The real captain of the U.S.S. Discovery has taken the conn. Jason Isaacs will play Captain Gabriel Lorca in CBS’s upcoming Star Trek: Discovery and has, until now, been strangely absent from any promotional images or trailers. This has been a point of contention for some Trek trolls, as they’ve been unhappy that the show, so far, has featured primarily female leads of color. Perhaps most easily recognized for portraying Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter series, it seems Isaacs is channeling some of that steely-eyed calculation for his Trek character in this first official photo.
Trek fans were confused by the lack of Captain Lorca in the first trailer for Discovery, as he’s set as the starship’s official captain. The trailer featured the bridge of the U.S.S. Shenzhou, Captain Philippa Georgiou’s (Michelle Yeoh) ship, and Georgious hinting that Sonequa Martin-Green’s First Officer Michael Burnham would soon get her own command. This focus on the other characters has led fans to believe that Captain Lorca, for all of Isaacs’s star power, won’t be around for too long.
Lorca’s absence and the presence of two Starfleet ships (rather than the traditional one) has had fans thinking that Lorca might die within the first few episodes of the series, with his version of the Discovery being destroyed and then rebuilt (a la the U.S.S. Enterprise in 2016’s Star Trek: Beyond) with a new captain, Burnham, at the helm.
Jason Isaacs as Captain Lorca in 'Star Trek: Discovery.'
But, as this is the first look at the character, he’s looking pretty put-together. There’s still no official confirmation for what to expect from him.
The first season of Star Trek: Discovery will air on CBS All Access in two parts starting on September 24.
