Sonequa Martin-Green will play First Officer Michael Burnham. The First Officer is the second in command, the Captain Lorca will be played by Jason Isaacs. Star Trek: Discovery will be the first time the lead character is not the Captain, executive producer Bryan Fuller stated that this is a way to tell a different type of story. It also gives Burnham a goal to strive towards, it would be smart writing to have the character grow into their role as second in command and eventually have to take on the task of being Captain. To  have the character start as the leader does not give the character room to grow.

During the Television Critics Association summer press tour in 2016, Fuller stated that the lead will be a woman of colour. The majority of actresses who had auditioned for the part were Black and Latina. Fuller’s intention was to create a diverse show.

“This marks the first African American woman to lead the cast of a “Star Trek” ensemble series – one that, as Fuller also previously said, will be the most diverse, and will also include the franchise’s first openly gay character.”

The diverse cast is includes Michelle Yeoh, Terry Serpico Maulik Pancholy, Sam Vartholomeos, James Frain, Doug Jones, Anthony Rapp, Chris Obi, Shazad Latif, and Rainn Wilson.

This show will address two of the main concerns from the Star Trek films. A common criticism of the films is that Uhura, the first African descent character to be featured in a leading role on American television, has been largely underused and sidelined in the films. The other problem was from the recent film, where Sulu was revealed to be gay, but the reveal was met with mixed response and disapproval from George Takei, who originated the role. It seems Fuller is taking Takei’s words to heart and an original, openly gay character has been created.

The first season will be 13 episodes long, and will take place 10 years before Captain Kirk’s five-year mission, that would be 13 years before the events of Star Trek Beyond. Perhaps future cinematic instalments will reference or include characters from the new TV series.

There is still no premiere date. The show may premiere in September or January. Previous Star Trek shows premiered late September or early January.

Source: Shadow and Act.