Nine actors fromStar Trekappear throughoutBlack Mirror’s 7 seasons. Created by Charlie Brooker,Black Mirrorhas been a hit series for Netflix since it premiered in 2011. A sci-fi anthology series about the harrowing dangers of technology in society, Black Mirrorwas originally a UK production that began setting episodes in the United States, and casting famous American actors, starting inBlack Mirrorseason 3.
After J.J. Abrams rebootedStar Trekmoviesin 2009, top actors, including someunexpected names, have joined theStar Trekfranchisein films and in Star Trek on Paramount+’s TV series. Of course,Star Trekhas been a force in pop culture for almost 60 years, andmany iconic names associated withStar Trekhave crossed over into other franchises, including theStar Trekactors set to appear in Marvel Studios’Avengers: Doomsday.Meanwhile, some presentStar Trekactors were cast inBlack Mirrorbefore joining the final frontier.
Black Mirror’s list of names who are also part ofStar Trekconsists ofactors from J.J. Abrams’Star Trekmovies,Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Prodigy,andStar Trek: Strange New Worlds.It’s surprising thatBlack Mirrorhasn’t tapped icons like Patrick Stewart or Scott Bakula to appear in its anthology, but perhaps that’s just a matter of time. Here are the 9 actors who cross over fromBlack MirrortoStar Trek.
9Lydia Wilson
Black Mirror Season 1, Episode 1 - “The National Anthem”
Lydia Wilson is one of the first faces ever seen inBlack Mirror.Wilson plays Princess Susannah, a beloved member of the Royal Family inBlack Mirror’s first-ever episode, “The National Anthem.” Princess Susannah is held hostage by a mysterious kidnapper who will only release her if Prime Minister Michael Callow performs a sexual act with a pig live on television. Wilson plays Princess Susannah in hostage videos until she is released.
Five years after appearing inBlack Mirror,Lydia Wilson donned prosthetics to become Kalara inStar Trek Beyond.Posing as an alien in desperate need of Starfleet’s help, Kalara baits a trap of for the USS Enterprise led by Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine). The duplicitous Kalara and her leader,Krall (Idris Elba), are revealed to be humans who were mutated into alien forms. Kalara was formerly known as Starfleet Officer Jessica Wolfe.
Shazad Latif makes a very brief appearance inBlack Mirror’s premiere episode, “The National Anthem.” InBlack Mirror,Latif plays Medhi Raboud,a Middle East expert, who appears as part of a British news panel. Medhi’s role is to discuss the kidnapping of Princess Susannah as a possible act of terrorism. Shazad appears inBlack Mirrorsix years before he joined thecast ofStar Trek: Discovery.
Voq is canonically the first known Klingon to be surgically altered into a human inStar Trek.
InStar Trek: Discoveryseasons 1 and 2,Shazad Latif plays the dual roleof Lieutenant Ash Tyler, who is the surgically altered human form of Voq, an albino Klingon. The original Ash Tyler was a Starfleet Officer captured by the Klingons and replaced by Voq. Tyler allies himself with Starfleet as his lover, L’Rell (Mary Chieffo), becomes Chancellor of the Klingon Empire. At the end ofStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2,Commander Ash Tyler is placed in charge of Section 31.
7Christina Chong
Black Mirror Season 2, Episode 3 - “The Waldo Moment”
Nine years before debuting inStar Trek: Strange New Worlds,Christina Chong played TamsininBlack Mirrorseason 2, episode 3, “The Waldo Moment.” Tamsin is a producer who oversees Waldo, a crude, foul-mouthed, blue cartoon bear performed by a comic named Jamie Salter (Daniel Rigby). Tamsin is a contemporary role for Christina Chong that’s quite removed from theStar Trekcharacter she has become best known for.
InStar Trek: Strange New Worlds, Christina Chong plays Lieutenant La’an Noonien-Singh, the Chief of Security of the USS Enterprise. Serious and tightly-wound, La’an’s gradual softening and opening up of her character, as well as her attraction to Lt. James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley), is one of the most enjoyable parts ofStrange New Worlds.A descendant of the infamous villainKhan Noonien Singh(Ricardo Montalban),Chong continues as La’an inStar Trek: Strange New Worldsseasons 3 and 4.
6David Ajala
David Ajala makes a surprising appearance inBlack Mirrorseason 2’s “The Waldo Moment” seven years before he joinedStar Trek: Discovery. In Black Mirror,Ajala has a brief role as Jeff Carter, someone from"the agency"(i.e. the CIA) who believes the political disruption Waldo causes in the British MP election could also be applied to elections in other countries. Amusingly, David, who is British, speaks with an American accent as Jeff Carter.
Star Trek: Discoveryseason 3’s premiere features the debut of David Ajala as Cleveland Booker, a roguish courier who becomes the romantic foil of Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green).Book and Burnham become the central love story ofStar Trek: Discovery, and they are by each other’s side as they repeatedly save the galaxy.Michael and Book remain happily marrieddecades afterStar Trek: Discoveryends.
5Alice Eve
Black Mirror Season 3, Episode 1 - “Nosedive”
In “Nosedive,“Black Mirrorseason 3’s premiere episode and the firstBlack Mirrorstory set in the United States,Alice Eve plays Naomi Blestow. Naomi, a 4.8 in a society that judges itself by its social media ratings, invites her childhood friend, Lacie Pound (Bryce Dallas Howard), as her maid of honor. After a series of disasters to Lacie’s social status, Naomi uninvites her friend to her wedding, but Lacie goes mad and appears anyway, ruining the lavish affair.
Alice Eve’sBlack Mirrorappearance happened three years after she played Dr. Carol Marcus inStar Trek Into Darkness. The Carol of J.J. Abrams' rebooted alternate timeline never had a relationship or son with Captain James T. Kirk, andCarol is reimagined as the daughter of the villainous Admiral Alexander Marcus(Peter Weller). Unfortunately,Alice Eve’s Carol Marcus was controversialwith audiences, and she didn’t return for the sequel,Star Trek Beyond.
4Jimmi Simpson
Black Mirror Season 4, Episode 1 - “USS Callister” & Black Mirror Season 7, Episode 6 - “USS Callister Into Infinity”
Jimmi Simpson makes two appearances inBlack Mirroras his character, James Walton,the swarthy CEO of video game company Callister Inc. A digital version of Walton also exists in his own video game, Infinity. The virtual Walton is part of the crew of the USS Callister, an illegal game created by Infinity’s designer, Robert Daly (Jesse Plemons), based on the 1960s TV showSpace Fleet.Simpson plays Walton inBlack Mirrorseason 4’s “USS Callister” and its sequel,Black Mirrorseason 7’s “USS Callister Into Infinity.”
Jimmi Simpson voices Drednok inStar Trek: Prodigyseasons 1 and 2. A creation of the Vau N’Akat, Drednok is the robotic enforcer of the villainous Diviner (John Noble) who then joins forces with the diabolical Ascencia (Jameela Jamil). InStar Trek: Prodigyseason 2, Simpson also voices a Drednok who is the Vau N’Akat’s lorekeeper before their society destroyed itself following First Contact with Starfleet.
3Aldis Hodge
Black Mirror Season 4, Episode 6 - “Black Museum”
InBlack Mirrorseason 6’s “Black Museum,“Aldis Hodge plays Jack, whose wife, Carrie (Alexandra Roach), is comatose from a serious injury. Carrie’s consciousness is implanted into Jack’s mind, allowing her to see through his eyes and live on. When Jack starts a relationship with another woman, he decides to have Carrie’s consciousness transferred into a toy monkey.
Aldis Hodge has another encounter with a virtual woman in theStar Trek: Short Treksepisode “Calypso.“Hodge plays Craft, a soldier from the futurewho is rescued by Zora (Annabelle Wallis), the USS Discovery’s sentient A.I. Zora falls for Craft, but they tragically part when he decides to return to his family.Star Trek: Discoveryseason 5’s endingrevealed how Zora and the USS Discovery were sent on its final mission so she can meet Craft a thousand years in the future.
2Babs Olusanmokun
Another futureStar Trekactor inBlack Mirrorseason 4’s “Black Museum” isBabs Olusanmokun, who plays Clayton Leigh.A prisoner on death row, Leigh’s consciousness is transferred to a virtual prison by Rolo Haynes (Douglas Hodge). In Rolo’s Black Museum, customers can repeatedly execute Leigh by electric chair until Leigh’s daughter, Nish (Letitia Wright), gets revenge on Haynes and stops her father’s torture.
Dr. M’Benga is a fierce warrior harboring dark secrets.
Five years afterBlack Mirror,Babs Olusanmokun joined Christina Chong onStar Trek: Strange New Worlds.Babs plays Dr. Joseph M’Benga, theChief Medical Officer of the USS Enterprise. AsStrange New Worldscontinued, layers of M’Benga’s past peeled back to reveal Joseph as one of the show’s most compelling characters. A veteran ofStar Trek: Discovery’s Klingon War, Dr. M’Benga is a fierce warrior harboring dark secrets.
1Paul Giamatti
Black Mirror Season 7, Episode 5 - “Eulogy”
Paul Giamatti plays PhilipinBlack Mirrorseason 7’s “Eulogy.“Learning that his old girlfriend passed away, Philip uses Eulogy technology to enter his old photographs in order to send memories to her family. During his exploration into his past, Philip uncovers buried secrets and learns more about their lost relationship than he knew.
1
2
4
4, 7
7
“Eulogy”
Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe Best Actor winner Paul Giamatti will play the mysterious villain ofStar Trek: Starfleet Academyseason 1. A lifelongStar Trekfan, Giamatti leadsStarfleet Academy’s cast alongside Oscar winner Holly Hunter, who plays a Captain and the Academy’s Chancellor. Giamatti’s long-awaited turn as aStar Trekvillain is one of the most anticipated aspects ofStarfleet Academy.
