Tawny Newson talks Star Trek: Lower Decks: "It's very weird for Star Trek"

(Image credit: CBS)

Get ready for Star Trek to boldly go where the franchise has never gone before. We're not talking about on the Star Trek timeline – but about genre and style. 

Star Trek: Lower Decks will be the first "out-and-out" comedy series set in the Star Trek universe. Mike McMahan – who recently acted as showrunner on the animated Solar Opposites with Rick and Morty's Justin Roiland – has created the new animated show, which will centre on the support crew of a Starfleet ship. GamesRadar+ caught up with the series leading voice actor, Tawny Newsome, to discuss her upcoming Netflix series Space Force, and she offers some insight into the Star Trek show. 

"What won’t I get sued for? It is a comedy for sure," she says. "Yeah, it’s a half-hour. It’s totally animated... It’s so funny. But the thing about Star Trek is, at the core of Star Trek there is so much hope and optimism – like optimism as a species – and personal pride and hope in it. So there are more earnest, hopeful moments, I think, in Lower Decks that grounds a lot of the comedy.

"But it still is very weird for Star Trek. There’s never been an out-and-out Star Trek comedy, and I can’t believe I get to be in the very first one. It’s very cool."

Star Trek: Lower Decks currently has no release date, but all 10 episodes are expected to be released in 2020. Space Force reaches Netflix on Friday, May 29.

Jack Shepherd
Freelance Journalist

Jack Shepherd is the former Senior Entertainment Editor of GamesRadar. Jack used to work at The Independent as a general culture writer before specializing in TV and film for the likes of GR+, Total Film, SFX, and others. You can now find Jack working as a freelance journalist and editor.