nyota uhura star trek

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Nyota Uhura

• 1.1 Early life
• 1.2 Starfleet Academy
• 1.3.1 First post
• 1.3.2 Aboard the Ahriman and Potemkin
• 1.3.3 Aboard the Enterprise (NCC-1701)
• 1.3.4 Return to Earth and the second five year mission
• 1.3.5 Assignment to the Excelsior
• 1.3.6.1 Mission to the Quatrin system
• 1.4 After the Enterprise
• 1.5 Starfleet Intelligence
• 1.6.1.1 Kimara Cretak
• 1.6.1.2 Scott Heisenberg
• 1.6.1.3 Curzon Dax
• 2 Starfleet service record
• 3.1 Connections
• 3.2 External link
• 3.3 Appearances

Biography [ ]

Early life [ ].

Nyota Uhura was born in the year 2239 in the United States of Africa on Earth . ( ST reference : Star Trek Chronology )

The daughter of Alhamisi and M'Umbha Uhura , she was born in Kitui Province , Kenya . Her family's name is derived from the Swahili word Uhuru , which translates to "freedom", and her given name means "star". ( TOS episodes : " Is There in Truth No Beauty? ", " The Man Trap "; TOS novels : The Starless World , Uhura's Song ; TAS novelization : The Slaver Weapon )

As a child, Uhura lived with her parents in the coastal city of Mombasa where she was enrolled in several after-school classes, such as music and dance , swimming , gymnastics and languages . Once a year just after her birthday in January , she stayed for a month in the country with her grandparents and cousins. ( TLE novel : Catalyst of Sorrows )

At some time in her childhood, Uhura attended Public School 29 in Nairobi , where her teacher was Ms. Yemada . ( TOS novel : Vulcan's Forge )

In the summer of 2249 , at the age of 10, Uhura learned sign language from her deaf cousin, Epala , while visiting her in Koyo . ( TOS novel : The Disinherited )

Also in 2249, Uhura was a student at the Institute for Advanced Mathematics , where her roommate was a girl named T'iana . There was a fire in their dorm room and T'iana was trapped under a fallen beam, and Uhura was lit ablaze. Uhura was unable to save T'iana before succumbing to the effects of the heat and fire. For years afterwards, Uhura would have dreams about T'iana's death and Uhura's subsequent rescue by adults. The fear recurred most vividly in 2269 when Uhura was part of the Enterprise crew facing a deadly heat effect that began in the Beta Castelli star system . ( TOS novel : The Three-Minute Universe )

In 2255 , just after her 16th birthday, Uhura traditionally killed an automated lion with a spear in East Africa. ( TAS novelization : The Slaver Weapon )

Shortly before Uhura entered the Academy, her father, Alhamisi, disappeared while on a deep space mission. ( TOS novel : The Starless World )

Her parents were teachers at the University of Nairobi . They and Nyota's brother were both killed in a shuttle accident. ( SNW episode : " Children of the Comet ")

Starfleet Academy [ ]

Uhura entered Starfleet Academy in 2257 ( Star Trek Chronology ), and studied at the Starfleet College of Communications . There, she learned spatial navigation, Duotronics , and cryptography skills under Lieutenant Commander Benjamin Finney . [ citation needed ]

Cadet Uhura.

Uhura's time as a cadet crossed over with the Academy career of James T. Kirk . When the Academy campus was locked down with an accusation of misconduct by Captain Matthew Decker , Uhura agreed to break curfew with Kirk and a group of other cadets to investigate the problem. They discovered that Decker's accusation was false, and had been planted in the computer as a test to see how the cadets would perform under pressure. Decker later congratulated the class for working together to prove their innocence, without fighting amongst themselves. ( TOS comic : " Starfleet Academy! ")

Cadet Uhura's roommate at the Academy was an Orion girl. The Orion girl's attitude did not impress Uhura, who later said the Orion was "full of it". Uhura remembered this quality of Orion women when she was involved in a fight with the Orion Emerald Empress in an alternate reality . ( TOS - Legion of Super-Heroes comic : " Issue 3 ")

Uhura's dear friend Trent Ojuremi failed to enter the Academy, and Uhura lost contact with him by her second year. However, she subconsciously retained her strong affections for him, which in 2266 were sensed by the M-113 creature . It thus took on a telepathic form of him and communicated in Swahili, telling her that it could feel her missing his presence. ( TOS novel : Across the Universe ; TOS episode : " The Man Trap ")

In 2259 , Uhura won the Jovian Triathlon . ( TOS novel : Assignment: Eternity )

She graduated from the academy in 2261 . ( ST website : StarTrek.com )

Starfleet career [ ]

First post [ ].

Uhura's first command was at a location called Two Dawns . Here she met a Junior Diplomat from Eeiauo named Sunfall of Ennien . ( TOS novel : Uhura's Song )

Aboard the Ahriman and Potemkin [ ]

Uhura graduated from the Academy in 2261 and was assigned to the Saladin -class destroyer , USS Ahriman , as junior communications officer. While on a mission to Wynet V later that year, the Ahriman s commanding officer was killed. Shortly after, Uhura was promoted to lieutenant junior grade . ( TOS novel : The Tears of the Singers )

Shortly after, Lieutenant Uhura transferred to the Constitution -class USS Potemkin as junior communications officer. ( ST video game : Star Trek: Starship Creator )

Aboard the Enterprise (NCC-1701) [ ]

Uhura transferred aboard the USS Enterprise in 2262 as Chief Communications Officer, under the command of Captain Christopher Pike . Like the rest of the Enterprise crew at that time, she developed fierce loyalty for Captain Pike. So, when James T. Kirk assumed command in 2264 , she was unsure about the young captain. A skilled singer, she sometimes performed music and improv with Lieutenant j.g. Spock (a skilled lyre player) on the crew rec deck. Six years later, in 2270 , Lieutenant Arex , a harpist, joined. One of Uhura's favorite songs was "The Moon's a Window to Heaven". ( TOS novel : Enterprise: The First Adventure , TAS episode : " The Practical Joker ", TOS movie : The Final Frontier , TOS episode : " Charlie X "; WizKids module : Attack Wing )

Nevertheless, Uhura's first conversation with Kirk saw him praise her father and express regret over his loss, thus earning Uhura's respect. ( TOS novel : The Starless World )

According to the elder Spock in TOS novelization : Star Trek , "In both our histories the same crew found its way onto the same ship in a time of ultimate crisis." This may imply that there is an untold story set in the prime timeline in which Kirk's crew faced an extremely serious challenge while still a new and untested unit.

Following the three-month voyage around the Federation Phalanx in 2264, Uhura was temporarily re-assigned, leaving Lt. Commander Daniel Alden to assume her former post. She returned to the Enterprise in 2265 when Alden transferred off the ship. This period just before the exchange of duties saw her relationship with Kabaka Buganda . ( TOS novel : Enterprise , TOS comic : " The D'Artagnan Three ")

In her first assignment back aboard the Enterprise , Uhura commandeered a shuttlecraft so that she could rescue Captain Kirk and a landing party from a group of Klingons that had captured them. It was around this occasion her department colors switched from gold to red. ( TOS comic : " Uhura's Story ") Uhura also helped adjust the Universal translator during the initial First contact with the Archernarians of Archernar IV just before she, Capts. Kirk, Cassady , and an away team appeared before them. ( TOS comic : " Mission's End, Issue 1 ")

Shortly after the Enterprise 's first encounter with Harcourt Fenton Mudd , Uhura went to Captain Kirk and requested to be reassigned from the command division to the engineering and services division. Kirk was not happy with this decision and grilled her about throwing away her command abilities and leadership potential, however, despite his disappointment, he approved her transfer. ( TOS novel : The Fire and the Rose )

Later that year, following the Romulan attack on the Neutral Zone outposts, she was promoted to full Lieutenant , after she deciphered the Romulan micropulse code . ( TOS novelization : Balance of Terror )

The start of 2267 marked Uhura's stint on Enterprise with being complimented as a Nubian (of ancient Egypt ) by the Q called Trelane . ( TOS episode : " The Squire of Gothos ") Weeks afterwards, she was temporarily re-assigned to the USS Lexington , under the command of Commodore Robert Wesley , to aid with communications with an alien race from the Gamma Xaridian system . ( TOS novel : The Disinherited )

Later on in 2267, Uhura was reunited with Trent Ojuremi on the planet Merope IV , when the Enterprise transported survivors from the Stephen Hawking to the planet. ( TOS novel : Across the Universe ) Towards the end of this year, Uhura's memory was erased, by the Nomad / Tan-Ru probe. A natural fast learner, she was re-educated from her mother-tongue of Bantu Swahili back to English . ( TOS episode : " The Changeling ")

In 2268 , Uhura was instrumental in finding a cure for the ADF syndrome that had struck the planet Eeiauo . Remembering songs that she and an Eeiauoan friend sang at the Academy, she directed the Enterprise to the planet Sivao , which was the long-forgotten homeworld of the Eeiauoans. ( TOS novel : Uhura's Song )

The culmination of her trust and respect for Kirk over the past half decade surfaced when she admitted to him how the sound of his voice calmed her in times of shipboard crisis. ( TOS episode : " Plato's Stepchildren ", TOS novel : Ex Machina ) Though it was never made public, the two may have shared a relationship on the border between professional and intimate. An example of this is when Kirk was quick to defend her, while she was assaulted by a thrall on Triskelion . ( TOS episode : " The Gamesters of Triskelion ") One of her lesser-known (and quite embarrassing) moments was her inadvertently seeing Kirk's "birthday suit". This happened, of course, while she made a special errand to Kirk's quarters on March 22nd. ( TOS short story : " Surprise! ")

Uhura finally got a shot at command in 2269 . After all of the male Enterprise crewmembers were lured down to Taurus II by the enchanting women on the planet, Uhura was forced to assume command. ( TAS novelization : The Lorelei Signal ) She assumed command once again during the ship's conflict with the Crusaders on Ephrata IV when Kirk, Spock and Sulu were trapped on the planet and Scotty was seriously injured in an attack, leaving Uhura the highest-ranking bridge officer. Despite her initial fears, Uhura not only won a game of 'chicken' with Crusader Sokis when he threatened to use a gravity beam to make the Enterprise crash into the planet (Correctly deducing that Sokis needed Enterprise too much to actually destroy it), but was able to devise a plan to defeat the Crusaders' brainwashing. ( TOS novel : The Weight of Worlds )

Return to Earth and the second five year mission [ ]

When the Enterprise returned to Earth in 2270 , following the completion of the five-year mission , Uhura took a post at Starfleet Academy teaching special communications. ( TOS novels : The Lost Years , Traitor Winds )

In 2271 , Uhura was promoted to Lieutenant Commander and re-assigned to the newly-refitted Enterprise as chief communications officer. She also used an updated version of linguacode , first ciphered by Hoshi Sato , in the 22nd Century. ( TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Motion Picture , ST website : StarTrek.com )

Uhura was assigned to cadet training and Starfleet Command Communications in 2277 . ( ST website : StarTrek.com )

In 2285 , Uhura was promoted to full Commander . Later that same year, she received much criticism for choosing a posting at Earth spacedock 's transporter room and communication ops. Her eager assistant, " Mr. Adventure " was one to question her choice, which had appealed to her desire for more "peace and quiet" after the recent events of the Genesis affair. This may have been her first calling to covert operations, as this was all a stage to grant Admiral Kirk's party safe passage back to the de-commissioned Enterprise . She later made rendezvous with them on Vulcan , having used the transporter system to travel to the Vulcan Embassy on Earth. At the behest of Ambassador Sarek , they were all granted clemency and asylum from Starfleet jurisdiction for rescuing his son Spock from a non-sanctioned Klingon incursion to the Genesis planet, a galactic controversy of its time. ( ST website : StarTrek.com , TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Search for Spock )

Assignment to the Excelsior [ ]

Following the destruction of the Enterprise in 2285 , Captain Kirk and the command staff are reassigned to the USS Excelsior , Uhura joins them and is assigned as Chief Communications Officer. ( TOS comic : " Masquerade! ")

Shortly after, Uhura accompanies Sulu and Lt. William Bearclaw to investigate the smuggling of dilithium crystals . The party discovered that the smugglers were also slavers, and managed to engineer the smugglers capture. ( TOS comic : " The D'Artagnan Three ")

Assignment to the Enterprise (NCC-1701-A) [ ]

Following the Cetacean Probe crisis on 2286 , Commander Uhura was assigned to the newly-launched USS Enterprise -A . ( TOS novelization : Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home )

Later that year, Uhura joined with the renegade Vulcan Sybok , when he took over the Enterprise and used the ship to penetrate the Great Barrier , to find the legendary planet Sha Ka Ree . It was at this time she confessed her affections toward Montgomery Scott , while the two were alone. Even though her emotions were uninhibited on this occasion, he kept composed and decided to maintain a Platonic relationship. Scott, however, had told her she was one of the most understanding women (besides Enterprise ) he had known. ( TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Final Frontier )

Mission to the Quatrin system [ ]

In 2287 , while on shore leave in the Quatrain system , Uhura and Sulu witnessed a multiple murder. Fortunately, one of the victims survived and was beamed aboard the Enterprise for treatment. The Quatrain security agency began to investigate the murders and insisted that Uhura and Sulu appear before a board of inquiry to give evidence.

Meanwhile, the Quatrain security director learned that the survivor identified one of his men as the murderer to Captain Kirk, and ordered his second-in-command to kill Uhura and Sulu before they could beam back to the Enterprise . Sulu managed to stop the killer, but was wounded in the attempt, and Uhura managed to steal a shuttlecraft and headed to the nearby ice planet, Beta , with Sulu.

After arriving on Beta, Uhura headed off to find medical help for Sulu, and encountered a group of Betan rebels who lent assistance and treated Sulu, in exchange for Uhura's help with their communications equipment. At the Betan encampment, Uhura was captured by the security forces, but managed to get a message to the Enterprise and Commander Chekov and a security team rescued her. ( TOS comics : " Veritas ", " Sacrifices and Survivors ", " Danger...On Ice ", " Cold Comfort ")

After the Enterprise [ ]

Following the Praxis incident in 2293 , Uhura once again began teaching at Starfleet Academy. A few months later Uhura joined Captain Spock and Dr. McCoy on a diplomatic mission to Qo'noS to improve relations, and began working with Klingon musicians and singers to exchange musical ideas and theories. ( TOS novel : The Last Roundup )

Also in 2293 , Uhura left Starfleet and became the Senior Vice President in charge of Procurement and Delivery for Inter-Galactic Systems . She was happily stationed somewhere between Earth and Mars when James T. Kirk enlisted her to help save Hikaru Sulu . She had no future intention of re-joining Starfleet . She even went so far as to state that the only reason she joined the rescue party was out of loyalty to James T. Kirk . ( TOS novel : The Fearful Summons )

In 2294 , Captain Spock assumed command of the Oberth -class USS Intrepid II , and Commander Uhura came aboard as first officer , for the ship's shakedown cruise. Following the diversion to the planet Obsidian , Spock resigned his Starfleet commission, and Uhura was promoted to captain and given command of the Intrepid II . ( TOS novel : Vulcan's Forge )

At some point afterwards that year, Uhura tracked down her former crewmate, Montgomery Scott, and asked him gently to move on with life and quit blaming himself following the loss of Captain Kirk, and expressed her condolences and her regret at being unable to make it to the memorial. ( ST novel : Engines of Destiny )

In the early 24th century , Uhura commanded the USS Leondegrance . ( PIC episodes : " Remembrance ", " The Star Gazer ", DS9 novel : The Autobiography of Benjamin Sisko )

By the 2300s , Captain Uhura was in command of the USS Hermes , and in 2310 , the Hermes took aboard Doctors Gillian Taylor and Carol Marcus , who planned to test an experimental Genesis Device on the planet Pacifica . However, Marcus and Taylor encountered intelligent life in Pacifica's ocean and the plan was abandoned. ( TOS short story : " The Hero of My Own Life ")

Starfleet Intelligence [ ]

Admiral Uhura.

Uhura was first approached by operatives of Starfleet Intelligence on Khitomer following the attempted assassination of Federation President Ra-ghoratreii in 2293 . They offered her a spot in S.I., which Uhura accepted.

For the rest of her Starship career, even when she commanded the Hermes , she was passing on things that she heard on to Starfleet Intelligence. She never spied on Starfleet personnel, only passing on information that she heard on the subspace frequencies. ( TLE novel : Catalyst of Sorrows )

In the years that followed Uhura gradually made her way up the chain of command at Starfleet Intelligence, eventually making her way to the top of the department. She maintained the rank of captain, in part to retain a low profile, but had security clearances higher than some admirals.

In the year 2343 , Captain Uhura traveled to Starbase 47 in the midst of the Betreka Nebula Incident to personally assign operative Elias Vaughn to assess the situation on Raknal IV . ( TLE novel : The Art of the Impossible )

In 2344 , Uhura made an unofficial request to Commander Saavik of the USS Armstrong to travel to Romulus and bring back Spock , who had answered a summons sent by a Romulan officer named Charvanek . ( TOS novel : Vulcan's Heart )

In 2360 , Admiral Uhura sent a team that included Lieutenants Benjamin Sisko , Selar and Tuvok on a covert mission behind the borders of the Romulan Star Empire to gather intelligence on the virulent disease called the gnawing that had been afflicting the Empire. ( TLE novel : Catalyst of Sorrows )

Admiral Uhura remained working in Starfleet Intelligence throughout the Dominion War and the Watraii affair of 2377 . As of 2377, she is 138 years old. ( TOS novels : Exodus , Exiles )

Personal life [ ]

In 2360 , Uhura lived alone in a house built into a hillside overlooking the Muir Woods in California on Earth . ( TLE novel : Catalyst of Sorrows )

Friendships and relationships [ ]

Kimara cretak [ ].

Uhura met Kimara Cretak at the Khitomer Conference in 2293 when the Romulan was serving as an aide to Senator Pardek . Although they never met face-to-face again, they kept in touch via specially coded subspace signals . ( TLE novel : Catalyst of Sorrows )

Scott Heisenberg [ ]

Lieutenant junior grade Scott Heisenberg was unceremoniously locked in a closet at phaser-point in the Old City Station transporter room by Uhura in 2285 . Months later in 2286 , Uhura ran into Heisenberg at Starfleet Headquarters where he admitted to her that it wasn't the phaser she'd pointed at him that scared him, but rather the look she gave him after he called her a "space veteran" and remarked that "her career was winding down". Despite this rather rocky start, the two became friends and Heisenberg ended up working for Uhura in Starfleet Intelligence . ( TLE novel : Catalyst of Sorrows )

Curzon Dax [ ]

By 2360 , Uhura and Curzon Dax were very good friends. In fact, Curzon wanted a little more than just friendship and actively flirted with Uhura, mostly to no avail. ( TLE novel : Catalyst of Sorrows )

When Nero and Ambassador Spock were sent back to the 23rd century , causing what was called the Kelvin timeline after Nero's assault of the USS Kelvin , a photo of Uhura and Spock's crewmates aboard the USS Enterprise -A was among the personal effects bequeathed to the alternate Spock after Ambassador Spock passed away in the year 2263 . ( TOS movie : Beyond )

In stories by Benny Russell , Uhura was a character created by Russell. ( DS9 short story : " The Dreamer and the Dream ")

Starfleet service record [ ]

• Personal log , Nyota Uhura

Appendices [ ]

Connections [ ], external link [ ].

• Nyota Uhura article at Memory Alpha , the wiki for canon Star Trek .

Appearances [ ]

• 1 Achilles class
• 2 Ferengi Rules of Acquisition
• 3 Odyssey class

Den of Geek

Star Trek: Nichelle Nichols’ Best Uhura Moments

The legendary Nichelle Nichols boldly went where no woman had gone before on Star Trek. Here are the moments where Lt. Uhura got to shine.

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A true icon and legend to generations of fans, actor, singer, dancer and activist Nichelle Nichols left this plane of existence on July 30, 2022. Nichols, of course, was best known for her portrayal of Lt. Nyota Uhura in all three seasons of Star Trek: The Original Series , the short-lived 1973 animated series, plus six feature films featuring the original show’s crew members.

Uhura’s station on the bridge of the Enterprise as communications officer was a breakthrough in American television for both women and African-Americans. A woman, let alone a woman of color, had never been situated in such a high-ranking position before, one of several ways in which Star Trek and Nichols broke new ground.

When Nichols decided to leave after the first season after getting an offer to do a Broadway play, she was convinced to stay on the show by no less than Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In an interview with the Archive of American Television , she recalled King saying, “For the first time on television, we will be seen as we should be seen every day, as intelligent, quality, beautiful, people who can sing, dance, and can go to space, who are professors, lawyers … If you leave, that door can be closed.”

Nichols did stay, and while Star Trek perhaps remained the crowning professional achievement of her life, she continued to act, sing, write and appear at conventions well into her later years. She also worked with NASA on a successful program to recruit minorities and women into the space program.

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Uhura was undeniably an inspiration to millions and a beloved fixture in Star Trek lore. But the character was underused on The Original Series , often relegated to simply opening the hailing frequencies, occasionally screaming, and often reporting on communications failures. On the rare occasions she did get to do something more, her presence and grace was like a beam of pure light on a show that already lit up the imagination every week. Here are 10 examples of Uhura getting that chance to shine, and we’ll treasure them forever as her wonderful spirit heads into the undiscovered country.

“Charlie X” (Season 1, Episode 2)

While Uhura did get some brief business of her own in the first broadcast episode (“The Man Trap”), with a monstrous shapeshifter appearing to her as a member of her own nation, she got a chance to really stand out in this classic episode about a teenage boy who is unable to handle both his developing emotions and his massive reality-warping powers.

In one memorable sequence, Spock and Uhura entertain crew members in the recreation room, with Uhura singing along as Spock plays his Vulcan lute. Not only did the scene let Nichols show off her singing voice, but it established the respectful, playful – and slightly flirty – relationship between Uhura and Spock that was later developed as a full-blown romance in the Star Trek reboot movies.

“The Squire of Gothos” (Season 1, Episode 17)

Uhura doesn’t get a whole lot to do in this episode – in which a petulant superbeing toys with the crew of the Enterprise until his parents show up and scold him – but it at least gets her off the bridge for a few minutes. At one point, Trelane (William Campbell) transports the entire bridge crew down to his castle on the planet Gothos, where he gives Uhura the ability to play the harpsichord so that Trelane can dance with a female yeoman.

Uhura seems to actually having this newfound ability – cementing the character’s longstanding relationship with music – but she’s all business once Kirk (briefly) gets the upper hand on Trelane and manages to get the crew back to the ship.

“The Changeling” (Season 2, Episode 3)

When the psychopathic space probe Nomad comes aboard the Enterprise (a plot later reused in Star Trek: The Motion Picture ), it hears Uhura singing and does not understand it, so it zaps her brain looking for information – wiping her memory and reverting her mind back to that of a child.

Since her mind has been erased, Uhura’s only memory is of speaking Swahili – and a linguist was reportedly brought to the set to write a few lines in the language for Nichols to say. She is shown recovering slowly in Sickbay, and we’re happy to report that she’s back to college level by the end of the episode – and apparently back to normal in time for the next episode and her big role there.

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“Mirror, Mirror” (Season 2, Episode 4)

Regarded as one of the very best episodes of The Original Series , “Mirror, Mirror” finds Kirk, Scott, Uhura, and McCoy trapped in an alternate universe where the Federation is a savage tyranny and Starfleet officers move up in ran through brutality, genocide, assassination, and torture.

Uhura gets lots to do in this episode: she’s involved throughout with the plans to get back to “our” universe, she seduces and then spurns Sulu – on the bridge, no less – in an attempt to distract him at a crucial moment, and even gets a brief fight scene of her own against the “Captain’s Woman” (yeah, we know). As with other episodes that get her out of that damn chair, it’s great to see this trained officer in action.

“The Trouble with Tribbles” (Season 2, Episode 15)

Uhura had perhaps her biggest role ever in this classic episode about a species of furry little animals that breed like crazy and overrun the Enterprise . It is actually the communications officer who brings the first tribble on board the ship: she and Chekov are enjoying a little shore leave in a space station bar when she is presented with one by a traveling salesman who wants to promote his wares.

Uhura’s little pet subsequently begins to breed, and what happens from there is the basis of one of Trek ’s most popular and iconic segments. Uhura is involved throughout, and in her foray to the space station, we actually get to see her act like a woman and a human being – not just a futuristic switchboard operator.

“The Gamesters of Triskelion” (Season 2, Episode 16)

Another (somewhat inexplicably) popular episode, this one finds Kirk, Uhura, and Chekov captured by a group of disembodied aliens called the Providers, who stage gladiatorial contests among various humanoid “Thralls” on their planet as a way to amuse themselves. Our three Starfleet officers of course resist their confinement and training, although they must eventually fight for their lives.

This one found Uhura again in the heart of the action, although both she and Chekov get to do considerably less fighting than good old Kirk (we wonder if Shatner counted the fight scenes). Uhura also must fend off an attempted rape by another Thrall, which fortunately occurs offscreen and which she is able to successfully beat back.

“The Tholian Web” (Season 3, Episode 9)

One of the better third season episodes finds Kirk trapped aboard a starship that has slipped into an interdimensional void, while the Enterprise must fend off an attack from an aggressive race called the Tholians as they wait for Kirk to re-emerge.

Not a lot of Uhura in this one besides her usual duties, but there is one striking scene late in the episode in which we see her in her quarters for the first time in civilian clothing – in this case, a long, flowing gown and ceremonial necklace. Nichols told author David Gerrold in his book The World of Star Trek that this was one of her favorite episodes: “I enjoyed anything that I was able to get out of uniform.”

“Plato’s Stepchildren” (Season 3, Episode 10)

It’s widely regarded as one of the worst Star Trek episodes , yet it contains a moment that stands tall in the history of television. A small band of depraved aliens with vast mental powers, who embrace classical Greek culture, submit Kirk and Spock to various forms of humiliation in order to keep Dr. McCoy from leaving after he saves their leader’s life.

At one point, Uhura and Nurse Chapel are transported down for further entertainment, resulting in a scene in which Kirk and Uhura kiss. The kiss is mentally imposed upon them by the aliens, but that doesn’t change the fact that it was one of the first kisses between a Black person and a white person on television (it was thought to be the first for some time, but that is not in fact the case ; it was also not the first interracial kiss, as long stated, since other shows, even Star Trek itself, had featured kisses between whites and people of Asian or Latino ancestry).

In any case, it was almost certainly the first kiss of its kind (between Black and white) on American network television, a brave move indeed during the turbulent late ‘60s and a moment in which Nichelle Nichols played an essential part.

“The Lorelei Signal” (The Animated Series, Season 1, Episode 4)

Although Uhura was supposed to be fourth in command of the Enterprise , after Kirk, Spock, and Scotty, she was never shown doing so in the live-action show (indeed, Sulu and recurring redshirt Lt. Leslie even got to sit in the chair, but not Uhura!). That changed, however, in this animated series episode, in which a race of beautiful alien women lures the male members of the Enterprise crew to their planet, in order to drain their life force.

With the entire male crew incapacitated by the alien women, Uhura assumes command of the ship for the first time in its televised history as she and Nurse Chapel search for a way to free the men. According to Andy Mangels’ Star Trek: The Animated Series , Nichols reportedly exclaimed during the script’s table read, “What, you’re kidding? I actually get to run the Enterprise ? Really?” Long overdue, madam.

“Once Upon a Planet” (The Animated Series, Season 1, Episode 9)

The animated series returns to the “amusement park” planet from the classic TOS entry “Shore Leave,” in which anything you desire can be made real for your entertainment. This time, however, the planet’s alien caretaker has died, and the planet’s massive computer is running things – and not doing a good job of it.

Uhura gets kidnapped by the computer at one point, and it’s up to her to try and talk some sense into it, albeit unsuccessfully. Not a great episode overall, but hey! It gets Nyota off the bridge again.

Star Trek: The Motion Pictures

In keeping with the TV series, Nichelle Nichols didn’t get a whole lot to do in the first three Star Trek feature films (she was even insultingly left behind as the others took off to save Spock in Star Trek III : The Search for Spock ). But things got a little better in the back three of the original cast’s six films.

In Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , she and Chekov must go on a mission to covertly board an aircraft carrier parked in San Francisco (and also called Enterprise ) and borrow some energy from its nuclear reactor to recharge their stolen Klingon ship. Star Trek V: The Final Frontier finds Uhura – Nichelle Nichols not giving a shit and still bringing it in her mid-50s – doing a fan dance to distract some local morons on a backwater planet. That makes Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country – Nichols’ final appearance as Uhura – a bit of a letdown, since she’s back at mostly communications, although she has a generally more primary presence on the bridge (and is at the awkward dinner with the Klingons).

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Safe travels, dear lady, as you reach the final frontier.

Don Kaye | @donkaye

Don Kaye is an entertainment journalist by trade and geek by natural design. Born in New York City, currently ensconced in Los Angeles, his earliest childhood memory is…

Nichelle Nichols (1932-2022)

Additional crew.

IMDbPro Starmeter See rank

• 7 wins & 7 nominations

• Lieutenant Nyota Uhura
• 1966–1969 • 68 eps

• Michelle McHalls
• Pre-production

• Octavia Butler

• Nyota Uhura

• Aunt Petunia

• Mystic Woman

• Teresa Suskin

• Secretary General Starr

• Adm. Grace Jemison
• Admiral Jemison

• Deejay Devine

• Admiral Grace Jemison

• Lucinda Winters
• executive producer

• co-producer

• choreographer
• In-development projects at IMDbPro

Personal details

• Duke & Nichelle
• 5′ 3½″ (1.61 m)
• December 28 , 1932
• Robbins, Illinois, USA
• July 30 , 2022
• Silver City, New Mexico, USA (heart failure)
• Spouses Duke Mondy December 20, 1967 - March 1972 (divorced)
• Kyle Johnson
• Parents Samuel Earl Nichols
• Relatives Eric Nichols (Sibling)
• Other works TV commercial: Psychic Encounters
• 1 Print Biography
• 12 Interviews
• 6 Pictorials
• 2 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

• Trivia Frustrated with the racist harassment, culminating with her learning that the studio was withholding her fan mail, she submitted her resignation from Star Trek (1966) after consulting with series creator Gene Roddenberry . She stated in several interviews that the harassment made her go back to work in theater until attending an NAACP fundraiser. The fundraiser was where a Star Trek fan was about to meet her for the first time and, to her astonishment, the fan turned out to be Dr. Martin Luther King . King stated that his wife and children had seen Star Trek on TV and it was the only television series that he had approved of. He said that her role as the fourth in command of the USS Enterprise became a positive role model for African-Americans. She withdrew her resignation from the series when King personally convinced her that her role was too important as a breakthrough to leave.
• Quotes [on the Star Trek (1966) fans] I'm a fan of the fans. I love them. They're fabulous. I love being around them. I love their madness and their caring. I love watching them take off for a weekend, don the costumes, and become characters from the 23rd century and beyond. I thank the fans for giving us--me--so much support and love. I want them to know I love them. They will always be my friends. I'll see the fans, always. They can rest assured of that.
• Trademarks Lieutenant Nyota Uhura on Star Trek (1966) and six of the Star Trek films
• When did Nichelle Nichols die?
• How did Nichelle Nichols die?
• How old was Nichelle Nichols when she died?

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The Untold Truth Of Star Trek's Nyota Uhura

As a member of the original "Star Trek" crew, Lieutenant (and later, Commander) Nyota Uhura is a sci-fi legend. First appearing on television in 1966, Uhura was one of the first Black women to be depicted in a position of authority on American television. Following three seasons of the original "Trek," the character appeared in nine feature films (first portrayed by Nichelle Nichols and later by Zoë Saldana) and is about to make a more substantive return as part of the regular cast of the new streaming series "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds," where she'll be played by Tony Award nominee Celia Rose Gooding.

While Uhura is practically omnipresent on "Star Trek: The Original Series" –  appearing in more episodes than famous colleagues Scotty, Sulu, or Chekov — the "Trek" canon has provided scant few details about her backstory, personal life, or career apart from her decades-long tenure as Chief Communications Officer aboard the USS Enterprise. Thankfully, not only do official "Star Trek" novels and reference materials fill in some of the details, but the behind-the-scenes story of Uhura's evolution and contribution to American television has been very well documented. While we wait for "Strange New Worlds" to open a new chapter in Uhura's story, here's a quick look back at her legacy so far.

Nichelle Nichols gave Uhura her name

Actor Nichelle Nichols did more than perform the role of Lt. Uhura, she also played a substantial part in shaping and inspiring the character. According to her memoir, "Beyond Uhura: Star Trek and Other Memories," Nichols and future "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry first met in 1963 on the set of his previous television series, "The Lieutenant," after which they began a months-long romantic relationship . During their time together, Roddenberry would make vague references to a science fiction project he'd been working on, which he called "Wagon Train to the Stars." Years later, while Nichols was on tour as a singer in Paris, she received a telegram from her agent telling her that she had an important audition for "Star Trek" — whatever that was.

Nichols was invited to audition for "Star Trek" before any specifics about her character had been decided. Since her part had yet to be written, she actually auditioned by reading scenes written for Spock. While waiting for her meeting with Roddenberry and his production team, Nichols was immersed in reading the novel "Uhuru" by Robert Ruark. Uhuru is Swahili for "freedom," and (according to the documentary  "Woman in Motion" ) Nichols suggested that this be repurposed as her character's surname. Accounts vary as to when the first name of "Nyota" was decided upon, but it first appeared in the 1982 reference book "Star Trek II: Biographies," and did not become canon until its use in the 2009 "Star Trek" film.

Uhura's early life is yet to be depicted on screen

Most of Uhura's life before she joined the crew of the USS Enterprise has only been represented in non-canonical novels, which might be retconned by her appearances in the upcoming "Strange New Worlds." According to the novels "The Starless World" and "Catalyst of Sorrows," Uhura was born and raised in Kenya, which in the 23rd Century is part of the United States of Africa. As a teenager, she attends the Institute for Advanced Mathematics prior to being accepted into Starfleet Academy. "Beyond Uhura" explains that Nichelle Nichols and Gene Roddenberry imagined Uhura as Spock's protégé, an association that is supported by their interactions on "The Original Series" and expanded upon in the alternate "Kelvinverse" of 2009's "Star Trek" feature film.

Most non-canonical works depict Uhura's Academy years overlapping with that of her future commanding officer, James T. Kirk, and that may not be contradicted by her appearance on "Strange New Worlds." On the new series, Uhura is a fourth-year Academy cadet on assignment to the USS Enterprise. Since "Strange New Worlds" is set after the second season of "Star Trek: Discovery," it can begin no later than 2258, by which time Kirk would have already been a lieutenant serving aboard the USS Farragut — which doesn't preclude their having met there. What "Strange New Worlds"  does change is that, while Kirk is the name most famously associated with the USS Enterprise, Uhura gets there first.

Uhura's job is actually really important

Lt. Uhura is unquestionably an underserved character on "Star Trek: The Original Series" and the subsequent films featuring the original cast, never getting the same spotlight as Kirk, Spock, McCoy, or even Scotty. While this is a completely fair criticism of the show, its producers and its writers, it has unfortunately led some fans and critics to diminish the character of Uhura herself and her role on the command staff of the USS Enterprise. At a glance, it's easy to see Uhura as the woman reduced to placing Captain Kirk's phone calls — after all, that's most of what she's seen doing in your average episode. While the underuse of Uhura is a glaring defect of the series, her contributions to the crew are not unimportant, merely underexposed.

As Chief Communications Officer, Uhura is the nerve center of a crew of over 400. She's a department head managing the rest of the communications staff, meaning anyone else you ever see at her post, plus other stations around the ship that we never see. She handles all inter- and intra-ship communications, including Kirk's orders from Starfleet and imperatives issued to the rest of the crew. Since the production of "Star Trek" predates our modern concept of networked computers , Uhura essentially is the network aboard the Enterprise, manually routing information across its hundreds of work consoles. Uhura being away from her station would basically be the equivalent of the internet going out on the ship.

Dr. Martin Luther King insisted Nichols remain on Star Trek

By the end of the first season of "Star Trek" in 1967, Nichelle Nichols was frustrated with how little her character actually got to do on the show. According to "Beyond Uhura," Nichols suffered a number of indignities during her time on "Star Trek" — her lines and subplots were frequently cut from the script , the studio secretly ordered the mail room not to deliver her fan letters , and studio representatives would make malicious racist comments directly to her face. Having had enough, she told Gene Roddenberry that she would be leaving the show to pursue a role on Broadway. Roddenberry asked her to take the weekend to think about it.

As fate would have it, Nichols was scheduled to attend a fundraising event for the civil rights organization NAACP  the very next day. There, Nichols was introduced to "her greatest fan" — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As recalled in "Beyond Uhura" and in interviews such as this one with the Washington Post , King told her that Uhura was an indispensable role model for viewers, particularly for Black children, who needed to envision themselves in a better future. Up to this point, she admitted in the documentary "Woman in Motion," Nichols had seen "Star Trek" as just another acting job. Now enlightened to the broader impact of her presence on the show (by one of the century's most compelling leaders, no less), Nichols retracted her resignation the following Monday and would remain for the duration of the series.

Uhura and Kirk's kiss made history

In the "Star Trek" episode "Plato's Stepchildren," Lt. Uhura and Captain Kirk are telekinetically compelled to kiss for the amusement of bored aliens. This caused quite a stir on set, according to "Beyond Uhura." Episode director David Alexander still insisted on capturing versions of the scene both with and without the kiss, in case NBC affiliates refused to air a kiss between Black and white performers. Nichelle Nichols and William Shatner performed the scene with the kiss first, insisting on dozens of takes from different angles. They left time for only one take without the kiss, which Shatner sabotaged by crossing his eyes directly into the camera. This assured that the show's producers would have no choice but to use one of the takes where the pair actually kisses.

Uhura and Kirk's kiss in "Plato's Stepchildren" is sometimes cited as "the first scripted interracial kiss on television," though this is an exaggeration — it's the earliest known kiss between white and Black actors on American TV, but actors of other differing races had kissed on TV previously, and outside the United States. Strictly speaking, "Plato's Stepchildren" wasn't even William Shatner's first interracial kiss on TV, as he and French-Vietnamese actress France Nuyen kissed while performing a scene from the play "The World of Suzie Wong" on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in 1958. (These two events do, of course, carry different cultural connotations.) The actual earliest known kiss between Black and white actors on TV took place on British television in 1962. Nevertheless, Uhura and Kirk's kiss remains an important moment in US television history, challenging cultural taboos during one of the most tumultuous years of the civil rights movement.

Uhura finally commands the Enterprise

Though high in the command structure of the USS Enterprise, Uhura never gets the chance to sit in the Captain's chair during "The Original Series" or any of her appearances in feature films. She does, however, get to briefly take the lead in "Star Trek: The Animated Series," the brief ink-and-paint revival of "Star Trek" that aired between the cancellation of "The Original Series" and the launch of the film franchise. In the 1973 episode "The Lorelei Signal," siren-like aliens from the Taurean system transfix and incapacitate the entire male population of the Enterprise, leaving the ship's remaining female officers to rescue them. Uhura (still voiced by Nichelle Nichols) takes command of the Enterprise and leads an away team comprised of herself, Nurse Chapel, and a number of female security officers who one must assume had always been just off-screen somewhere this whole time.

It's still a sad state of affairs that the storytellers behind "Star Trek: The Animated Series" felt they needed to arrange such a contrivance to get Uhura her moment in command, as if it would take every single man on the ship to be out of commission in order for her to get her turn. (It should have taken five, tops, which is still pretty damning of the show.) Would it be too much to ask that "Strange New Worlds" find an opportunity to give Cadet Uhura another (by which we mean "previous") turn at the big chair?

The novels detail Uhura's illustrious career

"Star Trek" made the leap to the big screen in 1979 with "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," in which Uhura still serves as Communications Chief aboard the refitted USS Enterprise. The classic crew mostly sticks together throughout the six films, which see the gang receive a string of promotions but still remain in their familiar posts with their found family. Uhura is last seen in "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" at the rank of Commander, but still far from, well, command.

Thankfully, Uhura's journey continues in print, via the ongoing series of "Star Trek" novels. In "Vulcan's Forge," Uhura serves as Spock's first officer aboard the USS Intrepid II, where she later succeeds him as captain. The short story "The Hero of My Own Life" sees her move on to a new command, the USS Hermes, where she serves as captain for over a decade. The novel "Catalyst of Sorrows" reveals that, at some time during this command, Uhura is secretly recruited into Starfleet Intelligence, and served concurrently at both posts for a period of decades. As human lifespans are significantly longer in the future of "Star Trek," Admiral Uhura is revealed to be alive and well and still working for Intelligence during the Dominion War (concurrent with "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" ) at the age of 138. A contradictory tale in "The Autobiography of Jean-Luc Picard" mentions that she is elected President of the United Federation of Planets.

Nichelle Nichols changed the real-life space program

While Lt. Uhura was television's first Black astronaut, actress Nichelle Nichols leveraged her character's popularity to effect substantive change in the real-life US space program. Her involvement in real space activism began in 1975, when a NASA presentation at a "Star Trek" convention impressed upon her the homogeneity of NASA's white, male astronaut pool. Nichols decided to take it upon herself to create the change that her TV character was supposed to represent, writing editorials for newspapers and magazines questioning why the pool of American astronauts was not representative of the America around us.

These editorials got the attention of NASA, who invited her to cooperate in revamping their recruitment efforts for the upcoming class of space shuttle astronauts. Nichols agreed, but wisely did so as an independent contractor rather than as some sort of mascot. Not only did this preserve her credibility, but it also meant that she could hold NASA accountable if they didn't hold up their end — if she lined up the qualified candidates they asked for and NASA still hired only white men, she'd have the leverage to sue. Nichols spent the latter half of 1975 traveling the United States spreading her vision of the space program and personally recruiting much of the NASA Class of 1978, which would include America's first six female astronauts and first three African American astronauts.

Nichols' efforts for the space program are the center of the documentary "Woman in Motion."

Plans to bring Uhura back fell through

During the "Star Trek" renaissance of the 1980s and '90s, nearly every core member of "The Original Series" cast returned to make appearances on "Star Trek" offshoots — except for Nichelle Nichols. DeForrest Kelley, Leonard Nimoy and James Doohan each returned as special guests on "The Next Generation," Doohan joined William Shatner and Walter Koenig in the crossover film "Star Trek: Generations," George Takei and Grace Lee Whitney returned on an episode of "Voyager," but Nichols never officially reprised Uhura after 1991's "Star Trek VI." (She did appear in the unofficial miniseries  "Star Trek: Of Gods and Men" produced by "Trek" alums in 2007.)

This isn't to say that Nichols was never invited to return to "Star Trek," but perhaps that no invitation was particularly enticing. In 1996, Nichols was offered a cameo in the "Star Trek: Voyager" episode "Flashback," which had a far more prominent role for her castmate George Takei as Captain Sulu. Nichols declined, feeling that her role was not significant enough to warrant her involvement. The most recent opportunity to bring Nichols back into "Star Trek" was a pitch for an episode of "Short Treks" in which an older Uhura would send a young Jean-Luc Picard on a mission. This episode has yet to be produced.

The movie reboot expands her role

In 2009, "Star Trek" was rebooted as a big-budget blockbuster film series featuring new versions of the original characters, with only Leonard Nimoy returning from the original cast as a time-displaced older Spock. Uhura, now portrayed by Zoë Saldana, had a much more prominent role in the new film series than she had previously. In addition to being depicted more explicitly as a genius polyglot whose skill with languages saves the crew on several occasions, she and James T. Kirk cross paths frequently at Starfleet Academy as Kirk is an infamous ne'er-do-well who also happens to be dating her roommate. The pair end up serving aboard the USS Enterprise together, where they eventually put aside their differences. Uhura also gets to participate more in the action-adventure side of "Trek" than her television counterpart, and has a romantic subplot with Spock that runs across all three films.

Zoë Saldana was offered the role of Uhura after already signing on to play Neytiri in James Cameron's sci-fi behemoth "Avatar." Saldana was initially hesitant to take on another demanding role with an overlapping production, prompting a summit between Cameron and "Star Trek" director J.J. Abrams to ensure that she wouldn't have to miss out on either opportunity. Saldana joined "Star Trek" with relatively little knowledge of the franchise, which is ironic — Saldana had previously portrayed a massive "Star Trek" fan in Steven Spielberg's 2004 film "The Terminal."

Uhura actress Nichelle Nichols died in 2022

Uhura will forever be hailed as an icon in the annals of science fiction history, and the character, no matter who plays her in the future, will surely continue to appear in future "Star Trek" reboots and spin-offs for as long as the franchise endures. However, as important as Uhura was to the television landscape, the woman who first brought her to life — the actor, singer, and activist Nichelle Nichols — was no less iconic.

Sadly, Nichols died on the night of July 30, 2022, as reported by Variety . Nichols had spent the last few years of her life diagnosed with dementia, per The Los Angeles Times . She is survived by her son Kyle Johnson, who was the one to reveal the news on her official Instagram account the morning after her death. There, Johnson wrote, "Last night, my mother, Nichelle Nichols, succumbed to natural causes and passed away. Her light however, like the ancient galaxies now being seen for the first time, will remain for us and future generations to enjoy, learn from, and draw inspiration."

Appreciation: ‘Star Trek’ underutilized Nichelle Nichols. She was its heart and soul anyway

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The original “Star Trek” may have been canceled in 1969, but it is still with us . That three seasons of a television series could in those days produce 79 episodes led to a healthy life in syndication, which brought the voyagers of the starship Enterprise new generations of viewers and led to the creation of a dedicated fandom, multiple ongoing conventions and the eventual creation of a franchise that continues to pay respect to the original .

As communications officer Lt. Uhura (the first name Nyota was a later addition), Nichelle Nichols, who died Saturday at the age of 89 , was with the show from first to last, including the subsequent “Star Trek: The Animated Series” and six feature films built around the original cast. Nichols was an elegant, poised performer — she was a trained dancer who held herself like one, just sitting at her console, one leg forward, one leg back, one hand to her earpiece — and in a series in which overacting can sometimes seem like the baseline, she never did too much. But Uhura was far more than a character in a television show, just as Nichols was something more than an actor: They were inspirational figures of historical import, both the player and the part, models of dignity who pointed to a better future simply by doing their jobs.

While racism was a recurring theme on “Star Trek,” Earth in the 23rd century is portrayed as having moved beyond prejudice, and so within the context of the series there is nothing extraordinary about a Black woman in a position of responsibility — Nichols has described Uhura as “fourth in command” — which is exactly what made it extraordinary in the context of late-1960s television.

Nichelle Nichols, who played Lt. Uhura on ‘Star Trek,’ dies at 89

Nichols died of heart failure Saturday night at a hospital in Silver City, N.M.

July 31, 2022

“Where I come from, size, shape or color make no difference,” William Shatner’s Kirk tells little person Michael Dunn in “Plato’s Stepchildren,” the third-season episode in which Kirk and Uhura have their famous kiss — not television’s first interracial kiss, it has been pointed out, but as far as I can tell, the first between a Black woman and a white man. The fact that they’re forced into it by telekinetic aliens, robbing them of agency, makes the scene no less groundbreaking, and Uhura’s speech to Kirk just beforehand puts a deeper slant on things: “I’m thinking of all the times on the Enterprise when I was scared to death. And I would see you so busy at your command. And I would hear your voice from all parts of the ship. And my fears would fade. And now [the aliens] are making me tremble. But I’m not afraid.“

Kiss aside, there’s no question Nichols was underused in the series; in the hierarchy of the show, in terms of screen time, there are Kirk and Spock, and then McCoy and Scott, and then Uhura (and Sulu and Chekhov). A lot of dudes. (Majel Barrett’s recurring Nurse Chapel was the only other female element, notwithstanding various guest aliens, often scantily clad.) Uhura rarely joins a landing party. But even when she’s not the focus of a scene, she is regularly onscreen, even if just visible at her post on the bridge, completing the picture, contributing to the emotional tenor. (And when she isn’t there, you notice it.) As the communications officer, everything runs through Uhura: She’s the voice of what’s happening elsewhere on the ship, and what’s happening outside the ship, whether announcing the presence of some other spacecraft or relating what’s up with Planet X. Even reciting lines like “I’m receiving Class Two signals from the Romulan vessel” or “Revised estimate on cloud visual contact 3.7 minutes,” she is the picture of the professional. She builds exposition, asks important questions; wordlessly reacting to some bit of business on the viewing screen, she brings an emotion and energy into the scene different from that of her sometimes blustery male colleagues.

Still, in the series’ first episode, Uhura confesses that she’s “beginning to feel too much a part of that communications console.” And whenever she’s liberated from her post for a minute and allowed to do anything else at all, you notice and remember. Whether she’s in a crawl space rigging up a subspace bypass circuit, or speaking teasingly with Spock (“Why don’t you tell me I’m an attractive young lady or ask me if I’ve ever been in love? Tell me how your planet Vulcan looks on a lazy evening when the moon is full”), or pretending to be an evil mirror-universe version of herself, these excursions leave you wanting more. For all it accomplished, the series missed a few tricks when it came to Nichols.

There was more to her than “Star Trek,” before, after and during. A performer since her teens, Nichols had toured as a dancer (and at least one night as a replacement singer) with Duke Ellington and made her screen debut in the 1959 film of “Porgy and Bess.” She had originally set her sights on a career in musical theater. You get a glimpse of that performer in the series’ second episode, when, as Spock plays on his Vulcan lyre, Uhura begins to mischievously sing and move catlike through the ship’s lounge: “Oh, on the Starship Enterprise / There’s someone who’s in Satan’s guise / Whose devil ears and devil eyes / Could rip your heart from you.” (Nichols got a couple more chances to sing in the series and performed a fan dance in “Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.”) It was to take a part in a Broadway-bound play that Nichols decided to leave the series after its first season, only to be persuaded to stay after an oft-recounted chance meeting with self-professed huge fan Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who, she later recalled, told her: “For the first time on television, we will be seen as we should be seen every day, as intelligent, quality, beautiful people who can sing, dance and can go to space.”

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Apart from “Star Trek” films, which commenced in 1979, a decade after the series was canceled, Nichols continued sporadically to act, including episodes of “Heroes,” “Downward Dog” and “The Young and the Restless,” and movies of varying budget and quality, including Disney’s “Snow Dogs” and the zombie film “The Supernaturals”; perhaps her least Uhura-esque role is in the 1974 Isaac Hayes blaxploitation film “Truck Turner,” in which she plays an ice-cold, highly profane madam. (In 2008, she’d play another madam, a friendly one, in “Lady Magdalene’s,” a ridiculous low-budget action comedy.) Whatever the vehicle, her work always feels committed and self-assured.

But “Star Trek” remains her legacy, and her gift, and it shaped her life, leading Nichols to work with NASA, recruiting women and people of color to the space program (as recounted in the 2019 documentary “Woman in Motion”). Finally, it was home. In the 2007 feature-length fan film “Star Trek: Of Men and Gods,” directed by “Star Trek: Voyager” actor Tim Russ and also starring Nichols’ old castmate Walter “Chekhov” Koenig, Nichols played Uhura one final time, in a part that — with no Kirk, no Spock in the way — at last brought her to center stage. Currently available on YouTube , the film definitely feels homemade, but it is clearly a labor of love, and Nichols, white-haired and still beautiful, is wonderful in it. And Uhura still lives, in the person of Celia Rose Gooding, who plays the character’s younger self in “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.” These days, “Trek” women get a lot to do. And often they are women of color.

“I believe it was fated,” Nichols said in a Television Academy interview of the encounter with Dr. King that sent her back to “Star Trek.” ”And I’ve never looked back, I never regretted it. Because I understood the universe had somehow, that universal mind had somehow put me there. And we have choices — are we going to walk down this road or are we going to walk down the other? And it was the right road for me.”

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Star Trek’s Nichelle Nichols dies at age 89

Nichols was the first black woman to hold a leading role on television.

By Emma Roth , a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO.

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Nichelle Nichols, who was best known for her groundbreaking role as Nyota Uhura in the original Star Trek series, died at age 89. Her son, Kyle Johnson, informed her fans in a post on Nichols’ Instagram account.

“Last night, my mother, Nichelle Nichols, succumbed to natural causes and passed away,” Johnson writes. “Her light however, like the ancient galaxies now being seen for the first time, will remain for us and future generations to enjoy, learn from, and draw inspiration.”

Nichols was born on December 28th, 1932, in Robbins, Illinois. Before joining the cast of Star Trek , Nichols toured with jazz artist Duke Ellington as a dancer and singer and later starred in the 1959 film Porgy and Bess as well as The Lieutenant television series (1964).

Nichols joined the cast of Star Trek in 1966 as Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, making history as the first Black woman to play a leading role on TV. She almost left Star Trek for a career on Broadway, but ultimately, a meeting with Martin Luther King Jr. convinced her to stay on the show. King, a Star Trek fan himself, reminded Nichols of the monumental significance of her role, which led her to take back her resignation. Nichols stayed on Star Trek until the original series ended in 1969.

Nichols’ legacy reaches far beyond Star Trek . She partnered with NASA to encourage the recruitment of astronauts from underrepresented backgrounds. Her work helped bring the first woman, Sally Ride, and the first Black man, Colonel Guion Bluford, to space. The 2019 film Woman in Motion is dedicated to the impact of Nichols’ advocacy on NASA. Last December, Nichols announced her retirement from space advocacy after making a final appearance at the LA Comic Con.

Nichols’ colleagues and castmates responded to the news of her death online. King’s daughter, Bernice, writes on Twitter : “Representation matters. Excellence in representation matters even more... Rest well, ancestor.”

George Takei, best known for his role as Hikaru Sulu on Star Trek, also posted a tribute to Nichols on Twitter . “I shall have more to say about the trailblazing, incomparable Nichelle Nichols, who shared the bridge with us as Lt. Uhura of the USS Enterprise, and who passed today at age 89,” Takei says. “For today, my heart is heavy, my eyes shining like the stars you now rest among, my dearest friend.”

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Nichelle Nichols, the USS Enterprise’s Lt. Uhura, dies at 89

MLK convinced her to return to a groundbreaking role for Black actors

by Owen S. Good

Nichelle Nichols, best known as the communications officer Lt. Nyota Uhura of the starship Enterprise , died July 30. She was 89. Her groundbreaking performances in Star Trek , corresponding with the Civil Rights movement in the United States, helped set the first standard for diversity and inclusion in mainstream screen entertainment.

As Uhura, Nichols was a core presence during Star Trek ’s original run on NBC from 1966 to 1969. To that point, Black actresses were largely given servile or ancillary roles in television and theater. But Nichols, radiating professionalism and 1960s mod-style sex appeal from her chair on the Enterprise’s bridge, opened a channel to Hollywood for stars like Diahann Carroll, Cicely Tyson, and Pam Grier.

Born Grace Dell Nichols on Dec. 28, 1932 in the Chicago suburb of Robbins, Illinois, she modeled and starred in several stage plays during her 20s and 30s, including James Baldwin’s Blues for Mister Charlie , before her breakthrough on Star Trek .

Despite her success in Star Trek ’s first season, Nichols felt called to Broadway, and tendered her resignation to show creator Gene Roddenberry after receiving several offers for major stage roles. The following weekend, she was a celebrity guest at an NAACP banquet, where she met the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“As a matter of fact, [ Star Trek ] is the only show that my wife Coretta and I will allow our little children to stay up and watch, because it’s on past their bedtime,” King said, according to Nichols’ recollection for the Television Academy Foundation.

“And I got the courage to say, ‘I really am going to miss my co-stars,’ and he said, ‘What do you mean?’ I said, ‘I’m leaving Star Trek ,’ and he said, ‘You cannot.’ […] He said, ‘For the first time on television, we will be seen as we should be seen, every day.’”

Nichols withdrew her resignation and continued with the series, culminating in her role in season 3, episode 10, “Plato’s Stepchildren,” where she shared a kiss with William Shatner, the first interracial romance depicted on American television. The scene came one year after a Supreme Court decision nullifying Southern states’ laws against marriage between races.

Though the series’ first run was cancelled in 1969, Nichols remained a singularly identifiable Star Trek figure in the coming decades. She is, along with Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, and Walter Koenig, one of seven officers commanding the Enterprise from its original three-year mission in the 1960s through six feature film appearances from 1979 to 1991.

On Earth, Nichols was an ambassador for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration beginning in 1977, specifically to advocate for the training and assignment of women and minority candidates for spaceflight roles. In 2012, NASA credited Nichols for inspiring the careers of Sally Ride (the first American woman in space) and fellow astronauts Ronald McNair, Frederick Gregory, and Judith Resnik.

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Published Jun 19, 2023

The Zen of Zoe Saldana's Nyota Uhura

Saldana, in her three turns so far in the Star Trek universe, has crafted a unique take on Nyota Uhura, a role pioneered by the illustrious Nichelle Nichols.

StarTrek.com

Zoe Saldana is known as a driving force behind several mega-franchises, including Guardians of the Galaxy and Avatar , as well as Star Trek .

Saldana, in her three turns so far in the Star Trek universe, has crafted a unique take on Nyota Uhura , a role pioneered by the illustrious Nichelle Nichols. Given that fans probably knew less about Uhura than they did Star Trek 's other original characters (not even a first name!) prior to the first Kelvin Timeline movie, Saldana has truly made the role her own by simultaneously infusing Uhura's persona with new traits and honoring Nichols' previous work.

In celebration of Zoe Saldana's birthday, let's take a look at some of her finest Uhura moments!

Star Trek (2009)

"no, i'm assigned to the enterprise .".

Despite her superb record as a cadet, Uhura's assignment to the U.S.S. Farragut prior to the fleet's departure for Vulcan clearly irritated the communications officer. Uhura confronted Spock about the matter, displaying confidence in her qualifications and a willingness to fight for a position she had earned.

The validity of Uhura's argument and her unwavering stance left Spock with no choice but to assign her to the flagship U.S.S. Enterprise .

"Sir, I intercepted and translated the message myself."

Uhura vouched for her expertise as James T. Kirk emphatically explained to Captain Pike that the Klingon transmission intercepted by Uhura, combined with the details of the U.S.S. Kelvin 's destruction by Romulans, and reports of a lightning storm in space near Vulcan, strongly indicated that the Federation fleet was warping into a trap.

Spock quickly acknowledged Kirk's logic and Uhura's aptitude, leading Pike to order an early exit from warp and saving the ship. The teamwork between the three young officers foreshadowed their trusting bond that would form in the coming years.

Star Trek Into Darkness

"good thing you don't care about dying.".

Uhura's frustration with Spock's actions on Nibiru came to a head during their daring excursion to nab John Harrison (aka Khan Noonien Singh) from Qo'noS. Uhura's inclination to stand up to Spock evoked her fearless nature and demonstrated a flair for getting Spock to express his true feelings.

The verbal skirmish led to a rare emotional moment for Spock, as the science officer articulated the esteem in which he held Uhura.

"You brought me here because I speak Klingon. Let me speak Klingon."

Uhura's words professed a confidence in her own work and a readiness to volunteer for a perilous confrontation with a squad of heavily armed Klingons. Valuing their mission and her crew's safety above all, Uhura put herself in harm's way to diffuse the situation. While her plea for peace fell on deaf ears, the communications officer went above and beyond to try and protect her friends.

"Commander, I have that transmission as requested."

Saldana's Uhura exhibited numerous skills during her tenure in Starfleet, but her post as the ship's communications officer also came in handy.

By restoring the Enterprise 's comm systems and reaching Spock Prime on New Vulcan, Uhura permitted her own Spock to gather advice on how to defeat Khan. The interaction between the two Spocks led to the ingenious ruse of beaming armed torpedoes rather than ones containing cryotubes to Khan on the U.S.S. Vengeance .

"Can you beam someone down?"

Unable to beam Khan back to the Enterprise , Uhura once more chose to place an additional burden on her own shoulders. Informing Spock that the crew needed Khan alive served as Uhura's primary goal, and her appearance with a phaser distracted Khan enough to give Spock the upper hand in the brawl.

Uhura's bravery prevented Spock from killing Khan, thus supplying Dr. McCoy with enough “super blood” to resurrect Kirk.

Star Trek Beyond

"he would've done the same.".

As the Enterprise slowly perished, Uhura took it upon herself to assist Captain Kirk in his endeavor to separate the ship's saucer and restore impulse power. After single-handedly dispatching two Swarm Soldiers, the communications officer risked her life and successfully completed her mission.

In the process, Uhura sacrificed her own freedom and saved Kirk from Krall's grasp, as the separation sequence left her trapped with their alien foe in the disconnected engineering section. The sequence of events once again demonstrated Uhura's courageous and resourceful nature.

"Spock, what are you doing here?"

Although Spock set out with Kirk, McCoy, and Jaylah on a mission to free Uhura and the Enterprise survivors from Krall's compound, Saldana's Uhura ended up rescuing the wounded science officer from a Swarm Soldier's deadly wrath. Spock sardonically observed that he had intended to come to Uhura's aid, yet his tone offered a hint of resignation at his former paramour's knack for resolving situations on her own terms.

"It's him."

During the search for Krall aboard the scuttled U.S.S. Franklin , Uhura keenly noticed a recording of the vessel's original crew on a viewing screen. As a master of languages and someone who dealt with Krall face-to-face on Altamid, Uhura observed the similarities between words spoken by Krall and the Franklin 's Captain Balthazar Edison, ultimately realizing that the two people were one and the same.

This crucial revelation provided insight into Krall's intentions and a general description of his current appearance, allowing Kirk to prevent Edison from decimating Starbase Yorktown's population.

"You old romantic."

Offered in response to Spock's awkward attempt at displaying his fondness for Uhura's company, this comment conveyed the amusement Uhura felt and her appreciation for Spock's sentiment. The exchange indicated their relationship's revival and a renewed effort by Spock to make their pairing a focal point in his life.

This article was originally published on January 4, 2019.

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Stay tuned to StarTrek.com for more details! And be sure to follow @StarTrek on Facebook , Twitter , and Instagram .

Jay Stobie (he/him) is a freelance writer, author, and consultant who has contributed articles to StarTrek.com, Star Trek Explorer, and Star Trek Magazine, as well as to Star Wars Insider and StarWars.com. Learn more about Jay by visiting JayStobie.com or finding him on Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms at @StobiesGalaxy.

Uhura and Chapel Are Reporting for Duty in New 'Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' BTS Image

Nyota Uhura and Christine Chapel are back in action with phasers at the ready in a new behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds . Chapel actor Jess Bush shared the image of her posing with co-star Celia Rose Gooding on Instagram. The image also teases a new look for Uhura on the Paramount+ science fiction series' hotly anticipated third season.

In the new picture, Gooding sports a longer hairstyle, closer to that worn by Nichelle Nichols , who originated the role; the previous two seasons had seen her with a shorter haircut. Season three promises to have some major developments for Chapel, as well - Roger Korby, her fiancé from the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "What Are Little Girls Made Of?", will have a recurring role on the upcoming season, where he'll be played by Cillian O'Sullivan . The season was filmed at Toronto's Star Trek Stage earlier this year, after a break between seasons that was extended by last year's dual SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes; while that stage is now occupied by the production of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy , Gooding, Bush, and company will return there next spring for season four .

What Do We Know About 'Strange New Worlds' Season Three?

The upcoming season will pick up right where last season's cliffhanger finale left off - with the Enterprise under attack by the Gorn, a race of hostile reptilian aliens. Presumably, it will also address the fate of recurring character Captain Marie Batel ( Melanie Scrofano ), who we last saw having been infected with a seemingly fatal dose of Gorn larvae. The series will be getting a new addition, in the form of beloved Original Series character Montgomery "Scotty" Scott; he first appeared on the series in the season finale, played by Scottish actor Martin Quinn . The season will also include a murder mystery episode, directed by Star Trek stalwart Jonathan Frakes . Our first tease of the season came at this year's San Diego Comic Con, where a clip of an upcoming episode in which several crew members are transformed into Vulcans was revealed.

Although Strange New Worlds won't be back for some time, there's plenty of Star Trek coming to Paramount+ in the meantime. Star Trek: Lower Decks ' fifth and final season will premiere on October 24, while the streaming-original movie, Star Trek: Section 31 , will bow on the streamer in early 2025.

Watch on Paramount+

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will premiere its third season on Paramount+ next year . Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds follows CaptainChristopher Pike(played by Anson Mount) and the crew of the starship USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) in the 23rd century as they explore new worlds throughout the galaxy in the decade beforeStar Trek: The Original Series.

Nichelle Nichols, Lt. Uhura on 'Star Trek,' has died at 89

by LINDSEY BAHR | ASSOCIATED PRESS

Nichelle Nichols, who broke barriers for Black women in Hollywood when she played communications officer Lt. Uhura on the original "Star Trek" television series, has died at the age of 89.

Her son Kyle Johnson said Nichols died Saturday in Silver City, New Mexico.

"Last night, my mother, Nichelle Nichols, succumbed to natural causes and passed away. Her light however, like the ancient galaxies now being seen for the first time, will remain for us and future generations to enjoy, learn from, and draw inspiration," Johnson wrote on her official Facebook page Sunday. "Hers was a life well lived and as such a model for us all."

Her role in the 1966-69 series as Lt. Uhura earned Nichols a lifelong position of honor with the series' rabid fans, known as Trekkers and Trekkies. It also earned her accolades for breaking stereotypes that had limited Black women to acting roles as servants and included an interracial onscreen kiss with co-star William Shatner that was unheard of at the time.

"I shall have more to say about the trailblazing, incomparable Nichelle Nichols, who shared the bridge with us as Lt. Uhura of the USS Enterprise, and who passed today at age 89," George Takei wrote on Twitter. "For today, my heart is heavy, my eyes shining like the stars you now rest among, my dearest friend."

Like other original cast members, Nichols also appeared in six big-screen spinoffs starting in 1979 with "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" and frequented "Star Trek" fan conventions. She also served for many years as a NASA recruiter, helping bring minorities and women into the astronaut corps.

More recently, she had a recurring role on television's "Heroes," playing the great-aunt of a young boy with mystical powers.

The original "Star Trek" premiered on NBC on Sept. 8, 1966. Its multicultural, multiracial cast was creator Gene Roddenberry's message to viewers that in the far-off future — the 23rd century — human diversity would be fully accepted.

"I think many people took it into their hearts ... that what was being said on TV at that time was a reason to celebrate," Nichols said in 1992 when a "Star Trek" exhibit was on view at the Smithsonian Institution.

She often recalled how Martin Luther King Jr. was a fan of the show and praised her role. She met him at a civil rights gathering in 1967, at a time when she had decided not to return for the show's second season.

"When I told him I was going to miss my co-stars and I was leaving the show, he became very serious and said, 'You cannot do that,'" she told The Tulsa (Okla.) World in a 2008 interview.

"'You've changed the face of television forever, and therefore, you've changed the minds of people,'" she said the civil rights leader told her.

"That foresight Dr. King had was a lightning bolt in my life," Nichols said.

During the show's third season, Nichols' character and Shatner's Capt. James Kirk shared what was described as the first interracial kiss to be broadcast on a U.S. television series. In the episode, "Plato's Stepchildren," their characters, who always maintained a platonic relationship, were forced into the kiss by aliens who were controlling their actions.

The kiss "suggested that there was a future where these issues were not such a big deal," Eric Deggans, a television critic for National Public Radio, told The Associated Press in 2018. "The characters themselves were not freaking out because a Black woman was kissing a white man ... In this utopian-like future, we solved this issue. We're beyond it. That was a wonderful message to send."

Worried about reaction from Southern television stations, showrunners wanted to film a second take of the scene where the kiss happened off-screen. But Nichols said in her book, "Beyond Uhura: Star Trek and Other Memories," that she and Shatner deliberately flubbed lines to force the original take to be used.

Despite concerns, the episode aired without blowback. In fact, it got the most "fan mail that Paramount had ever gotten on Star Trek for one episode," Nichols said in a 2010 interview with the Archive of American Television.

Born Grace Dell Nichols in Robbins, Illinois, Nichols hated being called "Gracie," which everyone insisted on, she said in the 2010 interview. When she was a teen her mother told her she had wanted to name her Michelle, but thought she ought to have alliterative initials like Marilyn Monroe, whom Nichols loved. Hence, "Nichelle."

Nichols first worked professionally as a singer and dancer in Chicago at age 14, moving on to New York nightclubs and working for a time with the Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton bands before coming to Hollywood for her film debut in 1959's "Porgy and Bess," the first of several small film and TV roles that led up to her "Star Trek" stardom.

Nichols was known as being unafraid to stand up to Shatner on the set when others complained that he was stealing scenes and camera time. They later learned she had a strong supporter in the show's creator.

In her 1994 book, "Beyond Uhura," she said she met Roddenberry when she guest starred on his show "The Lieutenant," and the two had an affair a couple of years before "Star Trek" began. The two remained lifelong close friends.

Another fan of Nichols and the show was future astronaut Mae Jemison, who became the first black woman in space when she flew aboard the shuttle Endeavour in 1992.

In an AP interview before her flight, Jemison said she watched Nichols on "Star Trek" all the time, adding she loved the show. Jemison eventually got to meet Nichols.

Nichols was a regular at "Star Trek" conventions and events into her 80s, but her schedule became limited starting in 2018 when her son announced that she was suffering from advanced dementia.

Nichelle Nichols, groundbreaking 'Star Trek' actor, dead at 89

Nichelle Nichols, the groundbreaking actor who played Lieutenant Nyota Uhura on the original "Star Trek" series, has died.

She was 89.

Nichols' death was confirmed on Sunday by her son, Kyle Johnson, on her website. Johnson said his mother died of natural causes.

"Her light, however, like the ancient galaxies now being seen for the first time, will remain for us and future generations to enjoy, learn from, and draw inspiration," Johnson said in a statement posted to the website.

Johnson said his mother's life was "well-lived and as such a model for" everyone. He asked for privacy for the family.

Nichols and her “Star Trek” character Uhura broke barriers as one of the first Black female leads on television.

Rod Roddenberry, executive producer of the current iterations of "Star Trek" and son of the show's creator Gene Roddenberry mourned Nichols' passing on Sunday.

"It is with great sorrow that we report the passing on the legendary icon Nichelle Nichols," he tweeted. "No words."

Nichols, was born in Illinois as Grace Nichols. She was discovered in Chicago by composer and musician Duke Ellington as a teenager while working as a dancer and choreographer, according to the National Space Society , for which Nichols was on the board of governors.

"As I learned to believe in my talent, my voice, myself, I learned that I could make others believe as well," Nichols wrote on her website .

Prior to appearing in "Star Trek," Nichols was an accomplished dancer but only had a handful of acting roles.

Nichols appeared on "Star Trek" in its debut season in 1966. Initially, she considered leaving the show, feeling her character lacked depth. However, after meeting Martin Luther King, Jr., who was a fan of the show, she decided to stay.

It was then she worked alongside Roddenberry to give Uhura revolutionary authority and dominance, something not seen prior in that era of television.

"When I was on those wonderful sets with all of the cast members, the universe of Star Trek began to feel not so much a fantasy but an opportunity to lay the groundwork for what we might actually achieve by the 23rd Century … a bold aspiration and an affirmation of Uhura as we eagerly await her arrival," Nichols wrote on her website.

One moment that broke boundaries, in 1968, was a kiss between Nichols' Uhura and and William Shatner's Capt. James T. Kirk on the episode “Plato’s Stepchildren.” The episode helped to re-shape what viewers thought of as acceptable on television and was an early statement about the acceptance of interracial marriages.

After the original "Star Trek" ended, Nichols became a spokesperson for NASA, according to her website. She helped to recruit astronauts and appeared in PSAs.

NASA credited Nichols with helping to recruit Sally Ride and Frederick Gregory, according to the Los Angeles Times .

"In motivating them as others once did me, it’s as if my life had come back, full circle, to where the dreams of a young woman began," she wrote about the experience on her website.

On Sunday NASA memorialized Nichols as a global inspiration who helped it evolve.

"We celebrate the life of Nichelle Nichols, Star Trek actor, trailblazer, and role model, who symbolized to so many what was possible," the agency tweeted. "She partnered with us to recruit some of the first women and minority astronauts, and inspired generations to reach for the stars."

In her autobiography, she wrote that she loved attending "Star Trek" conventions, the LA Times reported.

Following news of her death, co-stars and admirers alike mourned her loss.

"I shall have more to say about the trailblazing, incomparable Nichelle Nichols, who shared the bridge with us as Lt. Uhura of the USS Enterprise, and who passed today at age 89. For today, my heart is heavy, my eyes shining like the stars you now rest among, my dearest friend," tweeted George Takei, who played alongside Nichols as "Star Trek" helmsman Hikaru Sulu.

Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King, Jr., praised Nichols for her representation.

"Representation matters. Excellence in representation matters even more. Thank you, #NichelleNichols ," she wrote. "Rest well, ancestor."

Kalhan Rosenblatt is a reporter covering youth and internet culture for NBC News, based in New York.

Screen Rant

Strange new worlds season 3 can set up a star trek movie romance that deserved better.

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 - Cast, Story, & Everything We Know

I want strange new worlds to break star trek canon & save captain pike, 2 star trek: voyager writers “just didn’t care” about harry kim in season 4.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds can set up a romance that deserved better in Star Trek: The Original Series ' movies. Strange New Worlds season 3 will pick up from season 2's finale cliffhanger, resolving the crisis Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) and the USS Enterprise face with the Gorn. But as seen in a first-look clip of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 that premiered at San Diego Comic-Con , life goes back to 'normal' aboard the Starship Enterprise, which has Lt. Montgomery Scott (Martin Quinn), AKA Scotty, joining the crew.

Scotty made a surprise debut in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2's finale . An engineer aboard the USS Stardiver, Scotty was the lone survivor after his starship was attacked by the Gorn. Scotty crash-landed on Parnassus Beta, the next target of a Gorn occupation, where he met Captain Pike and the USS Enterprise's Away team. Scotty joined Pike and Captain Marie Batel (Melanie Scrofano) aboard the Enterprise, and the Scottish engineer might have a way to get the edge over the Gorn. But another interesting aspect of Scotty joining the Enterprise is that he can now meet Ensign Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) in Star Trek' s Prime Universe canon.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 ended with an epic cliffhanger and here's everything known about when it will be resolved in season 3.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Could Set Up Scotty & Uhura’s Movie Romance

Scotty and uhura started to have a thing in star trek v.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds could set up the relationship between Scotty and Uhura that led to a sweet flirtation between them in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Over 35 years after the events of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3, Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) and Scotty (James Doohan) remain part of the USS Enterprise's bridge crew under Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner). In Star Trek V , Scotty and Uhura's decades of friendship began to blossom into feelings between them. Scotty and Uhura even planned to take shore leave together. There's a palpable chemistry between the Communications Officer and the Chief Engineer of the Enterprise .

Ensign Uhura and Lt. Scott could begin to spark their future relationship in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds . After all, both Scotty and Uhura are young and attractive, and they could begin working together closely on the Enterprise. Uhura has begun to move past her trauma and become more assertive, and Nyota could help Scotty start to fit in among the Enterprise's crew. Uhura has yet to have a canonical romance in Star Trek 's Prime timeline , and Scotty's love life also has big question marks. Uhura and Scotty could start to be a 'thing' in Strange New Worlds.

Lt. Uhura (Zoe Saldana) had a romance with Commander Spock (Zachary Quinto) in the alternate Kelvin Timeline of J.J. Abrams' Star Trek movies.

Why Scotty & Uhura’s Star Trek Romance Never Really Happened

The perils of being star trek: tos supporting characters.

Scotty and Uhura's flirtation in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier didn't manifest into anything more in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , the final time Nichelle Nichols and James Doohan played their iconic Star Trek characters opposite each other. Sadly, the bits of repartee between Scotty and Uhura were all of what could have been a fun Star Trek romance on Captain Kirk's bridge. Star Trek: The Original Series' movies were primarily focused on Kirk, Spock (Leonard Nimoy), and Dr. Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley), leaving characters like Scotty, Uhura, Sulu (George Takei), and Chekov (Walter Koenig) firmly in the background.

Scotty and Uhura could start to establish the chemistry that will last them decades.

However, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds gives credence to every major character aboard Captain Pike's Starship Enterprise, and their stories and relationships. Multiple love stories are occurring simultaneously in Strange New Worlds , and Pike's starship has room for one more between Scotty and Uhura. And if not a full-blown romance on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, at the very least, Scotty and Uhura could start to establish the chemistry that will last them decades into Star Trek: The Original Series.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

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Nichelle Nichols, trailblazer known for playing Lt. Uhura on 'Star Trek,' dies

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Tributes are pouring in for Nichelle Nichols, who made history for her portrayal as Lieutenant Uhura on Star Trek. She was 89.

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