We went to meet Anson Mount and Rebecca Romijn, the interpreters of Captain Pike and Number One in the “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” series available on Paramount+.
How do you explain the success of this Star Trek connected universe on television?
Anson Mount (Captain Christopher Pike): I think there’s something optimistic about the Star Trek universe. What’s more in this age when we watch so many dystopian events on TV.
I think we all want to leave a better world for our children, and our children’s children. As a species, we want to ensure our survival, and I also think that the success of the series is due to our sense of curiosity, which I believe is the very heart of science fiction.
Rebecca Romijn (Number One): The Star Trek universe can be appreciated by different generations but also give rise to discussions around the different themes addressed by the series.
What does the Star Trek universe represent for you? What is your very first memory of the franchise?
Anson Mount: We both learned about Star Trek from our mothers when we were seven years old when the very first Star Trek series was on rerun. I still remember the time, Sunday at 6 p.m. on Channel 14.
Thanks to this series, I discovered what science fiction can do, and in a sense everything that is also possible to tell thanks to television. So it was completely crazy to find myself on the set of the Enterprise, as you can surely imagine. It is truly the fulfillment of a dream I had since childhood.
Rebecca Romijn: Yes, it really is a dream come true. I remember the discussions with my mother, about the feeling of curiosity that the series made me feel, the desire to explore…
I wondered at the time if we were the only living beings in this universe, and my mother answered me ‘But of course not ! It is so egocentric to think that we are the only living species in the universe!’ (laughs) As parents, we always hope that our children will be guided in their choices by their spirit of curiosity and their imagination.
CBS Christopher Pike (Jeffrey Hunter) and Number One (Majel Barrett) in the Star Trek original series
Your characters only appear during the broadcast-rejected pilot episode (scenes from which were eventually used as flashbacks in another episode). Were you inspired by the interpretations of the original interpreters of your characters?
Rebecca Romijn: As far as I’m concerned, Majel Barrett only appears as Number One for about 30 minutes in this episode. What I learned from the character from this episode is that he is a very formal person, picky about respecting the rules, but he is also someone we could qualify as effective.
So I took a lot of inspiration from that. I felt very honored to inherit such a character, but also to be given the freedom to explore his personality and his past.
Anson Mount: It’s the same for me. There wasn’t a whole lot to draw inspiration from, but it was clear to me that the Christopher Pike who would appear in Star Trek Discovery Season 2 would be different from the one in the original series.
My version of the character is older, and he’s someone who’s already decided who he wants to be, and has left all his youthful uncertainties behind. Knowing his story helped me a lot, and allowed me to understand what will be his evolution in our series.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 episodes can be found every Thursday on Paramount+!