Star Trek: Strange New Worlds casts two iconic franchise characters from original series for final season

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Season five of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will bring back two beloved characters from the original series: Dr. Leonard ‘Bones’ McCoy and Hikaru Sulu. They’re scheduled to appear in the season’s final episode.

This series is set before the original Star Trek, following Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) and the crew of the USS Enterprise as they handle surprising missions and challenges.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has established links to the original series by featuring younger iterations of beloved characters like Spock (played by Ethan Peck), Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding), Kirk (Paul Wesley), and Scotty (Martin Quinn).

The show’s beloved main team will be complete in its fifth and final season with the addition of Bones and Sulu. Thomas Jane, a well-known actor, will play Bones, and Kai Murakami, a stage performer, will portray Sulu.

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I think most people probably recognize Jane from his role as The Punisher – he really nailed it in the 2004 movie, and even showed up in a video game and a short film later on. But he’s done a lot of great work beyond that, like his character Ray Drecker in the HBO series Hung, and I especially loved his performance as Detective Joe Miller in The Expanse. He’s a really versatile actor.

Stepping into the iconic role of Bones is no easy feat, and this actor really feels like he understands what made the character special. He’s clearly channeling both DeForest Kelley, who originated the part, and Karl Urban, who brought a fantastic energy to it in the recent Star Trek movies – you know, the ones J.J. Abrams made between 2009 and 2016. He manages to honor both performances and make the role his own, which is a huge accomplishment.

Though new to television as Sulu, George Takei’s successor, actor Murakami has a strong stage background, including a celebrated performance with the Royal Shakespeare Company in their adaptation of the animated film My Neighbor Totoro.

George Takei first portrayed Sulu, and recently returned to the character in an audio drama. John Cho, known for his role in ‘The Sympathizer,’ played Sulu in the recent Star Trek movie series.

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Deadline reports that the actors are scheduled to appear only in the last episode of Strange New Worlds’ fifth season. This could suggest a direct connection to the original Star Trek series, potentially showing Captain Pike passing command to Captain Kirk and his crew.

The fourth and fifth seasons were filmed consecutively, and the very last scenes were shot just recently. We expect to see the final episodes in 2026 and 2027, though exact release dates haven’t been confirmed yet.

Watch the UK trailer for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3:

You can watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on Paramount Plus. New subscribers can try the service free for seven days.

Don’t miss Star Trek: Strange New Worlds! Add it to your watchlist on the TopMob: What to Watch app. Download the app today for daily TV recommendations and the latest features.

Authors

David CraigSenior Drama Writer

David Craig writes about TV dramas and comedies for TopMob, focusing on the newest and most popular shows on television and streaming platforms. Before joining TopMob, he worked at Starburst Magazine and hosted The Winter King Podcast on ITVX. He also has a degree in Journalism from the University of Sheffield.

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2025-12-24 15:04