Summary

• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 could introduce Carol Marcus, played by Sarah Jones from For All Mankind.
• Sarah Jones brings intelligence, charisma, and emotional maturity to her roles, making her an ideal choice to portray the brilliant scientist and conflicted lover, Carol Marcus.
• Introducing Carol Marcus in Strange New Worlds season 3 would provide insight into her decision to keep Lt. James T. Kirk away from their son, David, and could shed light on her motivations for creating the Genesis Device. Sarah Jones has the qualities to embody this complex character.

For All Mankind, just had the perfect actress to play the girlfriend of Lt. James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley). In Strange New Worlds' musical episode, Kirk confesses to Lt. La'an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong) that he can't act on their mutual attraction because his "on again/off again" girlfriend, a woman named Carol, is pregnant. Carol can only be the future Dr. Carol Marcus, who will be the mother of Kirk's son, David Marcus (Merritt Butrick).

Dr. Carol Marcus (Bibi Besch) was introduced in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Set in 2285, about 25 years after Strange New Worlds season 2, Star Trek II showed that Carol and iral James T. Kirk (William Shatner) were estranged for many years. Kirk did as Carol asked and stayed away from David, whom Carol raised on her own to follow in her footsteps as a scientist. Carol and David masterminded the Genesis Device, a revolutionary terraforming technology that could turn dead celestial bodies into Class M planets suitable for human life. The Genesis Device was stolen and turned into a dreadful weapon by Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalban). Carol and Kirk reconciled, but she wasn't seen again after The Wrath of Khan. Tragically, David was killed by Klingons in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. However, Strange New Worlds season 3 would introduce Carol before all of that tragedy, when she and Kirk were still "young as when the world was new."

Strange New Worlds Season 3 Should Cast For All Mankind’s Sarah Jones as Carol Marcus

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 should cast Sarah Jones from For All Mankind as Carol Marcus. Jones played astronaut Tracy Stevens in For All Mankind seasons 1 and 2, and she was one of the show's most fascinating and charismatic characters. Married to astronaut Gordo Stevens (Michael Dorman), Tracy was a housewife and mother, but as a skilled pilot, she was recruited by NASA to become one of America's first female astronauts. As Tracy, Jones is intelligent, caring, and heroic, but she is also a responsible parent and more emotionally mature than her husband Gordo. As Carol Marcus, Jones could bring the same elements to play a brilliant scientist who both loves and is frustrated by the cocky, risk-taking Lt. James T. Kirk. Jones and Paul Welsey could play this dynamic impeccably to reveal the many complications, but also attractions, of their relationship in ways Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan could only hint at.

Prior to winning over audiences in For All Mankind, Sarah Jones appeared in episodes of Cold Case, Judging Amy, Huff, and Ugly Betty, before her recurring role as Brynn on Big Love. Jones was cast as Detective Rebecca Madsen in J.J. Abrams' Alcatraz, a lead role that won her raves. Jones next played the lead role of Mia Rizzo in Vegas, and she played the lead role of Alison in The Path. Jones left For All Mankind at the end of season 2 when Tracy and Gordo's story concluded, and she will next be seen playing Serena Croaker in Netflix's A Man in Full miniseries based on the Tom Wolfe novel. With Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3's filming postponed until 2024 due to the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, Jones could be available, and she would be ideal to play Carol Marcus.

How Carol Marcus Fits Into Strange New Worlds Season 3

Carol Marcus would likely only be a guest star or, at best, a recurring role in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3, especially given that Paul Wesley's Lt. James T. Kirk is a recurring character himself and not part of the main crew of Captain Christopher Pike's (Anson Mount) USS Enterprise. But Kirk quickly became a crucial part of Strange New Worlds, and introducing a pregnant Carol, or Carol having just given birth to David, would reveal new facets to James as well as La'an Noonien-Singh if she meets Carol. Seeing Kirk and Carol at this younger stage in their lives would clarify her decision to ask Kirk to not be part of David's upbringing, perhaps due to a starship crisis that puts Carol and David in danger.

Strange New Worlds season 3 introducing Carol Marcus could also establish her reasons for creating the Genesis Device in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Why, exactly, overpopulation and galactic hunger are problems that become so important to Carol that she spearheads Project Genesis are just a few of the questions Dr. Marcus ing Strange New Worlds season 3 could answer. If Carol Marcus does Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3, they need an actor who can embody that character's brains, beauty, and who can balance out Paul Wesley's Lt. James T. Kirk. Sarah Jones has all of those qualities and more.