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All 6 The Expanse Actors Who Also Appeared In Star Trek

By Rebecca Sargeant

Published Mar 25, 2025

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Many of where The Expanse’s cast have been since season 6’s end in 2022, and surprisingly, several ended up in the Star Trek franchise.

Multiple actors who were in The Expanse also starred in various projects littered across Star Trek’s complete timeline - both TV shows and movies. Considering the prominence of both sci-fi franchises, it only made sense that some of The Expanse’s alumni also appeared in Star Trek.

6 Shohreh Aghdashloo

Commodore Paris - Star Trek Beyond (2016)

Shohreh Aghdashloo, who played The Expanse’s Chrisjen Avasarala, also portrayed Commodore Paris in Star Trek Beyond. While Avasarala was a more prominent character in The Expanse compared to Paris in Star Trek Beyond, the Commodore still played a significant role in the film’s events. Despite being a later addition to Star Trek Beyond, Paris was linked to past Star Trek lore, and Simon Pegg previously confirmed the commanding officer of Yorktown was a nod to Tom Paris in Star Trek: Voyager (via X).

Chris Pine as Captain Kirk and Zachary Quinto as Spock in Star Trek Beyond

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Like any, these two characters have their differences and similarities. For example, both were highly ranked in their respective fields, and they also were responsible for overseeing large teams. However, Avasarala was far more villainous than Paris. Avasarala manipulated those around her, and she’d do anything to keep control through her role of Secretary-General of the United Nations.

5 Bahia Watson

JahSepp May - Star Trek: Discovery

Despite being best known for her role of Brianna in The Handmaid’s Tale, Bahia Watson also played Sakai in The Expanse season 5. While only a ing character, The Expanse’s Sakai was a traitor and caused quite a stir. She started the show as the chief engineer of the Tycho station, but by the end, Sakai was a killer and later arrested for her crimes. Watson also played the jahSepp of May in Star Trek: Discovery, too.

The jahSepp appeared in the form of May Ahearn to Sylvia in 2257, five years after the real May’s death. Watson’s character was a great help to Tilly when she was trying to figure out how to save Terralysium, although it was later revealed that the presence of May was a mere hallucination created by mycelium spores that were attached to Tilly. The jahSepp May was later removed from Tilly’s consciousness.

4 Shawn Doyle

Dr. Ruon Tarka - Star Trek: Discovery

Shawn Doyle played Sadavir Errinwright in The Expanse, the UN Under Secretary of Executive istration from seasons 1 to 3. Errinwright grew to become one of the most powerful people on Earth during his time on the show, and was eventually caught up in a scandal that resulted in the war between the UN and the Martian Congressional Republic, which resulted in his arrest and firing.

While these characters came from different professional backgrounds, it was great to see Doyle play two antagonists who were hidden in plain sight.

Doyle has been busy since he left The Expanse, and in the Stark Trek universe, he portrayed Dr. Ruon Tarka in Star Trek: Discovery. Ruon Tarka was Star Trek: Discovery season 4’s villain, and the genius scientist’s grief made him obsessed with travelling the multiverses. While these characters came from different professional backgrounds, it was great to see Doyle play two antagonists who were hidden in plain sight.

3 Brian George

Richard Bashir - Star Trek: Deep Space Nine & Ambassador O'Zaal - Star Trek: Voyager

Brian George portrayed Avasarala's husband, Arjun, in The Expanse seasons 1, 2, and 6. The Expanse recast Arjun Avasarala-Rao in season 4, with Michael Benyaer stepping in to play the character for a short time. However, in the years before George was cast as Arjun, the actor starred in the Star Trek universe not once, but twice. George played Richard Bashir in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode “Dr. Bashir, I Presume?” in 1997, and then took on the role of Ambassador O'Zaal in the Star Trek: Voyager episode “Drive” in 2000.

Neither Bashir nor O’Zaal were regularly seen characters, but they were interesting. Bashir was the father of Chief Medical Officer Julian Bashir, who subjected his son to an illegal genetic engineering process as a child over fears of his progress at school. O’Zaal, however, was an Antarian ambassador who was also responsible for coordinating the 2377 Antarian Trans-stellar Rally.

2 Somkele Idhalama

Progenitor - Star Trek: Discovery

Somkele Idhalama only played a small role in The Expanse, having starred as a Tychno engineer in the season 5 episode “Down and Out.” However, the Nigerian actress and model also appeared in the likes of the movies 93 Days and The Arbitration, as well as TV shows such as Gidi Up, too. Her arguably most notable TV appearance, however, was in the Star Trek universe.

Dominique Tipper as Naomi Nagata and Steven Strait as James Holden in The Expanse.

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Somkele Idhalama played the Progenitor in Star Trek: Discovery’s finale, and while she was cast right at the very end of the show’s lifespan, it was an incredible episode to be featured in. Idhalama portrayed the Progenitor in “Life, Itself” in 2024, a long-awaited moment for audiences, as Captain Michael Burnham finally came face-to-face with one of them after a lengthy search for their technology. Idhalama did a brilliant job in this role, considering she took over from the original Progenitor actress Salome Jens from Star Trek: The Next Generation.

1 Conrad Coates

iral Terral - Star Trek: Discovery

Conrad Coates iral Terral glaring at something during a meeting in Star Trek: Discovery.

Conrad Coates only ed The Expanse’s cast in the show’s final season, but UNN Fleet iral Sadiqi was a great part of the five episodes he appeared in. Before The Expanse, Coates was known for his roles in Degrassi: The Next Generation and Fargo, too. However, before his stint in The Expanse, Coates starred as iral Terral in four episodes of Star Trek: Discovery season 1.

The Vulcan was a part of some interesting moments in Star Trek: Discovery. For example, he confirmed Sarek’s disappearance while en route to Cancri IV, but refused to allow Lorca to embark on a rescue mission, an order which was ultimately ignored. While Coates’ character wasn’t a huge figure, he still played a part in the early days of the Star Trek TV show and gave him sci-fi acting experience which later saw him cast in The Expanse.