-stepped to, 'What about Sarek?' " remembered Michael Piller. " Sarek is an extraordinarily honorable character who we felt obliged to protect and deal with in a very respectful manner. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , UK 3rd ed., p. 197) In this case, the use of Sarek maximized the extent to which the story had an impact on and involved the audience. Piller noted, " It brings home the idea that even the greatest of men is subject to mental illness. " ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (3rd ed., p. 127)) The episode's script, written by Peter S. Beagle without any of the changes Jake Jacobs had made to the story (though his name remained in the screen credits), introduced Sarek with the description, " Sarek is indeed old, but immensely commanding. A genuinely regal figure. " ( Star Trek Magazine Special 2015 , p. 76; [6] )

After the episode "Sarek" was green-lit, the character of Sarek was the subject of a discussion between Marc Cushman and D.C. Fontana when they met. Cushman apologized for having recently "stolen" the character and transferred it to TNG. Though Fontana seemed surprised because she had invented Sarek, she was also polite and gracious about the issue. " She said, 'Well, he belongs to the fans now,' " Cushman relayed. ( Star Trek Magazine Special 2015 , p. 77)

For Michael Piller and others working on The Next Generation , there were parallels between the ailing Sarek of "Sarek" and Gene Roddenberry at the time of the episode's making, which Piller described as "what I remember most about that episode." He went on to relate the similarities between Roddenberry and the character; " Gene was beginning to go into decline. Not that he was uncommunicative, but it was clear that he was not the same man that he had been. We all respected him so much, and he had been such an important, strong leader of the franchise and everything it stood for. But here is this great man – and I've only known him for less than a year at this point – here is this great man going into decline, and I immediately felt a very strong connection to the premise of 'Sarek' […] If you go back and look at 'Sarek' closely, what that character is, is Gene Roddenberry. " ( Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Continuing Mission , p. 119) Piller also noted that this was the intention at the time the episode was written. ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 3, Issue 8 , p. 66)

The makeup for Sarek in the episode of the same name was much as it had been in the previously produced films. " Because Vulcans have an extreme longevity, the years between Sarek's appearance in the motion [pictures] and his first appearance on TNG didn't present us with any problems in designing his makeup, " commented TNG Makeup Supervisor Michael Westmore . " We decided not to age him, and the studio agreed, suggesting that we use the natural lines of his face as contours. " ( Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts , p. 78)

Leonard Nimoy had been appreciative of how Mark Lenard played Sarek in the episode of the same name as the character, describing this portrayal as "a beautiful performance." ( I Am Spock , hardcover ed., p. 325) Likewise, Ronald D. Moore thought the predicament Sarek finds himself in, during the installment which shares the character's name, made for an appealing episode. " Here was a respected, venerated figure in our Trek lore, and he had a problem, " Moore observed. " And it wasn't a problem where we were going to give him a hypo and solve it by the show's end. " ( The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 13 , p. 24) Moore clarified, " Mark Lenard has a chance to do some solid acting [in 'Sarek']. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 197)

The painting of Sarek in Star Trek VI

For Sarek's makeup in Star Trek VI , Jerry Quist , a makeup artist from TNG, agreed to join the film's makeup team – since the series was on hiatus while the film was in preproduction – and he alone concentrated on the character's prosthetics for the film. Makeup Supervisor Michael J. Mills recollected, " I just let Jerry take care of that, and he came up with an intermediate look for Sarek – something between what we'd seen in the previous features and what people would be seeing him as on TV. " ( Cinefex No. 49, p. 45) Also in Star Trek VI , a painting of Ambassador Sarek was hung in the USS Enterprise -A 's dining room.

The writing of Sarek's death in "Unification I" was inspired by the fact that, while the episode was being written, the writers were aware that Gene Roddenberry didn't have long to live. ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 3, Issue 8 , p. 66) Ronald D. Moore commented that killing Sarek off took courage and, despite liking the character's final scene, he stated, " It wasn't pretty. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 23, No. 2/3, p. 54) Michael Piller approved of the depiction of Sarek in the "Unification" two-parter overall, enthusing, " I liked the stuff with Sarek, it was very moving. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 233) Concerning Sarek's final canonical appearance, Michael Westmore reflected, " We had to show the effects of the degenerative illness that had afflicted him. We again used the basic design and lines of Mark Lenard's face, but this time we aged him and showed him looking gaunt and drained. We used deeper shadows and placed rubber stretching around his eyes to show fatigue. " ( Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts , pp. 78-79) Although Lenard enjoyed his small role in "Unification I" (saying, " It was a bit like King Lear "), he was unaware, during the making of the episode, that it contained a reference to Sarek having died. He explained, after-the-fact, " They only sent me part of the script. " ( Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , paperback ed., p. 136)

Interim [ ]

The realization that Sarek had apparently died in "Unification I" came as a sudden shock to Mark Lenard. " I was at a convention somewhere when the episode aired and I was surprised, " he reflected. Following the installment's broadcast, Lenard received mail from concerned fans, which he found emotionally moving, but he reckoned he might still reappear. " Jimmy Doohan, who was at that same convention with me, said to me, 'Well, did anybody see him die? Was anybody there?' " Lenard reported. " I said, 'No.' 'Well, then,' he told me, 'you're all right!' " ( Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , paperback ed., p. 136)

Ultimately, the role of Sarek was highly important in Mark Lenard's life. Mere months before he died in 1996 , Lenard commented, " I suspect that even though I've died on the screen, I will live and die as Sarek of Vulcan. There's no getting away from it anymore. " ( Star Trek: Communicator  issue 137 , p. 48)

Despite Sarek making no appearances on Star Trek: Enterprise , the writing staff of that series at one time discussed the possibility of including a young version of the character on the show. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 103 , p. 18) " We always thought that […] Sarek was one of the assistants to Soval and that sort of colored his view of the humans, " revealed Judith Reeves-Stevens . ( Star Trek: The Official Starships Collection , issue 55, p. 17) However, this would have contradicted previously established canon which places Sarek's birth several years after the timeframe depicted in Enterprise .

Sarek, Amanda, and their newborn son, before the timeline diverged ( Star Trek deleted scene)

Sarek was so integral to the origin story of Star Trek that, in one form, he once again made a movie appearance; his alternate counterpart was featured in the 2009 film Star Trek . ( Star Trek Magazine Special 2015 , p. 77) Mark Lenard's portrayal of the role provided a basis for Ben Cross' performance in the movie, as the alternate reality Sarek. As such, a sampling of Lenard's presentment of the character was supplied to Cross by Paramount , to prepare Cross for his own take on the character. ( Star Trek Magazine  issue 145 , p. 67)

In the aforementioned deleted scene from the film, involving Ben Cross portraying the prime-universe Sarek, he arrives home in the aftermath of Spock's birth. The scene in question takes place before Nero 's incursion – dated, on screen, as 2230 (which later became canon in Star Trek Beyond ) – thereby making the scene's depiction of Sarek, in fact, "this" character. The movie's script described Sarek, in this scene, as "late 40's," rather than sixty-five (which is how old he would be in 2230 if he was born in 2165) – by comparison, the script for " Journey to Babel ", set thirty-eight years later, also said that he appeared "no more than late forties." The script also established that he deliberately arrives after Spock's birth, explaining that Vulcan tradition excludes the father from actual childbirth, despite Amanda Grayson having wanted him to be there. [7] However, Sarek's absence from Spock's birth is not spoken about in the final version of the scene, leaving the reason for his late arrival unknown. The scene, both as scripted and ultimately edited, showed Sarek as being responsible for naming Spock, taking the name from "one of Vulcan's early society-builders."

Renewal [ ]

James Frain described Sarek as "endlessly fascinating, and complex, and ambivalent." ( Star Trek Magazine Discovery Collector's Edition , p. 36)

The episode "Sarek" stated that Sarek's first wife was from Earth; clearly, this was intended to be a reference to Amanda and that Sarek was not married to the Vulcan princess spoken about in Star Trek V , which admittedly never explicitly says that Sarek ever married the princess, only that she was Sybok's mother.

Mark Lenard was highly impressed with the actresses who were cast to play Sarek's wives. Shortly after appearing in the episode "Sarek", Lenard stated, " As Sarek, I've been graced with my wives so far. They've all been good-looking and charming women. " ( The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 14 , p. 28)

In "Journey to Babel" and "Sarek", Sarek introduced Amanda Grayson and Perrin respectively as "she who is my wife."

Apocrypha [ ]

The novel Ishmael gives his full name as "S'chn T'gai Sarek".

FASA 's RPG sourcebook The Federation claims that Sarek was born in Remsusala, Vulcan.

In the Thirteenth UK Story Arc , Spock had a cousin named Horek. If Horek was Spock's first cousin, this implies that Sarek had a sibling, one of Horek's parents.

In the comic story Star Trek: The Next Generation - Perchance to Dream , the crew of the USS Enterprise -D was attacked by a telepathic weapon called the Chova, which forced its victims to experience dreams and hallucinations focused on their personal failures. However, it was discovered that people with multiple personalities could render the Chova inert (since the Chova could only attack one personality at a time). Picard was deliberately infected with the Chova, since his mind meld with Sarek, the probe that gave him the memories of Kamin , and the remnants of his memories as Locutus of Borg still in his mind all gave him the makings of a multiple personality disorder. The four defeated the Chova, but Locutus then attempted to regain control of Picard's body, nearly 'killing' Kamin and Sarek before Picard gathered the mental strength to stop Locutus.

The novel Avenger revealed Sarek's "Bendii condition" to be actually caused by a poison or special pathogen used by members of the Symmetrists, a Vulcan terrorist group, to murder him without causing suspicion. Spock was also poisoned in this way.

In the novel Engines of Destiny , Sarek became the leader of a resistance fighting the Borg in an alternate timeline where the Borg conquered the Alpha Quadrant during the events of Star Trek: First Contact . However, Sarek retained some memories of the original timeline, which allowed him to recognize Kirk and Scotty when they arrived in 'his' timeline; even having never met them, he knew that he could trust the two of them. In the end, Sarek sacrificed himself to buy time for the temporally-relocated Enterprise -D to return Kirk to the Nexus , as Kirk's presence was required for Picard to survive in order to defeat the Borg's time-traveling experiment.

In the Myriad Universes short story A Less Perfect Union , in which Terra Prime was successful and the Federation-like Interstellar Coalition was formed without an isolationist Earth, Sarek was kidnapped by the Romulans before a conference discussing Earth joining the Coalition, and replaced by Keras ( Mark Lenard's Romulan character from " Balance of Terror ") – who, being so similar in appearance that this required no cosmetic alterations of any kind, concluded that the two likely shared a common ancestor from before the Vulcan-Romulan schism.

His mirror universe counterpart appeared in the novel The Sorrows of Empire and was mentioned in Dark Mirror and Spectre , all of which exist in separate continuities.

External links [ ]

• Sarek at StarTrek.com
• Sarek at Wikipedia
• Sarek at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• Sarek at the Star Trek Online Wiki
• 3 Ancient humanoid

Why 'Star Trek: Discovery' deserves more credit as a barrier-breaking series

Starship Discovery will soon be ending its mission, and what a journey it's been.

“Star Trek: Discovery,” which premiered in 2017, is entering its fifth and final season Thursday on Paramount+. And you’ll need the Captain’s Log to remember all the twists, turns and transformations the show has gone through since it began.

One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is the hate the series has received from some Trek fans. (“Discovery” has an overall audience score of 37% on Rotten Tomatoes, a stark difference from the 87% critic rating.)

While the show is far from free of legitimate criticism, many of the complaints seem unfairly – though perhaps tellingly – placed on the show’s focus on a Black woman commander, its LGBTQ+ stars and allies and its inclusive storylines. “Woke agenda” and other dog whistles frequently surface on Reddit and social media posts about the series.

That so much of the negativity is rooted in a backlash against inclusivity raises questions. After all, the "Star Trek" franchise has long emphasized and celebrated culture, diversity and humanity coming together and preserving the integrity of beings they meet across the galaxy.

"It doesn't make any sense, because (these fans) say they love this franchise," series star Sonequa Martin-Green says in an interview. The show “has always been about breaking those boundaries. It's always been about diversity and equality. And our world has changed since the last iteration of 'Trek.' We have a responsibility to push that needle forward and to stay true to that."

More: Issa Rae says Hollywood needs to be accountable. Here's why diverse shows are so important

The series is originally set before the events of NBC's original “Star Trek: The Original Series” (later jumping to the future) and follows Michael Burnham (Martin-Green), who became the starship’s captain, and the rest of the crew of the USS Discovery: first officer Saru (Doug Jones), chief engineer Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp), lieutenant and now Starfleet Academy teacher Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman), medical officer Hugh Culber (Wilson Cruz), courier and Burnham’s love interest Cleveland “Book” Booker (David Ajala) and ensign Adira Tal (Blu del Barrio).

Many more characters have stood on the bridge, battled with Burnham, or otherwise make up the world of "Discovery." The series had some trouble finding the right footing, but it’s always had heart, especially in its recurring theme of redemption. And it deserves more support for what it has meant for the entire "Star Trek" franchise.

Here’s why “Star Trek: Discovery” deserves more credit:

Prioritizing diversity and inclusivity

A Vulcan philosophy (and one espoused by “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry) is IDIC, or “infinite diversity in infinite combinations,” and many of the related series, movies and books underscore this belief. “Discovery” also has diversity at its core: the show focuses on a Black woman who becomes captain. Stamets and Culber are an openly gay couple, and engineer Jett Reno (Tig Notaro) is a lesbian. And the show introduced a few franchise firsts: Adira Tal as the first nonbinary character in "Star Trek ," and their boyfriend, Gray ( Ian Alexander ), is the first transgender character , both introduced in Season 3.

More: 'Star Trek' documentary unveils star Nichelle Nichols' impactful NASA connection

Starting a new age of Star Trek

“Discovery” helped launch the CBS All Access streaming platform, a CBS subscription service that would eventually become Paramount+, as well as a new era of "Star Trek" series including “Lower Decks” and “Picard.” Before “Discovery,” the last Trek series was “Star Trek: Enterprise,” which ended in 2005.

Exploring strange new worlds

The second season of “Discovery” also served as a launching pad for the well-received spinoff, “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,” which resurfaced popular characters from the original series including Spock (Ethan Peck), Captain Pike (Anson Mount), Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) and Number One (Rebecca Romijn).

Finding time for the simple things

In a few scenes scattered throughout "Discovery," we see characters like Culber and Stamets sharing a meal or talking about their day while brushing their teeth. It’s almost mundane, but there’s also something so lovely about watching LGBTQ+ characters who rarely are the focus in movies or television simply living their lives, being their whole selves. Burnham rocking braids at the beginning of Season 3 speaks cultural volumes. The subtle amid the big battles and overarching plots do have meaning, especially for those whose voices often go unheard.

Going boldly

The first season of “Discovery” went out of its way to highlight its connections to the original series: Burnham is Spock’s adopted sister, and there's a brief appearance by Spock’s father, Sarek. But it wasn’t always so neatly woven, sometimes seeming more like it was using franchise lore as a crutch. But “Discovery” wasn’t afraid to try new things, turning itself around after an overcomplicated first season and again after a very “TOS”-inspired second, slowly building up its own universe without relying too heavily on the old. 

The first episodes of Season 5 are a little rocky before it settles into a comfortable speed. 

"This time around, we wanted to bring in some levity," Martin-Green says. "But there's a grand sort of epicness to Season 5, even though we didn't know it was our last season when we were shooting it. I think looking back on it, and when we share it with the world, it'll seem that way because the season is so big. So people can expect a lot of fun. They can expect it to go really fast." 

It will be interesting to see if “Discovery” sticks the landing through the remainder of the season.

“The good outweighs the bad,” Burnham says in an upcoming episode about a mission, and that’s also true of “Discovery."

The fifth and final season of "Star Trek: Discovery" (two episodes now streaming, then weekly on Thursdays) streams on Paramount+.

Star Trek: 5 Actors Who Almost Played Spock Instead Of Leonard Nimoy

Even to the uninitiated, Leonard Nimoy's Spock has long served as the face of the "Star Trek" franchise. Reflecting on the iconic character while speaking with  Variety  about  "Strange New Worlds," the most recent Spock actor, Ethan Peck , recalled his own experience flashing the Vulcan's signature hand sign on his grade school playground as a kid. "When I thought of 'Star Trek,' I thought of Spock. And now I'm him," the actor mused. "It's crazy."

Like Zachary Quinto before him, Peck landed the gig in part because of his passable resemblance to Nimoy's O.G. Vulcan. Despite creator Gene Roddenberry's conviction that the actor would be perfect for the role, he was one of a handful of aspiring Vulcans in the running. According to William Shatner's account in the memoir "Star Trek Memories,"  NBC required Roddenberry to consider a handful of other actors for the role before landing on Nimoy. And judging by the lineup, Captain Kirk's favorite bromance could have looked a lot different.

Actors who were seriously considered for — or even offered — the role include character actor Rex Holman ("Escape to Witch Mountain"), Victor Lundin (Gene from "The Theory of Everything"), Michael Dunn ("The Wild, Wild West" TV series),  Martin Landau, whose many well-known roles include Bela Lugosi in "Ed Wood,"  and even DeForest Kelley, who ended up playing the ship's doctor, Leonard "Bones" McCoy. 

Roddenberry wanted Nimoy, but NBC wanted someone else

As recounted in  Marc Cushman's book, "These Are the Voyages: TOS, Season One," Spock had been on Gene Roddenberry's mind early in the "Star Trek" pilot creation process. For suggestions on casting the ship's first officer, he had turned to Gary Lockwood, who played the lead in Roddenberry's 1963 TV military drama series "The Lieutenant." When the actor recommended Roddenberry cast someone "who was really good, but ... had kind of a strange face," Majel Barrett — Roddenberry's wife and then-future Trek legend — immediately reminded him of Nimoy. 

But NBC had their own guy in mind to play the Vulcan — namely, Martin Landau. By the time he was offered the role of Spock, Landau had racked up a number of TV and film roles, including appearances on "The Twilight Zone," "Wagon Train," "Gunsmoke," and "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour." Around the same time the actor was offered the role of Spock, he had been up for a role in the spy series "Mission Impossible" as master of disguise Rollin Hand.

For Landau, turning down the space series was a no-brainer. In 1986, the actor told  Starlog,  "I can't play wooden. It's the antithesis of why I became an actor," adding that "newscasters are more emotional than Spock." Instead, he went for the spy gig — a role that earned him a Golden Globe in 1968.

DeForest Kelley turned down the role

Dishing in Allan Asherman's  "The Star Trek Interview Book,"  Roddenberry said Michael Dunn, a 3' 10" actor whose best-known role was as Dr. Miguelito Loveless on "The Wild, Wild West," was also considered for the part. "I wanted Spock to look different and be different, and yes, to make a statement about being an outsider looking in," Roddenberry explained. Ultimately, the franchise creator felt the role needed someone more conventionally attractive to a weekly TV audience, concluding, "It was the right choice for the time." Dunn did, however, end up making an appearance on "Star Trek" in one of the series' most notorious episodes, "Plato's Stepchildren."

Victor Lundin, who played one of the first Klingons in "Star Trek" in "Errand of Mercy," also auditioned for Spock. In 2001, he told the  Chicago Reader,  "If you look at my ears you can see why. I would've saved them millions in makeup." According to Lundin, he was just too much of a beefcake to play the Vulcan at the time, noting, "I was very buff in those days." Also considered for the role was Rex Holman, who would finally get his turn with the franchise in "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier."

But for many Trekkies, the most surprising Spock revelation is that DeForest Kelley read for the role as the Enterprise's Vulcan science officer. Kelley detailed his near-Spock experience in  "From Sawdust to Stardust: The Biography of DeForest Kelley, Star Trek's Dr. McCoy."  Recalling a lunch meeting with Roddenberry, Kelley recounted, "He described this character, this alien with the ears, and he asked me how I felt about playing it." However , the idea of playing a Vulcan didn't sit well with him. "No, Gene, really, I don't want to do it," he recalled, answering in a tone similar to that of his  sarcastic Enterprise doctor, Bones .

How Star Trek's Vulcans Evolved Beyond Gene Roddenberry's Creation

While the in-universe history of the Vulcans in Star Trek is epic, the behind-the-scenes saga of their creation and development is equally important.

Quick Links

Creating the vulcans in the original series era of star trek, the vulcans stay at arm's length during the next generation era, how star trek: enterprise reimagined the vulcans and history with humanity, the vulcans and romulans are living in the days of futures past.

When Gene Roddenberry was first creating his " Wagon Train to the stars" in 1964, the Vulcans were the first alien species he created during development. Personified by Mister Spock (played by Leonard Nimoy), these logical humanoids were imagined with pointed ears, green blood and, most importantly, no emotions. However, Nimoy, other actors and writers all contributed behind the scenes to making Vulcans the most important aliens in Star Trek history. What's interesting about the Vulcans is that along with being a logical and scientific people, they are also deeply spiritual and ritualistic. This seems a bit like an incongruity, especially knowing how adamant Roddenberry was about humanism over religion.

Later storytellers helped reconcile these two facets of the Vulcan culture by fleshing out the species' history. Along with strong psychic abilities, the Vulcans are not emotionless. Rather, they have very intense and destructive emotions, far different from their human cousins. Thus, ritualism and spirituality are the "scientific method" they use to suppress their emotions in healthy and constructive ways. In the modern, third wave of Star Trek series, the Vulcan culture continues to be examined with storytellers continuing to build on the foundation laid by Roddenberry, D.C. Fontana, Star Trek's "other" Gene , Nimoy and everyone from set designers to costumers.

'The Phone Didn't Ring': Walter Koenig Reflects on Career Struggles After Star Trek

When developing the first Star Trek pilot in 1964, Gene Roddenberry hadn't fully fleshed out the idea of what the Vulcans were. Vulcans existed only so far as making Spock half-human. "I wanted part of him to be at war with the other, the human part and the alien part," he said in The Fifty-Year Mission by Edward Gross and Mark A. Altman. Later, when developing the second Star Trek pilot, thanks to Lucille Ball , Roddenberry combined Spock's character with the "computer-mind qualities" of Number One, the woman First Officer discarded in the second version. That's how they became unemotional and logic-based.

In The Making of Star Trek by Roddenberry and Stephen E. Whitfield, the former envisioned that, despite the multispecies Federation, crews would be mostly human, Vulcan or other member species. As Spock became Star Trek 's central character , more stories about his people were created. Sarek, his father, was brought into the show. The classic Season 2 episode "Amok Time" introduced the Vulcan homeworld, while also establishing that Vulcans, while logical, were almost irrationally private about their most basic biological functions.

Leonard Nimoy was also essential to defining who the Vulcans were. He created the infamous Vulcan neck pinch and the salute, drawn from his Jewish heritage. Later, in the films, he would weigh in on Vulcan culture, defining it exclusively once he started directing. In The Center Seat - 55 Years of Star Trek , actor Robin Curtis who played Saavik described how Nimoy created the "love scene" between her and the reanimated Spock going through his first Pon Farr. Set and costume designers tried to marry the ideas Vulcans were scientific and logical as well as an ancient society. Their robes, ceremonial accessories and mostly stone structures were born from this notion.

9 Things About Star Trek: The Original Series That Make No Sense

When Gene Roddenberry was asked by Paramount to develop Star Trek: The Next Generation he turned to many of his collaborators from the days of the original series. Robert H. Justman, Dorothy Fontana, David Gerrold and others came back to help, though they didn't last long on the series. While many concepts from The Original Series were reused for The Next Generation , Roddenberry didn't want to include too many familiar elements. Primarily, this meant the Vulcans. There were no regular Vulcan characters in any of the second-wave series until Tuvok in Star Trek: Voyager .

Despite the lack of regular Vulcan characters, there was significant advancement to the Vulcan story. The first came in Season 3's "Sarek," in which it's revealed that Vulcans live hundreds of years longer than humans. This episode also introduced what writer Marc Cushman called "the idea of a Vulcan going through senility," in The Fifty-Year Mission . Roddenberry liked the idea, but in the same book writer Ira Steven Behr reveals there was a massive fight with producers over whether they could even say Spock's name. Later, Paramount would convince Nimoy to bring Spock to Star Trek: The Next Generation to "pass the baton" and promote Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.

The episode featured Spock seemingly defecting from the Federation to the Romulan Star Empire. Only he wasn't defecting. Spock wanted to bring the logic philosophy of Surak to Romulus in the hopes of reunifying the Romulans and the Vulcans into a single society again. Some fans felt the episode was too small, and executive producer Michael Piller said he was unhappy with his work on the episode. He called the episode "dark," "flat" and "talky" in The Fifty-Year Mission . In hindsight, it's a love swan song for the Spock character. He shares a lovely scene with Data, and his final mission puts him on a path to making the last great enemy of his time in Starfleet an ally.

Star Trek The Next Generation: When Does TNG Get Good?

Every new iteration of Roddenberry's universe since Star Trek: The Animated Series has been met with skepticism, and in some cases, outright hostility from fans. Star Trek: Enterprise perhaps received the most flak, in part because of how it depicted the pre-Federation history of the Vulcans and humans. Rather than dear friends, the Vulcans were antagonistic and did not trust the emotional humans to join the larger galactic society. Enterprise 's creators were trying to do something different without moving things too far from what makes Star Trek so identifiable.

Still, there were conflicts. Antoinette Stella recounted in The Fifty-Year Mission when an angry fan called Paramount to complain a Vulcan character lied. Her assistant, Juan Hernandez spoke to the fan, who pointed out Spock said Vulcans don't lie, quoting The Original Series . "And Juan took a beat and said, 'When Mr. Spock said that, he was lying." In fact, there are many examples of Spock lying, especially in The Undiscovered Country . The Enterprise storytellers made Vulcans more complete by showing they had the same kind of idiosyncrasies and character flaws as any group of people .

The showrunner for season 4, Manny Coto , helped to reconcile the Vulcans of Enterprise with the Vulcans fans knew. " I thought there was a great opportunity to do [a series of episodes] which bridged those two cultures and to develop a story about how they'd floundered from the original teachings of Surak ," he said in The Fifty-Year Mission . Not only did it help explain why these Vulcans seemed so different, it also underscored why Vulcans and humanity would be close allies while still maintaining the elements of secrecy and tension established in previous series.

Review: Discovery's Final Season Is a Bittersweet Star Trek Symphony

The third wave of series -- particularly Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds -- faced fan consternation as well, particularly because of their handling of Vulcan history. Michael Burnham, played by Sonequa Martin-Green, was conceived as Spock's adopted sister, raised by Sarek and Amanda Grayson after her parents died. This gave viewers a new angle on Vulcan culture, from "logic extremists" to a reunified Vulcan and Romulan society in the 32nd Century . The producers know that Vulcans are extremely important to Star Trek , so they want to both honor the past and advance their story, justifying the use of the characters.

The best development to come of this is fixing the biggest mistake of the Kelvin Timeline films . The time-travel convention used to bring Nimoy's Spock into the past inadvertently meant his final mission was a failure. Yet, by the 32nd Century, Spock's mission to unify Vulcan and Romulans is a success, and they fully credit him for the development. This was an important element for Discovery Season 3, according to showrunner Michelle Paradise , allowing Burnham to discover just how far her adopted brother reached out to the galaxy.

In Strange New Worlds , however, some of the Vulcan cultural developments happen as they did in The Original Series era: out of story necessity. For example, the Vulcan V'Shal ritual "purely came out of [writers] breaking the story," co-showrunner Henry Alonso Meyers said . While the storytellers wanted to keep it authentic to Vulcan culture, it was created because it was funny to put Spock through a "when he's 'pretending' to be Vulcan" scenario. The danger of treating Star Trek Vulcans with too much regard for their sacred history is underserving the stories being told today . Thankfully, Star Trek has found that balance as it always does.

The Star Trek universe encompasses multiple series, each offering a unique lens through which to experience the wonders and perils of space travel. Join Captain Kirk and his crew on the Original Series' voyages of discovery, encounter the utopian vision of the Federation in The Next Generation, or delve into the darker corners of galactic politics in Deep Space Nine. No matter your preference, there's a Star Trek adventure waiting to ignite your imagination.