Kate Mulgrew isn’t ready for Shatner-worthy space travel

Kate Mulgrew is ready for take off – although maybe just the wrong kind.

Mulgrew, who played Captain (and later Admiral) Kathryn Janeway in the 1995-2001 series “Star Trek: Voyager”, will reprise her steadfast role – with a twist – in the new animated, kid-friendly show ” Star Trek: Prodigy, “premiered Thursday, October 28 on Paramount +.

But in light of 90-year-old “Star Trek” icon William Shatner – who appeared “stiff and sore” after his historic October 13 trip on Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket – Mulgrew is content to keep her feet firmly planted on Earth.

Mulgrew, 66, told the Post she met Shatner backstage at New York Comic Con earlier this month, just before his buzzing takeoff.

“I ran into him and said, ‘Old devil. What are you doing now?’ Why on Earth do you want to do that, bill? Does your doctor say you can do this? “” Mulgrew called back by phone from London, where she is filming of Showtime’s next alien visitor series “The man who fell to Earth”.

“He said, ‘I’m absolutely terrified, but I feel like I’m up to it,'” she recalled Shatner, who played Captain James T. Kirk in the original ‘Trek’ series and the following films. “You know, there is a lot to be said about his heritage, his relevance and his captain. God bless him for that. I admire him. I thought he was showing real courage.

The new show, “Prodigy,” has its own bold goal: to expand the universe to a younger fan base with a message of trust, honor and friendship. It follows a group of lawless teenagers exiled to a distant alien mining colony who stumble upon an abandoned Starfleet ship and prepare for an escape. Of course, none of the kids are actually able to pilot the vehicle – but they are helped by the ship’s holographic training advisor, Mulgrew’s now digital, interactive, and even kindergarten Janeway.

“He was beaming at the possibility that he would finally be introduced to the one demographic that had seemingly been overlooked in ‘Star Trek’ history, namely the children, who would hopefully be wildly enamored of the idea. animated “Star Trek,” “she said of the project.

The new CGI series has a somewhat grim feel at times, at least during the hour-long premiere shown by The Post, but Mulgrew didn’t think it would scare young viewers, drawing a parallel with a piece of classic literature from the years. 1800. She mentioned that on the day of this interview she had visited the Charles Dickens Museum in London and marveled that Oliver Twist’s “high jinks” were also “very dark,” which she said. she actually attracted children.

She expects the same for the new series.

“Children have an instinctive understanding of what is dangerous,” she said. “They have an instinctive urge to walk through danger, to prove their courage and to go out into the light.”

Aside from potential new fans, while she’s in London, she will also air next month. Star Trek convention destination, as well as some of his former “Voyager” castmates. There will also be a rabid Trekkies fan base with an “unwavering and almost fierce loyalty” to the franchise, Mulgrew said. She will also be one of the many stars of the “Trek” interviewed for “Headquarters: 55 Years of Star Trek, A behind-the-scenes docuseries on the anniversary of the original show that will premiere at 10 p.m. Friday, November 5 on the History channel.

The franchise’s five-decade reign has exploded in recent years with other CBS and Paramount “Trek” projects including “Star Trek: Discovery”, “Star Trek: Picard”, the animated “Star Trek: Lower Decks” and the upcoming series “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.”

“Their vast intelligence about science – I mean, it’s all rooted in science,” she said of “Trek” fans, an audience she embraces. “I have always enjoyed the conversation with this fanbase. I interned. I recognize its international reach. Without that fan base, we don’t have the job – and without the job, there isn’t a “Star Trek” going on. “

Based on his generational bias, Emmy nominee Mulgrew is often remembered for roles in everything from Netflix drama “Orange is the New Black” (aired from 2013 to 2019) on the soap opera “Ryan’s Hope” (1975 to 1989). But it was her seven seasons as Captain (and later Admiral) Kathryn Janeway on “Voyager” that put her on the map. Additionally, beyond his “Star Trek” travels, Mulgrew’s acting resume is peppered with sci-fi-leaning projects, including this year’s film “The Magnificent Meyerson”, the Syfy series from 2009 to 2014 “Warehouse 13” and the animated show from the 1990s “Gargoyles”.

“Obviously the oracles say it would be because everything in my life seems to be related or associated with science fiction,” she said, adding that she was “surprised and delighted” to ‘be approached for the new cartoon. “I mean, I certainly didn’t expect to play Captain Janeway in a ‘Star Trek’ series, let alone all the other things that followed. And now here we are with ‘Prodigy’ to sort of put the icing on the cake.

Of course, “Traveling” isn’t the only “Trek” experience in Mulgrew’s past; she also briefly appeared in the 2002 sequel to “Star Trek: The Next Generation” “Star Trek: Nemesis”, starring Sir Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard. This raises the question of whether she could appear in a future season of Stewart’s “Next Generation” sequel series “Star Trek: Picard” – which includes Mulgrew’s former “Voyager” castmate Jeri Ryan, reprising his role of ex-drone Borg Seven of Neuf. (Season 2 will be premiered in February 2022.)

While Mulgrew is not sure if she was contacted to make an appearance, she admitted that she would be open to it if the story was “very compelling.”

Back in the real world, however, Mulgrew herself prefers to stay grounded and watch the stars from afar.

“I see the moon. I see the constellations. I understand the magnitude, “she said.” It’s like God, the space is endless. So I’m kind of comfortable being blown away by it on a daily basis.

She did see a touching scenario, however, in which she could book a Shatner-worthy trip: at the request of a terminally ill person through an organization like the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

“I think if any of those people expressed a wish to go into space with Captain Janeway, I would oblige them – with humility and a certain grace. I would be happy,” she said. .