dwayne johnson star trek voyager

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The rock was in star trek dwayne johnson's voyager role explained.

One of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's earliest acting roles was in a Star Trek: Voyager episode that played to his strengths as a WWE superstar.

• The Rock made an appearance on Star Trek: Voyager in a wrestling-themed episode called "Tsunkatse" in early 2000.
• Dwayne Johnson's breakout hit "The Scorpion King" launched his successful movie career a year after his Voyager cameo.
• Although unlikely, The Rock's character or the Pendari aliens could return in Star Trek: Prodigy.

WWE superstar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson had a guest role in Star Trek: Voyager in the early years of his acting career. Dwayne Johnson is now one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, appearing in the Fast and Furious franchise, the DC movie Black Adam , and his biographical sitcom Young Rock . In the years before the Rock's stratospheric rise through Hollywood's ranks, the WWE legend joined the cast of Star Trek: Voyager in the wrestling-themed episode, "Tsunkatse". The Rock was cast in Voyager as a network tie-in with their fellow UPN show, WWF Smackdown .

"Tsunkatse" wasn't the only episode of Star Trek to feature a WWE star, as both Tommy "Tiny" Lister Jr. and Paul "Big Show" Wight would later appear in episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise . The Rock's Star Trek: Voyager episode is also notable for being the only one to feature Star Trek actor Jeffrey Combs . "Tsunkatse" aired in February 2000, a year before Dwayne Johnson's breakout hit The Scorpion King hit theaters and launched his hugely successful movie career.

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's 10 Best Movies, Ranked

Dwayne "the rock" johnson's star trek: voyager role explained.

The Rock played the Pendari Champion in Star Trek: Voyager season 6, episode 15, "Tsunkatse" . The Voyager episode centered on a visit to Norcadia Prime, which held a brutal fighting competition known as Tsunkatse. Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) and Lt. Commander Tuvok (Tim Russ) are captured by Penk (Jeffrey Combs) and the former Borg drone is forced to fight in the competition. Seven was pitted against the Pendari Champion, who was strikingly similar to the People's Champion from the WWE. During the fight between Seven and the Pendari Champion, he arches the People's eyebrow, and delivers a devastating Rock Bottom finisher on Seven.

Hilariously, Seven of Nine actress Jeri Ryan told Big Issue that she was completely unaware of The Rock's status while filming with him. When Dwayne Johnson had finished filming his scenes for the WWE/ Star Trek: Voyager crossover, he left her a signed picture of himself in character as The Rock.

“When I got to my trailer he had left a signed picture in character as The Rock – and it said ‘The Rock smells what you’re cooking’. Like, what?! It’s the weirdest thing I’d ever seen somebody write.”

It was up to the WWE fans in the crew to explain to Jeri Ryan just who The Rock was, and what his dedication actually meant.

Will Dwayne Johnson Return To Star Trek?

While it's certainly possible that Star Trek 4 may want to secure Dwayne Johnson to boost its box office, it feels unlikely that he'll return to the franchise. However, there are various elements of The Rock's Star Trek: Voyager episode that could make a comeback in the modern franchise. Star Trek: Prodigy season 1 revealed that Rok-Tahk (Rylee Alazraqui) was part of a similar slave show, albeit one that was more stage-managed and less deadly than Tsunkatse. A return trip to the Delta Quadrant in Prodigy season 2 could, therefore, find the crew of the USS Voyager-A stumbling across more Tsunkatse matches.

The Pendari could also make a comeback in Star Trek: Prodigy season 2, especially as "Tsunkatse" didn't show the away mission to their home planet. While this may make a return appearance by Dwayne Johnson as the Pendari Champion easier to achieve as a voice role, his fee may be too high for the animated series. However, a visit to the Pendari home world in Prodigy season 2 could still update the story of Dwayne Johnson's Star Trek: Voyager character.

All episodes of Star Trek: Voyager are available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek Voyager

The fifth entry in the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek: Voyager, is a sci-fi series that sees the crew of the USS Voyager on a long journey back to their home after finding themselves stranded at the far ends of the Milky Way Galaxy. Led by Captain Kathryn Janeway, the series follows the crew as they embark through truly uncharted areas of space, with new species, friends, foes, and mysteries to solve as they wrestle with the politics of a crew in a situation they've never faced before.

• View history

Born in Hayward, California, USA (although he was billed as being from Miami, Florida due to his having attended college at and played football for the University of Miami), Johnson is a third-generation professional wrestler who made his debut with WWE (then known as the World Wrestling Federation, or WWF) in 1996 as "Rocky Maivia", a combination of his father Rocky Johnson's first name and his grandfather "High Chief" Peter Maivia's last name (both former WWF wrestlers). With a later "attitude adjustment" to his character, he changed his ring name to "The Rock". He subsequently became famous not only for his wrestling but also for such trademark gestures as "The People's Eyebrow" (in which he raises his right eyebrow to the crowd or to his opponent - he can be seen doing this during his Voyager appearance) and his signature line " Do you smell what the Rock is cooking? " (with the word "smell" generally drawn out). He retired in 2004.

Johnson's appearance in Voyager predated the true launch of his acting career. He made his breakthrough film appearance in The Mummy Returns (2001, with Oded Fehr ) portraying Mathayus the Scorpion King. He later reprised the role in The Scorpion King (2002, with Branscombe Richmond and Joseph Ruskin ). Since then, he has starred in such films as The Rundown (with Jeffrey Chase , William Lucking , and Todd Stashwick ). He went on to star in the remake of Walking Tall (opposite Neal McDonough and Barbara J. Tarbuck ), Doom (opposite Karl Urban and also featuring creature work from Doug Jones ), Southland Tales (with John Larroquette , Holmes R. Osborne , and Wallace Shawn ), Gridiron Gang (with Leon Rippy and Brett Cullen ), and The Game Plan (with Gordon Clapp ). He also made a cameo appearance as an inept (and ill-fated) S.W.A.T. officer in Reno 911!: Miami .

With the release of Get Smart (2008), in which he played Agent 23, Johnson dropped the use of the nickname "The Rock" from his acting credits, presumably to further disassociate his acting career from his former wrestling persona and to avoid any copyright claims the WWE may have on the moniker. He then starred in Race to Witch Mountain (2009, featuring Robert Clendenin , Ike Eisenmann , John Kassir , and Tom Woodruff, Jr. ). He also voiced the lead role in Planet 51 (2009).

More recently, he co-starred with Ashley Judd in Tooth Fairy (2010). He also made an appearance in the 2010 comedy Why Did I Get Married Too? , which was written, produced, and directed by Tyler Perry . Perry also starred in the film, while K Callan had a supporting role. Johnson also appeared in The Other Guys (2010), Faster (2010) and Fast Five (2011).

Much hype was made of Johnson's announced voicing of the Autobot Cliffjumper in the Roberto Orci / Alex Kurtzman -produced Transformers: Prime cartoon series, though Cliffjumper was killed in the very first episode - the marketing setting up an intentional twist to surprise fans. Frank Welker , who voices Megatron, also provided the snarls of a zombified Cliffjumper in the second episode. Jeffrey Combs , Clancy Brown , and Tony Todd are among the voice actors for that series.

In 2011, The Rock made a surprise return to WWE, acting as the host of WrestleMania XXVII. In 2012, Johnson returned to the ring to compete in his first match in 8 years at WrestleMania XXVIII, held in his adopted hometown of Miami, which he won against John Cena. He then went on to compete at the 2013 Royal Rumble where he won the WWE Championship from defending champion CM Punk . He then lost the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania XXIX, in New York, to John Cena. He later made an appearance at the opening ceremony of Wrestlemania XXX in 2014.

External links

• WWE Roster Profile
• Dwayne Johnson at Wikipedia
• The Rock at the Internet Movie Database
• 3 USS Antares (32nd century)

• The Inventory

Star Trek: Voyager Is Still the Rock's Finest Hour as an Actor

Dwayne johnson has spent a cinematic career attempting to play variations of himself, but nothing will rival the purity of what he was cooking in "tsunkatse.".

As 2022 ends, it’s hard to say that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has had a more influential year in his acting career , even if that influence was his long-in-the-making Black Adam movie almost singlehandedly tearing apart the DC cinema slate for years. But was it his year as an actor? Absolutely not, because that is, was, and forever will be, 2000.

Because that’s when “Tsunkatse,” the 15th episode of Star Trek: Voyager ’s penultimate sixth season aired, marking the debut of Johnson’s acting career before he would truly explode onto the scene a year later in The Mummy Returns . Born of an absurd idea for broadcaster UPN to cross over two of its biggest shows— Voyager and WWF nee WWE   Smackdown —Johnson plays a major role in the episode as the Pendari Champion, a hulking combatant in the melee bloodsport Tsunkatse that goes toe-to-toe with a captured Seven of Nine.

It’s deeply silly, if only because for Star Trek fans The Rock is perhaps only the third most notable guest star— Deep Space Nine legends J.G. Hertzler and Jeffrey Combs, best known for playing General Martok and Weyoun (among many other roles !) respectively, on Voyager ’s predecessor have guest turns too. Hertzler plays a fellow combatant in the ring of this wildly popular deathmatch, a Hirogen—a race of Predator-esque hunters Voyager had previously encountered—who trains the captive Seven in the arts of Tsunkatse so she can survive long enough to be rescued by the crew, while Combs dazzles as Penk, the slimy overlord of the Tsunkatse tournaments that captured Seven as his new ultimate warrior.

But we’re to expect delight from Star Trek legends like these stars. The Rock, for Star Trek and for the world at large beyond his turn as one of the most iconic wrestlers of his age, was an untested, unproven acting chameleon, at this point just starting out a journey that would lead to box office dominance and, well, Johnson just kind of playing a heightened approximation of himself across a sea of action movies. Sometimes, that’s all you need, and it’s all well and good, but outside of a few specific roles, it’s hard to particularly argue that Johnson has forged an acting career for himself that challenges him dramatically, instead largely challenging him by how many stunts he can do, how many tight button up shirts he can fit his giant arms into the rolled sleeves of, how many times he can blur the line between the character he’s meant to be playing and the persona of the Rock in the audience’s head.

The Pendari Champion is the predecessor to what Johnson’s career would become literally and and spiritually, because they are literally just the Rock with some Star Trek alien forehead makeup applied. Perhaps then, it is the ideal form of Johnson’s highly specific niche. The idea at its purest, when the Rock being the Rock, But Askance, was a novel thing. You could even say that Johnson has spent almost two and a half decade long acting career chasing the same high as “Tsunkatse,” but finds himself unable replicate the joy of the first time he could turn the Rock into a trans-medium performance.

Everything that Dwayne Johnson is—at the height of his wrestling career then, at the height of his acting one now—is in the Pendari Champion. The taciturn nature, breaking ever so slightly for a trademark People’s Eyebrow. The canonization of the Rock Bottom as the second greatest act of martial combat in Star Trek , just behind the double-fisted punch . The fact that he barely has dialogue, the fact that his costume had to have a very cheap harness put in so he actually looked slightly different than he does on any regular episode of Smackdown . It is the embrace of Johnson entirely into a bizarro Star Trek plot about trying to escape a dangerous alien fight club: he is there to be Johnson, and yet not Johnson. Is Dwayne Johnson the Pendari Champion, or is the Rock the Pendari Champion?

We have Star Trek: Voyager to thank for this timeless question, the humble, ridiculous episode of television that launched the only career capable of tanking an entire superhero movie universe in one go. At least Seven of Nine survived a Rock Bottom the DCEU couldn’t.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel , Star Wars , and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV , and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who .

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Jeri Ryan recalls fighting Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson on Star Trek: Voyager

Dwayne Johnson's appearance in Star Trek: Voyager was one of his earliest acting roles. He wasn't yet the biggest star in the world but the Seven of Nine actress could definitely smell what was cooking...

Transport back in time to the year 2000. WWE was still called WWF, and fast becoming its biggest star was Dwayne Johnson, or as he was better known, The Rock. It was inevitable that his charm, charisma and acting chops would be tested in dramatic roles, and so The Rock beamed into the 15th episode of the sixth season of Star Trek: Voyager .

The plot saw ex-Borg crew member Seven of Nine kidnapped and forced to fight in an arena for entertainment. Her first opponent is a Pendari champion who looks good in silver spandex. Here’s what goes down:

In the hundreds of people Dwayne Johnson has battled with in film and TV over the years, Seven of Nine was the very first (leaving aside his exploits in the wrestling ring).

Seven of Nine actress Jeri Ryan, who reprises the role in Star Trek: Picard , remembers making the episode. Did she know who The Rock was at the time?

“No, I had no idea,” Ryan admits. “It was his first or maybe second acting job ever [The Rock’s only previous TV role was playing his father as a cameo in That ’70s Sho w].

“I didn’t know who he was. I didn’t watch wrestling. I wasn’t aware of his character of ‘The Rock’.

“So the first time I met him was a fight rehearsal and he came in and he was just a super sweet, unassuming gentle guy named Dwayne. We’re talking about our kids and he’s just lovely. We had a nice time working together.”

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After filming had finished for the day, it turned out that Johnson had left a present for his co-star, one that she found very confusing.

“When I got to my trailer he had left a signed picture in character as The Rock – and it said ‘The Rock smells what you’re cooking’. Like, what?! It’s the weirdest thing I’d ever seen somebody write.”

Luckily others on set could explain his famous catchphrase.

“The makeup guys in the prosthetic trailer were like, ‘Dude, it’s The Rock, that’s his thing! He smells what you’re cooking!'” she laughs.

“He was very sweet and lovely. And the few times over the years I’ve run into him since, he’s been just as lovely, just as sweet and just as down to earth. I couldn’t be happier for him.”

To read more from Jeri Ryan, and whether she thinks the Borg on Star Trek predicted the way the internet and social media would end up connecting all of our minds together, with less than positive results, click here !

Star Trek: Picard streams on Amazon Prime in the UK

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Published Feb 7, 2013

One Trek Mind #62: The Rock First Rolled On Voyager

While there can never be another Arnold Schwarzenegger, the closest pop culture has come to catching this curious, muscular lightning in a bottle twice has been with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson . Johnson has no less than five major motion pictures debuting in the coming months, ranging from major franchise films like Fast and Furious 6 , tentpole family fare like G.I. Joe: Retaliation and the muscle-head comedy, Pain & Gain . You and I both know, however, that his first real acting gig, other than on the WWE mats, was out in the Delta Quadrant, in the Voyager episode “ Tsunkatse .”First aired 13 years ago this week, “Tsunkatse” is a quite-entertaining Seven of Nine-based episode that served as a nice backdoor to get new people into the show. Casting The Rock as a Pendari fighter was a nice bit of UPN synergy at the time, as the WWF (as it was still called) was on Voyager 's network. The episode got terrific ratings and was a win-win for everyone. Johnson was able to prove he could read lines, ensuring a guest spot on Saturday Night Live , followed by the flashback prologue as the Scorpion King in The Mummy Returns . Yes, beating the crap out of Seven of Nine led directly to a massive career as both a silver screen badass (see energetic actioners like Faster and Walking Tall ) and wholesome family fare ( Tooth Fairy and Race to Witch Mountain .)“Tsunkatse” also works as a great advertising for Voyager , showing off its chief attributes. Namely, a band of space adventurers all working together as a team and, let's be honest, this is television, Jeri Ryan in some outfits that'll blow the intermix chamber of your matter/antimatter reactor. Were a wrestling fan to tune in, he'd come for the blows in the arena, bug out over Seven of Nine, but (quite possibly) stay for the characters.

A newcomer would immediately see what was so appealing about Seven of Nine. Beautiful, certainly. Built like a tank and ready to go mano a mano with both The Rock and a Hirogen. But beyond that there are hints at the “little girl lost” that is Annika Hansen, the assimilated human-turned-drone that is still unsure of her place in Federation society. While it is a journey only she can make, it takes a village (as we were wont to say back in the 90s) and her comrades Tuvok, the Doctor, Tom Paris, Chakotay and most importantly Captain Janeway were there to help her along the way.“Tsunkatse,” oddly, is almost devoid of Janeway; the whole episode is one of shore leave gone wrong, and she's off in Delta Flyer most of the time. As such, we get to see how the rest of the crew steps up to aid colleague in need.The premise of “Tsunkatse” is a bit of a riff on TOS ' “Arena ” and “ Gamesters of Triskelion ,” but with a little extra satire. Jeffrey Combs (in his only Voyager appearance!) is a spaceborne gladiatorial impresario who kidnaps fighters, holding them captive to fight one another for holo-ratings. Tuvok and Seven of Nine are pinched (they are en route to check out a micro nebula, because shore leave just means more science!) and Seven agrees to fight if it means medical attention for the wounded Vulcan. She first enters the ring opposite The Rock in a “blue match,” but looses because she restrains her killer instinct. Nevertheless she's a big ratings hit (duh!) so she's brought back for a “red match” - a fight til the death – and it is here that she must unleash the tamped-down hunter instinct she's been trying to subdue since her acceptance on Voyager.

Looking at the show now, some of the edges have frayed. The opening 360-degree shot of the set is supposed to impress, but it looks plastic, cheap and not exactly jam packed with fans. But it works where it counts. The fighting, whether with The Rock or opposite the Hirogen (played by J.G. Hertzler, better known to us as Martok) is well choreographed and punishing. And the training scenes between Hertzler and Jeri Ryan really sparkle, too.There's no denying that some real martial arts training went into these sequences, and Ryan (in a new, silvery outfit that shows off her biceps) milks it for all it's worth.

Before the rest of the crew discover what's up, you'll also get to see our characters just, you know, hanging out. For folks who love callbacks to earlier Trek lore, there's lots of talk about Parrises Squares and Nausicaans, as well as some chatter about the pre-Maquis friendship between Chakotay and B'Elanna Torres. It has a natural charm and, I think, was a wise way to try and get new fans to jump aboard the ship while there was still a good season-and-a-half left in the series.

Oh, and Dwayne Johnson totally does “The People's Eyebrow” in close-up, before finishing Seven of Nine with “The Rock Bottom.”

Were you watching 13 years ago when The Rock fought Seven of Nine? Are you still a Dwayne Johnson fan today? Let us know your recollection in the comments below.

_______________________________

Jordan Hoffman is a writer, critic and lapsed filmmaker living in New York City. His work can also be seen on Film.com , ScreenCrush and Badass Digest . On his BLOG , Jordan has reviewed all 727 Trek episodes and films, most of the comics and some of the novels.

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The Greatest 'Star Trek: Voyager' Guest Stars (That You Probably Forgot About)

Did you know these actors had boldly gone to the Delta Quadrant?

How has it been 20 years since Star Trek: Voyager ended? The fourth live-action show in the franchise has found a resurgence in fans of late thanks to streaming, and rightly so. Star Trek: Voyager has its flaws, but the show also has a diverse cast, some fascinating storylines, and cool guest stars.

Star Trek as a franchise is known for its surprising cameos and guest performances. Since there are so many shows and characters, you’d be forgiven for forgetting a few notable actors who appeared during Star Trek: Voyager ’s seven seasons. If you’re wondering which names you’re missing, here are nine famous faces who appeared on the show.

RELATED: 'Star Trek: Picard' Season 2 Trailer Teases Some Wild Returns and Twists for the Paramount+ Show

Michael McKean as The Clown

Michael McKean is a veteran actor who has appeared in… just about everything. Before his recent critically acclaimed work on Better Call Saul , McKean was perhaps best known for his role in This is Spinal Tap , and has had a formidable career as a comedian. His role in Star Trek: Voyager Season 2, Episode 23, however, is anything but a laugh riot. In “The Thaw,” Harry Kim ( Garrett Wang ) and B'Elanna Torres ( Roxann Dawson ) are trapped in a computer program with the Clown (McKean) and his cohorts. Harry spends the entire episode being terrorized by this maniac, while the crew of Voyager try and figure out how to save him. The episode is an obvious attempt to subvert the expectation of both McKean’s presence and the circus iconography. Let’s just say, if you have Coulrophobia, this episode will likely exacerbate it.

Ed Begley Jr. as Henry Starling

Multiple Emmy nominee and Golden Globe nominee Ed Begley Jr. has had a prolific career playing so many different kinds of characters that it’s hard to keep track of them all. Begley Jr. guest starred in the Season 3 two-parter “Future’s End,” and boy, was he evil. He played Henry Starling, a futurist from 20th century Earth who becomes embroiled with Voyager, as the crew is trapped in the past, but can’t return to their own time without stopping Starling and correcting the timeline. Star Trek loves a time travel storyline, and an insidious villain like Starling ups the stakes considerably. He’s smarmy and considers himself the smartest person in the room, but he’s also extremely nasty. The scene where he captures the Doctor ( Robert Picardo ) is brief but still distressing to watch all these years later.

Sarah Silverman as Rain Robinson

She's a household name nowadays for her comedy, but one of Sarah Silverman ’s earliest on-screen acting roles was as Rain Robinson, also in the Season 3 two-parter “Future’s End.” Rain is a scientist in the 20th century who is the first person to spot an anomaly in the skies (Voyager’s warp signature). This information puts her life in danger, but luckily Tom Paris ( Robert Duncan McNeill ) and Tuvok ( Tim Russ ) come to her aid. Despite Tom and Tuvok’s attempts to disguise their true identities as time travellers, Rain deduces that there’s something fishy about them, and helps them on their mission against Starling. Silverman played the character with her quintessential wry humor and sarcasm, and her easy chemistry with Duncan McNeill made their characters’ budding and brief romance an adorable subplot in the episodes.

John Rhys-Davies as Leonardo da Vinci

John Rhys-Davies has such a towering presence that I could have sworn he appeared in several Star Trek: Voyager episodes. Turns out, he only starred in two of them, the Season 3 finale “Scorpion” and Season 4’s “Concerning Flight.” Rhys-Davies played the holographic version of Leonardo da Vinci, Captain Janeway’s ( Kate Mulgrew ) mentor, on the holodeck, pulling out his best Italian accent to take the captain under his wing. Leonardo acted as the captain’s confidante, as well as a sounding board for her ideas; while the character’s appearances were more ponderous than plot specific, “Concerning Flight” did give Rhys-Davies more work to do when the holographic character was accidentally transported to an alien planet. Hilarity definitely ensued.

Lori Petty as Noss

Lori Petty has such a wide-ranging filmography, but somehow her Star Trek: Voyager guest appearance is still a surprise. When Tom Paris and Tuvok are stranded on a mission in the Season 5 episode “Gravity,” they cross paths with Noss (Petty), an alien scavenger, and the trio form an unlikely bond as they remain trapped for months in the desolate landscape. Noss even learns to speak English to communicate better with Tom and Tuvok, after their universal translators are destroyed upon landing. It’s not long before Noss becomes attracted to Tuvok – his enigmatic, Vulcan aloofness was always appealing – but despite Noss’ overtures, Tuvok remains dedicated to his wife and family. Petty’s performance is more in line with her Point Break character Tyler; she’s sweet and naïve but can hold her own in difficult circumstances.

Jason Alexander as Kurros

For many, Jason Alexander has become synonymous with Seinfeld , but his role in the Season 5 episode “Think Tank” was far removed from his signature character. Alexander plays Kurros, the leader of a group of highly intelligent aliens. The Think Tank, as they call themselves, claim to have a way to prevent dangerous bounty hunters from pursuing Voyager. But the group soon show their true colors when they insist on recruiting crewmember Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan ). Alexander plays against type here — the episode would have been completely derailed if Alexander had been over the top, but instead he plays Kurros as calm and sinister, which makes the character even scarier.

Daniel Dae Kim as Gotana-Retz

In the Season 6 episode “Blink of an Eye,” Voyager gets accidentally trapped in a planet’s orbit, thereby inadvertently altering the planet’s history forever. The planet experiences a time differential which causes years to pass on the surface without much time going by for Voyager’s crew. As the generations are influenced by Voyager’s presence, two astronauts land on the titular ship. Daniel Dae Kim ’s Gotana-Retz survives the landing and although his character is mostly offscreen, he plays a significant part in helping Voyager break free. Dae Kim only appears in the fourth act, but his character arc is remarkably memorable. The last shot of his character remains a bittersweet moment in the show’s history. Star Trek has been at the forefront of diverse casting choices, and Dae Kim is part of a still short, but brilliant, list of Asian guest stars in the franchise.

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as The Champion

Dwayne Johnson is one of the biggest movie stars today, but his road to stardom had an unlikely pitstop aboard the starship Voyager. Admittedly, the role of the Champion in the Season 6 episode “Tsunkatse” wasn’t very different from playing The Rock on Monday Night Raw. In the episode, the crew of Voyager are invited to watch a gladiatorial tournament, but their excitement dissipates when one of the fighters is revealed to be their own Seven of Nine. She and Tuvok had been captured by aliens, and Seven is subsequently forced to fight in the match in order to save Tuvok. Johnson is very much in his element in this role, playing to his strengths as a famed wrestler. It's more of an extended cameo than a role, but you will still be on the edge of your seat waiting to see if The Rock can beat a Borg.

Mark Sheppard as Leucon

As prolific character actors go, Mark Sheppard is high on the list. He’s appeared in everything in every genre, so why would a Star Trek show be any different? Late in Season 6, Sheppard guest-starred as Leucon Icheb, the long-lost father of Voyager’s latest resident, Icheb ( Manu Intiraymi ). Icheb was a child who had been assimilated by the Borg before being rescued by the crew of Voyager. In “Child’s Play,” Voyager locates his parents on the Borg-ravaged Brunali homeworld. Sheppard is infamous for playing morally ambiguous characters, and this episode plays to his strengths as it keeps you guessing about Leucon’s actions and motivations. In the end, this is a heartbreaking installment, and much of that comes down to Sheppard’s scene-stealing turn as a parent with a difficult decision to make.

Star Trek: Voyager is streaming on Paramount+, Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu.

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What do Dwayne Johnson , Whoopi Goldberg and Stephen Hawking have in common? They’ve all taken part in the phenomenon that is Star Trek . While their names were never featured in any of the iconic opening credits sequences, even passing appearances are enough to be considered an important figure in Gene Roddenberry’s universe. 

Since the franchise’s debut in 1966, celebrities from every quadrant of pop culture have continued to stop by the Star Trek TV shows. These notable names include professional wrestlers, theoretical physicists, iconic movie stars and future EGOT achievers. Special guest stars are a Star Trek trademark right up there with techno-babble dialogue and non-linear hallways. Most recently, the tradition has continued with legendary director David Cronenberg and comedian Tig Notaro taking up recurring roles on Star Trek: Discovery . 

Sept. 8 was designated Star Trek Day on account of the original series' premiere date -- 55 years ago this week! To celebrate this milestone, ET is looking back at some of the guest stars who brushed shoulders with our favorite Starfleet crews.

JOAN COLLINS - STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES , “THE CITY ON THE EDGE OF FOREVER”

Before she portrayed one of the most popular TV characters of all time on Dynasty , one of Star Trek ’s earliest guest stars was English actress Joan Collins in a memorable episode from the first season of the original series. Transported back to 1930s New York City, Captain Kirk ( William Shatner ) is devastated upon discovering he must let kind-hearted woman Edith Keeler (Collins) die in a traffic accident in order to maintain the universe’s timeline. Her role as Keeler was miles apart from do-no-gooder Alexis Colby, which made the character’s fate that much more tragic. 

ET spoke with the TV icon at the “Star Trek: 30 Years and Beyond” event in 1996. In response to what was the most fun part of the experience for her, Collins replied, “I think watching my stand-in get hit by the truck.”

“It was supposed to be me, but she did it very well,” she recalled.

WHOOPI GOLDBERG - STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION , VARIOUS

Just about everywhere Whoopi Goldberg appears, she’s in a category all of her own -- and the Star Trek universe was no exception. This EGOT recipient was no mere guest star during her stint aboard the Enterprise-D, nor was her character, Guinan, merely a bartender at Ten Forward in nearly 30 episodes of The Next Generation . A guru. An ombudsman. A listener. And most importantly: a friend. Following the original series, Goldberg appreciated how the spinoff was carrying on the franchise’s positive vision of the future.

“This is one of the few shows that take place in the future that I saw as a kid where there were any Black people. Lieutenant Uhura was there. That gave me a lot of hope,” Goldberg told ET on the set in between filming scenes for “The Measure of a Man,” one of the franchise's most cherished episodes. 

She added, “It's very important that the future be hopeful and that's what this is.”

Guinan’s alien origins and special abilities were never fully expanded upon, but fans may get a clearer picture if she once again shares the screen with Patrick Stewart  on Star Trek: Picard . Her casting hasn’t been made official yet, but Stewart has formally extended an invitation for his old pal to return to the 24th century.

STEPHEN HAWKING - STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION , “DESCENT”

In perhaps the only instance of someone portraying themselves onscreen in the Star Trek canon, Professor Stephen Hawking appeared in The Next Generation via the holodeck. The episode’s cold open sees Data (Brent Spiner) in the middle of a game night with holographic projections of history’s greatest minds. Speaking with ET on the set in 1993, the late theoretical physicist explained that he had made his desire to be on the series known to producers. 

“I said I would enjoy being in Star Trek ,” Hawking said. “Obviously, I live in a different time frame to the Enterprise, but they got around that difficulty with this idea of a poker game with [Isaac] Newton and [Albert] Einstein. I think it works rather well.”

If given a real-life opportunity to attend this poker game, Hawking revealed he could do without one of these famous brains at the table. 

“I would very much liked to have met and talked with Einstein. I'm not so sure about Newton. By all accounts, he was a bad tempered and unpleasant man,” he shared. “As for Data, I'm sure he would be interesting.”

Data himself, Brent Spiner, could hardly believe he was acting alongside the world-renowned academic. “I don't even know how to describe what it's like working with him. I feel incredibly fortunate to be here, and [to be] in a scene with him of all things,” Spiner told ET on the set.

“I'm not sure I would attempt to describe him other than to say I'm not particularly used to working with this intelligent of human. Not to put my other castmates down. They're all very bright,” Spiner said with a laugh. “But this is something quite exceptional.”

VANESSA WILLIAMS - STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE , “LET HE WHO IS WITHOUT SIN…”

Come to Risa for the tropical paradise, but stay for elite concierge Arandis, played by Vanessa Williams . First appearing in “Captain’s Holiday” on The Next Generation , Risa was presented as the place where everyone goes to unwind and escape their day-to-day, quadrant-to-quadrant worries. Williams described the spa-like planet as “a Club Med in space.”

“When I actually saw the script it was quite provocative and alluring,” Williams told ET on the Deep Space Nine set in 1996. Once they started filming, the “Dreamin’” singer discovered just how talented Star Trek actors must be to recite the franchise’s trademark science jargon. “It looked relatively easy, but then once you actually have to say the dialogue and the techno-babble -- and [make it] sound responsible and clear -- that's when you have to take your hats off to these cast members.”

She added, “Luckily, my theater training is kicking in.”

JASON ALEXANDER - STAR TREK: VOYAGER , “THINK TANK”

“[This cast is] a wonderful group. They really have a lot of fun. This is a very goofy set,” Jason Alexander told ET behind the scenes while sitting in the makeup chair in 1999.  

Following the series finale of Seinfeld , Alexander transformed into one of the many aliens the Star Trek: Voyager crew encountered while traversing the Delta Quadrant. “I'm a die-hard Star Trek fan. Have been since I was 12,” Alexander said.

The cast provided him with some words of wisdom in regard to the famously lengthy prosthetic makeup sessions for the franchise’s extraterrestrials. 

“Kate Mulgrew advised me to run for the hills as fast as I can,” Alexander joked. “And poor Ethan Phillips, who goes through this for three hours every day, he said, ‘Well, a good book will do.'" 

DWAYNE JOHNSON - STAR TREK: VOYAGER , “TSUNKATSE”

When Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson appeared on Star Trek: Voyager , the writers made him feel right at home. The WWE (previously known as WWF) superstar was dropped into a Delta Quadrant fight arena to face off against Seven of Nine ( Jeri Ryan ).

“[I’ve] beaten Stone Cold Steve Austin on numerous occasions. The Undertaker. Mankind. The list goes on and on and on,” Johnson explained to ET on the Voyager set in 1999. “But [Ryan,] she's probably one of the toughest, if not, dare I say, the toughest The Rock has ever faced.”

Johnson even got to plant Ryan with his signature move, “The Rock Bottom,” during their fight sequence. While he wasn’t familiar with Star Trek before stepping onto the set, dedicated fan bases were certainly among his areas of expertise at the time. 

“The following is tremendous,” Johnson said. “ Star Trek fans are very, very passionate. Very similar to the World Wrestling Federation fans, so I can appreciate that passion.”

RAINN WILSON - STAR TREK: SHORT TREKS & STAR TREK: DISCOVERY , VARIOUS

After originating his own unforgettable TV character, Rainn Wilson followed up The Office by stepping into the well-established role of Harry Mudd for Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Short Treks . The merchant con-man plagued the Enterprise crew more than once across the original series and the animated series. 

“A little bit charming. A little bit over the top. Kind of crazy,” Wilson described Mudd to ET at the premiere of Star Trek: Discovery in 2017. “He's totally unpredictable. You never know what Harry Mudd is gonna get into next.”

Like Alexander, Wilson had some Trekkie credentials before he was cast as one of Star Trek ’s most notorious antagonists. 

“I had an Enterprise model that [I hand-painted.] I spent hours gazing at it longingly,” Wilson said. “So, to get to be part of the show is really super awesome.”

Every Star Trek series is available to stream on Paramount+. 

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Chosen One of the Day: Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson as the Pendari champion on Star Trek: Voyager

Credit: Paramount

All beloved genre series contain at least one episode almost unilaterally reviled by fans. In Star Trek: Voyager , it's the Season 6 episode "Tsunkatse," a sweeps-week episode that featured a crossover with WWF Smackdown . "But...why?" you ask. Because it was 2000, is the only answer I can give you. It was a very weird time. After Y2K everyone was all, "WE HAVE CHEATED DEATH AND ARE NOW INVINCIBLE" and spent that sense of invincibility doing stuff like crossing over Voyager with Smackdown . 

But the episode did give us one precious thing: a very, very early performance from Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, only his third onscreen acting role and a year before his first film, The Mummy Returns . In the episode, Seven of Nine gets blackmailed into fighting in an arena match. Her opponent? A Pendari man who does the eyebrow thing and throws Seven down with the "Rock Bottom." So essentially, he's The Rock but with a bigger forehead. Also, he's dressed like this:

I mean those suspenders don't seem to be especially useful for anything beyond preventing one's opponent from engaging in "purple nurples" but the pants are definitely from Buffy Summers' wardrobe (maybe that's what inspired UPN to pick up Buffy the Vampire Slayer — leather pant synergy) and his cuff bracelets are very on-trend with the then-dawning emo-pop-punk aesthetic.

Dwayne Johnson: Actor. Trendsetter. Nipple coverer.

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• Cast & crew
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• Episode aired Feb 9, 2000

Seven of Nine and Tuvok are enslaved while on an away mission, with Seven forced to fight in gladiatorial competitions to the death. Seven of Nine and Tuvok are enslaved while on an away mission, with Seven forced to fight in gladiatorial competitions to the death. Seven of Nine and Tuvok are enslaved while on an away mission, with Seven forced to fight in gladiatorial competitions to the death.

• Michael Vejar
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• Rick Berman
• Michael Piller
• Kate Mulgrew
• Robert Beltran
• Roxann Dawson
• 13 User reviews
• 4 Critic reviews

• Capt. Kathryn Janeway

• Cmdr. Chakotay

• Lt. B'Elanna Torres

• Ensign Tom Paris

• Seven of Nine

• Ensign Harry Kim

• Hirogen Hunter

• The Champion
• (as The Rock)
• Voyager Ops Officer
• (uncredited)

• Crewman Lydia Anderson

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Did you know

• Trivia The episode achieved a Nielsen rating of 4.1 million homes, and a 6% share, making it the highest rated episode of the season.
• Goofs Seven is away from Voyager for much longer than her regeneration cycle. Despite this she never shows any of the ill effects associated with failing to regenerate.

B'Elanna Torres : The Borg wouldn't know fun if they assimilated an amusement park.

• Connections Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Celebrities You Didn't Know Were on Star Trek TV Shows (2017)
• Soundtracks Star Trek: Voyager - Main Title (uncredited) Written by Jerry Goldsmith Performed by Jay Chattaway

User reviews 13

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• Mar 2, 2015
• February 9, 2000 (United States)
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• Runtime 44 minutes
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The Rock Was In Star Trek? Dwayne Johnson's Voyager Role Explained

WWE superstar Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson had a guest role in Star Trek: Voyager in the early years of his acting career. Dwayne Johnson is now one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, appearing in the Fast and Furious franchise, the DC movie Black Adam, and his biographical sitcom Young Rock. In the years before the Rock's stratospheric rise through Hollywood's ranks, the WWE legend joined the cast of Star Trek: Voyager in the wrestling-themed epis…

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Watch The Rock Kick Seven of Nine's Borg Butt on Star Trek: Voyager

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• Watch The Rock Bring the Heat in an Old <i>Star Trek: Voyager</i> Episode

Watch The Rock Bring the Heat in an Old Star Trek: Voyager Episode

W ay before he was Hollywood’s highest-paid actor — before he was even the Scorpion King — Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson was just a champion WWE wrestler… and a champion alien fighter on Star Trek: Voyager.

Today marks the iconic Star Trek ‘s 50th anniversary , so it’s only fitting to take a look back through the archive and get a glimpse of The Rock’s breakout role as the unnamed “champion” in the 1999 episode titled “Tsunkatse.” It was one of his first acting appearances ever, predating his climb to Hollywood stardom.

“To everybody’s surprise, he was wonderful,” says executive producer Rick Berman in the footage. “We had never really seen him do any acting other than playing The Rock.”

In the scene, The Rock wears a forehead prosthetic and a gold lamé harness while facing off against prisoner Seven of Nine in an arena fight. Accustomed to crowds of tens of thousands at his WWE performances, The Rock didn’t seem phased by the change in venue.

“For the most part, it basically comes down to entertainment. Same thing,” he says of the acting gig. Watch the clip for behind-the-scenes footage of fight choreography and The Rock’s charming-as-ever early commentary.

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The Untold Truth Of Star Trek: Voyager

Part of the problem with exploring the final frontier? There's just  so much  of it. That's the challenge the crew of the USS  Voyager  had to contend with in  Star Trek: Voyager 's two-part premiere "Caretaker," when the ship was tossed so deep into the distant Delta Quadrant that the crew believed it would take them the better part of a century to get home. Cut off from Starfleet and the Federation, Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) — the first female captain to lead a  Trek  series — struggled to get her crew home while at the same time upholding the Federation's values and even using the opportunity to expand their knowledge of unexplored space.

Voyager  followed the adventures of its crew for seven seasons until they finally made their way home in the two-part finale "Endgame." And through all the space battles, the romance, and the debates between  Voyager 's principled officers, there was a lot more going on behind the scenes than you know. Resentments ran high between certain cast members, some characters were created to pay tribute to fallen heroes, and other characters were revealed to have surprising connections to other series.  Voyager also   helped to launch the blockbuster career of one actor while proving a singular triumph for a young network. 

To learn about all these things and more, keep reading for the untold truth of  Star Trek: Voyager .

Star Trek: Voyager was the jewel of UPN's crown

Paramount used  Star Trek: Voyager  to help launch its new mini-network UPN (United Paramount Network) in January 1995. UPN only had a small number of shows when it launched and only aired programming Monday and Tuesday nights between 8 PM and 10 PM. That same month,  Voyager  was joined by the sitcom  Pig Sty , comedian Richard Jeni's  Platypus Man , the Richard Grieco-led drama  Marker , and the sci-fi/Western series  Legend . 

Voyager 's "Caretaker" was UPN's first telecast on January 16, 1995, and it had 21.3 million viewers tuning in. Of the network's five inaugural series,  Voyager was the only program to survive its first year . Yes, believe it or not, even a show with a name like Platypus Man  got the ax. Voyager  went on to outlive other early UPN series like  The Sentinel , the sci-fi drama  Nowhere Man , and the hit teen sitcom  Moesha . Although, to be fair, its final episode aired only a week after  Moesha 's . However, Voyager  was the only of UPN's early series to last as long as seven seasons. 

Kate Mulgrew almost wasn't Janeway

When it came time to cast Janeway,  Voyager 's casting team looked at a lot of actresses. Among the candidates was Linda Hamilton of the  Terminator  films , Susan Gibney who'd played the recurring role of Dr. Leah Brahms on  Star Trek: The Next Generation  ( TNG ), and the  Buck Rogers  alum Erin Gray. Of course, as we all know, eventually Kate Mulgrew auditioned for the role, and the part went to ... Canadian actress Geneviève Bujold .

That's right. In her 2015 memoir  Born with Teeth , Mulgrew wrote that her first audition for the role went so poorly that she actually apologized for her subpar performance. She explained that she was distracted by having just fallen in love with a man — Tim Hagan, who she married in 1999 — and that she was meeting him later. Instead of Mulgrew, Bujold was cast in the role of the character who was then named Elizabeth Janeway. 

However, Bujold didn't last much of the voyage. She quit after a day and a half of filming.  Voyager  co-creator Rick Berman said of Bujold's departure, "This was a woman who, in no way, was going to be able to deal with the rigors of episodic television." Considering  Star Trek  documentaries like What We Left Behind  and  The Captains  include cast and crew talking about 16-hour work days, it's tough to blame Bujold too much for leaving the crew to deal with the Delta Quadrant without her.

Star Trek: Voyager helped launch Dwayne Johnson's acting career

Star Trek  has helped launch plenty of acting careers, and  Voyager  gave an early role to someone known today for leading blockbuster action flicks. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson  — still mostly known as a WWF wrestler in those days — made one of his first non-wrestling television appearances in the  Voyager  season six episode "Tsunkatse."

While the rest of the crew is enjoying shore leave, Tuvok (Tim Russ) and Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) take a shuttle to examine a nearby nebula. While out on their own, they're attacked and captured by aliens running a popular fighting arena. Tuvok is badly injured, and the arena's owner uses the injured Vulcan as leverage to make Seven fight for him. Her first opponent is the Rock, who plays an unnamed Pendari champion. In a fun fourth wall-breaking moment, the Rock gives his signature eyebrow raise to the crowd before defeating Seven in the ring. 

Speaking to  StarTrek.com  in 2018, Rick Berman expressed a lot of pride for his part in building the foundation for Johnson's acting career, saying, "It makes me feel terrific ... that there are some actors that we gave a first job to that have become successful. People like Dwayne Johnson, whose first acting job I think was on Voyager , and he's a world-renowned movie star now." Technically, Berman wasn't right about that. Johnson showed up on  That '70s Show  a year before "Tsunkatse," but we're guessing the appearance on  Voyager  didn't hurt his resume.

On Netflix, Voyager is the Trek champion

Most  Trek  fans have their own pick for their favorite  Trek  series. So if a  Trek  fan ever tells you "everyone hates this series" or "everyone loves this one," never believe them. For every fan who loves  Deep Space Nine , there are plenty who can't stand it. For every Trekkie   who wishes  Discovery  had never been made, there are old school fans and new who love it. So we're not trying to tell you  Voyager  is the best  Star Trek  show, but some numbers have revealed something interesting about the series' 21st-century popularity. 

In 2017, Netflix reviewed data (via Business Insider ) from over 100 million subscribers in close to 200 countries to figure which episodes of  Star Trek were watched more than any others. At the time, Netflix carried all the franchise's series produced between  Star Trek: The Original Series  and the 2005 finale of  Star Trek: Enterprise . And during its research, Netflix didn't count first or second episodes of series, because those generally have more views than others. 

Voyager  and  The Next Generation  were the only two series with episodes in the top ten most watched, and of those ten episodes,  six  belong to  Voyager . Those six episodes help to prove the enduring popularity of both the Borg and  Voyager 's season four newcomer, Seven of Nine . Most of the six episodes are very Seven and Borg-centric. They include the series finale "Endgame," the two-parters "Scorpion" and "Dark Frontiers," and "The Gift," which is the episode immediately following Seven's first appearance.

Behind the camera, Janeway and Seven didn't assimilate well

Behind the scenes of Voyager , Mulgrew resented the addition of Seven of Nine, whose sex appeal helped to boost Voyager 's ratings. And on 2013's Girl on Gu y podcast (via TrekCore ), Ryan talked about feeling physically ill at the thought of doing scenes with a particular Voyager  co-star. She didn't name Mulgrew, but she mentioned details making it clear it could be no one other than the lead actress.

While researching his book  The Fifty-Year Mission , co-writer Ed Gross looked into the feud and got more answers than he expected. One unnamed cast member claimed Mulgrew tried to enforce a rule that Ryan wouldn't be allowed to use the bathroom during work because it took "too much time" to get her in and out of costume. Harry Kim actor Garrett Wang said Mulgrew's anger wasn't initially directed toward Ryan, but once it was, "it became horrible." Chakotay actor Robert Beltran told Gross, "If ... it was me being insulted and Kate was a man, I probably would have taken a swipe at the guy." 

To her credit, the  Voyager  captain owned up her behavior toward Ryan. Mulgrew told Gross, "This is on me , not Jeri [Ryan]. . ..  I'd hoped against hope that Janeway would be sufficient. That we didn't have to bring a beautiful, sexy girl in." She went on to say she regretted her treatment of Ryan. "I probably should have comported myself better. I should have been more philosophical about it, but in the moment, it was difficult."

Ensign Wildman paid tribute to a young hero

One of the more prominent recurring characters on  Voyager  was Ensign Samantha Wildman (Nancy Hower).  Voyager 's unexpected journey to the Delta Quadrant separated the pregnant Ensign Wildman from her husband by about 70,000 light years. But on the bright side, her half-alien daughter, Naomi, eventually turned into another favorite recurring figure on  Voyager , becoming close friends with Neelix (Ethan Phillips) and even the usually socially resistant Seven of Nine. 

Interestingly, Samantha Wildman's name has a special meaning. Wildman first appeared in the second season episode "Elogium," co-written by Jimmy Diggs. The same year he sold the script, Diggs' wife almost died. A kidney transplant saved her life, and Diggs learned the donor was a seven-year-old girl. He wrote a letter to  Voyager 's producers, asking them to name the episode's new character "Samantha" after the little girl whose kidney saved his wife. "The ancient Greeks believed the gods would reward heroic mortals by placing them in the stars," Diggs wrote. "By honoring the memory of this child, the producers of Star Trek  will accomplish the same thing."   Because the young girl adored animals, Ensign Wildman was not only given her name but made part of the ship's xenobiology department. 

The Doctor channeled Bones without knowing it

One of the more popular characters on  Voyager  was also its best source of comic relief — the Doctor played by Robert Picardo. The Doctor is an Emergency Medical Hologram meant only for short-term use, but his job gets much more involved when  Voyager 's human doctor dies after the ship is thrown into the Delta Quadrant. Often cranky and arrogant, the Doctor also told some powerful stories in his attempts to be recognized as deserving equal rights with the rest of the crew. 

Speaking to  StarTrek.com  in January 2020, Picardo said he used a unique tactic in his audition for the role of the Doctor without even knowing he was using it. After reading the last scripted line, "I believe someone has failed to terminate my program," Picardo improvised with, "I'm a doctor, not a nightlight." Picardo said the line "got a big laugh, and [he] was hired the next day."

Of course, what makes the ad-libbed line funny is the play on Dr. McCoy's (DeForest Kelley) penchant for saying, "I'm a doctor, not a _____." But apparently, Picardo had no idea about Kelley's famous catchphrase. He said, "I faked my way through the audition and ad-libbed a DeForest Kelley joke without knowing it was a DeForest Kelley joke." Apparently, the gods of cranky  Star Trek  physicians were with him that day.

Tuvok came close to being a TNG regular

Tim Russ actually had a few  Trek one-off   gigs before landing the role of Security Chief Tuvok on  Voyager . On  DS9 , he was a Klingon mercenary who helps take the station hostage in "Invasive Procedures," and in  TNG 's "Starship Mine," he's one of a group of criminals trying to steal trilithium resin from the  Enterprise . In 1994's  Star Trek: Generations , Russ plays a lieutenant on the bridge of the  Enterprise- B in the film's opening. 

But before he did any of that work, he auditioned for the part of Geordi La Forge on  TNG . Speaking to  TrekMovie.com  in 2018, Russ said he was ultimately relieved to have lost the Geordi role to Levar Burton. Why? The dialogue. "The role [of Tuvok] was somewhat more organic and much easier in terms of dialogue," Russ said . "I am glad I didn't get stuck with all that engineering tech talk. ... That kind of dialogue doesn't do anything for me."

Russ also had the distinction of getting to appear in one of the few episodes in which  Voyager  characters could cross over into other series. Tuvok shows up in the  DS9  season three episode "Through the Looking Glass," though it's not quite the same Tuvok. The episode takes place in the mirror universe first made famous by  Star Trek: The Original Series ' "Mirror, Mirror." That universe's version of Tuvok appears as a member of the Terran resistance fighting against the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance.

Vorik may have a brother on the Enterprise

One of  Voyager 's recurring characters was Ensign Vorik, played by Alexander Enberg. Vorik is a Vulcan engineer who often worked closely with B'Elanna Torres (Roxann Dawson). And Vorik developed a romantic interest in B'Elanna with violent consequences. In perhaps Vorik's most memorable appearance — in season three's "Blood Fever" — Vorik experiences the Vulcan mating period of pon farr and chooses B'Elanna as his mate. He forms a telepathic connection with B'Elanna, causing her violent Klingon mating instincts to emerge. The situation ends in a duel between B'Elanna and Vorik, which both thankfully survive. 

Between 1997 and 2001, Enberg appears in nine episodes of  Voyager as Vorik, but it wasn't the first time he appeared in a  Trek  show or even the first time he appeared as a Vulcan. Enberg was cast as a Vulcan named Taurik in "The Lower Decks," an episode in the middle of  TNG 's final season focusing on the rank and file aboard the  Enterprise . 

With Enberg not only playing Vulcans on both shows but with both Vulcans sharing rhyming names, some fans have wondered if there could be a connection between Vorik and Taurik. According to  Voyager  co-creator Jeri Taylor — who also happens to be Enberg's mother — there could be. In the 2012 book  Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , Taylor implies Taurik and Vorik may very well be twin brothers. And since she's their mother, we guess she would know.

Chakotay spoke his mind both on and off Star Trek: Voyager

As  Voyager 's first officer, Commander Chakotay is often forced to tell Captain Janeway things she doesn't want to hear. Fittingly, actor Robert Beltran is known for speaking his mind on what he likes and doesn't like about  Voyager , regardless of the consequences, even when the show was still on the air. By 2000, Beltran had aired enough dirty laundry in public that producer Kenneth Biller told  SFX Magazine  (via  TrekToday ) that he thought the actor "should stop whining and do his job."

Speaking to  StarTrek.com  in 2012, Beltran talked about not feeling fulfilled on  Voyager . "You're doing the same thing every week, with a new variation," the actor said , later adding, "I didn't like some of the things that were going towards the last three years, and I risked being fired because I wasn't happy creatively."   According to Beltran , Chakotay didn't have a lot of interesting relationships after the departure of Seska (Martha Hackett), his former lover who's eventually revealed to be a Cardassian. "After Seska left, it was only that relationship with the captain that had depth to it. ... Chakotay and the other characters, there wasn't much of a relationship there."

And Beltran has one problem with  Trek  a lot of fans may consider downright sacrilegious. Beltran hates the Prime Directive. In 2016, he told CNET , "The idea of leaving any species to die in its own filth when you have the ability to help them ... it's a bunch of fascist crap."

All these years after Star Trek: Voyager, Janeway is still making an impact

Decades after Captain Janeway was sent to the Delta Quadrant with the rest of  Voyager 's crew, it can be easy to forget how big of a deal it was in 1995 for a woman to be leading a  Star Trek  series as its ship's captain. While there's sadly still resistance to the idea, we're getting used to female-led action films and series , including  Star Wars  epics and superhero blockbusters. But in the mid-90's, for a woman to not only be the lead in a science fiction adventure series but playing a character regularly giving men orders, it was a big deal. Mulgrew left an important mark on our culture, and it's felt far beyond the world of television.

Speaking to  TrekMovie  in 2019 about the 25th anniversary of  Voyager , Mulgrew was asked about highly visible female politicians like Stacey Abrams and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who'd named Captain Janeway as an early influence. Mulgrew said she made a surprise appearance at one of Ocasio-Cortez's rallies, and that when they announced Mulgrew, "[Ocasio-Cortez] gasped, she turned. And when I approached her, I think she kind of fell." Mulgrew said Ocasio-Cortez related stories of watching  Voyager  as a child and that "when they lost their screen — they had bad reception in their house, and often the television was just black and white — she'd listen to it, like a radio show. "

Watch The Rock Kick Seven of Nine's Borg Butt on Star Trek: Voyager

If you smell what the rock... is... trekkin..

If you'd like, check out last week's Time Capsule, featuring a video documenting George Lucas' first day writing Star Wars: The Phantom Menace .

Let's slingshot around the nearest star and travel back in time to investigate a mysterious '90s anomaly known as UPN -- a partially Viacom-owned TV network that lasted roughly a decade before Viacom split in two (like Captain Kirk in "The Enemy Within") and then merged its UPN half with competitor The WB to create -- ta da! -- The CW in 2006.

UPN happened to be both the home of Star Trek: Voyager, which was the show used to launch the network in 1995, and WWE's second primetime series, SmackDown -- aka "The Rock's Show" -- which debuted in 1999. By 2000, the two worlds mightily merged as Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson guest-starred on a Voyager episode called "Tsunkatse," where the future biggest, and most beloved, box office star in the world would play a Pendari fighter who goes one on o.n.e. with Jeri Ryan's former Borg drone Seven of Nine.

Yup, "It doesn't matter what your name is!" was both a credo for The Rock and The Borg.

For those asking, the Pendari came from the planet Pendari, in the system of Pendari. They're the Star Trek equivalent of the band Living in a Box having a single called "Living in a Box" off their album Living in a Box.

Anyhow, the following video is a fun behind-the-scenes look at The Rock's action-packed cameo, featuring some lovely words from EP Rick Berman, visual effects supervisor Dan Curry, and -- of course -- "The Great One" himself.

Berman notes that they hadn't seen Rock do any acting "other than playing The Rock" so it's painfully obvious they never saw Johnson portray his own father, Rocky Johnson, on That '70s Show or some jabroni named Brody (ja-brody?) on The Net, which was a TV series adapted from the Sandra Bullock movie about the wild and dangerous world of cyberspace. You know, the information superhighway? Earth backslash angelfire dot geocities?

Naturally, The Rock's fight with Seven of Nine ends with a Rock Bottom, which was his wrestling finisher at the time. Sure, he's the highest-paid actor in the world right now, and one of the most respected celebrities of all time, but the real way you know Dwayne Johnson's made it big is that he, a former wrestler, no longer has to do his signature mat moves in action movies. That's how you really know a wrestler's broken through.

Also... get a load of how much Rocky puts over Jeri Ryan! That's some serious shine right there. "She's probably one of the toughest, if not, dare I say, the toughest The Rock has ever faced."

She truly is the People's Borg.

Ryan actually returned to the Trek universe recently, reprising her  Seven of Nine role on Star Trek: Picard . You can read our review of her episode, "Stardust Rag City," here , where we give it the highest score of the series to date.

Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at  @TheMattFowler  and Facebook at  Facebook.com/MattBFowler .

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8 Alpha Quadrant Things Star Trek: Voyager Found In Delta Quadrant

• Star Trek: Voyager finds familiar things from the Alpha Quadrant in the Delta Quadrant, sparking important questions and connections.
• Encounter with Ferengi negotiators leads Voyager crew to stop their interference in a pre-warp civilization for profits.
• Janeway and crew discover humans abducted by aliens in the 1930s living in the Delta Quadrant, including Amelia Earhart.

For a show with the conceit of being so far from home, Star Trek: Voyager found a surprising number of things in the Delta Quadrant that originated in the Alpha Quadrant, including several from Earth itself. The USS Voyager, commanded by Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), and Commander Chakotay's (Robert Beltran) Maquis raider Val Jean were both brought to the Delta Quadrant in 2371 by the Caretaker (Basil Langton). After Janeway destroyed the Caretaker's array to save the Ocampa , Voyager and the Val Jean were left without a ticket back to the Alpha Quadrant, and banded together to make the long journey.

Finding something familiar in an otherwise totally alien corner of the galaxy brought a sense of familiarity to the USS Voyager crew and viewers at home alike, but the presence of something from the Alpha Quadrant in the Delta Quadrant inevitably raised important questions , like how familiar people and objects traveled 70,000 light years from home in the first place, and whether the find could lead Captain Kathryn Janeway towards a quicker path home to Earth.

Star Trek: Voyagers 20 Best Episodes Ranked

A pair of ferengi negotiators, arridor and kol, star trek: voyager season 3, episode 5 "false profits".

The USS Voyager encounters a pair of Ferengi negotiators, Arridor (Dan Shor) and Kol (Leslie Jordan), who claim to be the prophesied Great Sages of the Takarians, a society with Bronze Age level technology. The Ferengi have no Prime Directive to deter them from interfering with the Takarians' development , so they're performing "miracles" with a standard replicator to reap the monetary benefits of the Takarians' worship. Voyager's crew know the Ferengi reputation well enough to know they're no Sages, so they must figure out how to put a stop to Arridor and Kol's grift.

"False Profits" serves as a Star Trek sequel episode to Star Trek: The Next Generation season 3, episode 8 "The Price", as Voyager catches up with Arridor and Kol (formerly played by J. R. Quinonez) seven years after their Delta Quadrant arrival. The Ferengi took a test flight through the supposedly stable wormhole near Barzan II, which was supposed to emerge in the Gamma Quadrant, but instead stranded the Ferengi in the Delta Quadrant, where they made the best of their situation as only Ferengi can.

Star Trek: Voyager Season 3, Episode 23 "Distant Origin"

"Distant Origin" opens on Forra Gegen (Henry Woronicz), a scientist who discovers that his people, the Voth, share certain genetic similarities with the humans aboard the USS Voyager. While this confirms Gegen's theory that the Voth are the descendants of a species brought to their homeworld millions of years ago , religious leader Minister Odala (Concetta Tomei) refuses to accept the truth. Even with Commander Chakotay present as a living specimen of humanity, Odala pushes Gegen to recant, because Gegen's theory goes against the Voth Doctrine that keeps Odala in power.

After meeting Gegen's assistant, Tova Veer (Christopher Liam Moore), Janeway and the Doctor use the holodeck as a research guide to extrapolate how hadrosaurs might look in the 24th century if they'd been able to evolve into a humanoid form with comparable intelligence. The result resembles Veer, so Janeway and the Doctor conclude, like Gegen, that the Voth evolved from hadrosaurs into a highly advanced species on Earth , then fled to the Delta Quadrant in spacefaring vessels instead of being wiped out with the other dinosaurs.

The Friendship One Probe

Star trek: voyager season 7, episode 21 "friendship one".

By Star Trek: Voyager season 7 , the USS Voyager is in regular contact with Starfleet Command, and Starfleet gives Voyager a mission to retrieve a 21st-century Earth probe, Friendship One . The probe proves difficult to find, but once discovered on an alien planet suffering devastating climate collapse, the implications of Friendship One's launch become clear. Besides the irreversible damage to the planet's climate, the inhabitants are all suffering from radiation sickness, and bear understandable hostility towards Earth, because the aliens believe humans orchestrated their destruction with the Friendship One probe.

The United Earth Space Probe Agency was one of the early names for the organization the USS Enterprise belongs to in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode, "Charlie X".

Friendship One was launched in 2067 by the United Earth Space Probe Agency with the intention of making friends with whomever found it, as the name implies. Although Friendship One, the 400-year-old Earth probe, traveled for centuries carrying messages of peace, musical recordings, and ways to translate languages, the people who discovered Friendship One in the Delta Quadrant took a greater interest in the antimatter it used to travel across space. Without the proper knowledge of its use, antimatter proved devastating to the planet and its people, resulting in death and disease for generations.

Dreadnought, a Cardassian Missile

Star trek: voyager season 2, episode 17 "dreadnought".

The USS Voyager discovers a dangerously powerful, self-guided Cardassian missile in the Delta Quadrant, which Lt. B'Elanna Torres (Roxann Dawson) recognizes as one nicknamed "Dreadnought" . When B'Elanna was with the Maquis, Torres had actually reprogrammed the missile herself, with the intention of turning the Cardassians' own weapon against them. Without a Cardassian target in sight, the artificially intelligent Cardassian Dreadnought targets a heavily-populated Class-M planet , Rakosa V. B'Elanna determines she must be the one to keep Dreadnought from hurting anyone else, and boards the missile to convince it to stand down.

While no concrete reason is given for exactly how the Dreadnought wound up in the Delta Quadrant, its last known location in the Alpha Quadrant was the Badlands, the same rough patch of space where Voyager and the Val Jean, Chakotay's Maquis raider, fatefully met. Because of this, Torres theorizes that Dreadnought arrived in the Delta Quadrant the same way that Voyager and the Val Jean did , courtesy of the Caretaker.

Star Trek: Voyagers BElanna Is More Klingon Than TNGs Worf Ever Was

A klingon d-7 class cruiser, complete with klingons, star trek: voyager, season 7, episode 14 "prophecy".

The USS Voyager certainly never expected to find a Klingon ship in the Delta Quadrant, but more surprising is the fact that the crew of the Klingon D-7 Class Cruiser believes their savior, the prophesied kuvah'magh, is aboard Voyager . Janeway assures the Klingon captain, Kohlar (Wren T. Brown), that the Federation and Klingon Empire have been allies for the past 80 years, and offers Voyager's own half-Klingon, Lt. B'Elanna Torres, as proof their societies are working together now. The kuvah'magh is Torres' unborn daughter, who does save the Klingons, but not the way they expected.

Centuries ago, Kohlar's great-grandfather set off on a quest to find the kuvah'magh, and the Klingon D-7 Cruiser became a generation ship that is now crewed by the descendants of its original crew . The quest begun by Kohlar's great-grandfather brought Kohlar and his crew to the Delta Quadrant after four generations of searching. Whether B'Elanna's child is actually the kuvah'magh or not, Kohlar desperately wants the baby to be their savior, so that his people may finally rest.

Amelia Earhart

Star trek: voyager season 2, episode 1 "the 37s".

The discovery of a 1936 Ford truck, seemingly disconnected from any parent vehicle, leads the USS Voyager to a nearby Class-L planet, where they find eight humans who have been in cryo-stasis since they were abducted by aliens in the 1930s. Among them are one of Janeway's personal heroes, legendary American aviator Amelia Earhart (Sharon Lawrence) , who disappeared without a trace while attempting to fly around the world, and Earhart's navigator, Fred Noonan (David Graf). Earhart and the other preserved humans are known by the planet's inhabitants as "The 37s", and revered as sacred.

Originally thought to be aliens, the natives of the unnamed planet are the descendants of humans. A species called the Briori abducted the natives' ancestors, along with Earhart and the other 37s, from Earth centuries earlier , and took them to the Delta Quadrant. Once held as slaves, the humans who weren't in stasis revolted to free themselves from the Briori, and developed a thriving, Earth-like civilization in the Delta Quadrant. Voyager's crew consider staying with the humans in their little slice of home, while Janeway also offers a ride back to Earth to anyone who wants it, including Amelia Earhart.

The USS Equinox

Star trek: voyager season 5, episode 26 & season 6, episode 1 "equinox".

The crew of the USS Voyager believe they're the only Starfleet vessel in the Delta Quadrant until they find the USS Equinox, five years into their journey home. Captain Rudolph Ransom (John Savage) and the Equinox crew have had a harder time in the Delta Quadrant than Voyager, with more damage, fewer starting resources, and fewer opportunities to make friends along the way. Ransom's survival tactics include sacrificing innocent nucleogenic life forms for a more efficient form of fuel, which Janeway finds hard to stomach, and decides that Ransom needs to be held accountable for defying Federation ideals, regardless of how badly the Equinox is damaged.

Although Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) suggests that the Equinox might be in the Delta Quadrant on a rescue mission to find Voyager, the USS Equinox's specs don't fit the profile of a starship that would be assigned to a long-range mission. The explanation of how the Equinox arrived in the Delta Quadrant in the first place seems fairly simple, because Captain Ransom tells Janeway that the Equinox was also abducted by the Caretaker , just like Voyager, but the Equinox has only been in the Delta Quadrant for 2 years, and Janeway destroyed the Caretaker's array 5 years earlier.

Seven of Nine

Debuts in star trek: voyager season 4, episode 1 "scorpion, part 2".

When Captain Kathryn Janeway allies with the Borg in order to secure safe passage across Borg space, Janeway refuses the cursory assimilation that the Borg want to use to communicate with Janeway and Voyager's crew, and instead requests a speaker for the Borg, citing the existence of Locutus (Patrick Stewart) as precedent. Seven of Nine , Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix 01, is selected as the Borg drone to act as liaison between the Collective and Voyager, likely because Seven of Nine had once been a member of Species 5168, like most of Voyager's crew -- in other words, human.

Voyager season 5, episodes 15 & 16, "Dark Frontier" provides even more detail of the Hansens' fateful journey.

After Seven's link with the Collective is severed, more information about Seven's human origin comes to light. In Voyager season 4, episode 6 "The Raven", when Voyager nears the Hansens' ship, the USS Raven, memories of Seven's early life surface, revealing that Seven had been six-year-old human Annika Hansen , the daughter of Magnus Hansen (Kirk Baily) and Erin Hansen (Laura Stepp), Federation scientists who were studying the Borg when they were assimilated. Voyager season 5, episodes 15 & 16, "Dark Frontier" provides even more detail of the Hansens' fateful journey, showing the Raven arriving in the Delta Quadrant by following a Borg Cube through a transwarp conduit.

10 Ways USS Voyager Changed In Star Treks Delta Quadrant

Star Trek: Voyager links back to the greater Star Trek universe with people and starships from the Alpha Quadrant. Connections to the familiar were especially important early on, because Voyager 's place in the Star Trek franchise was established and aided by the legitimacy these finds offered. Later, when the USS Voyager used the Hirogen communications array to communicate with Starfleet Command, links back to the Alpha Quadrant were plentiful again, not only to prove that the USS Voyager was closer to home, but to help Star Trek: Voyager maintain connections to Star Trek and carry the franchise in its final years.

Star Trek: Voyager is available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: Voyager

Cast Jennifer Lien, Garrett Wang, Tim Russ, Robert Duncan McNeill, Roxann Dawson, Robert Beltran, Kate Mulgrew, Jeri Ryan, Ethan Phillips, Robert Picardo

Release Date May 23, 1995

Genres Sci-Fi, Adventure

Network UPN

Streaming Service(s) Paramount+

Franchise(s) Star Trek

Writers Michael Piller, Rick Berman

Showrunner Kenneth Biller, Jeri Taylor, Michael Piller, Brannon Braga

Rating TV-PG

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The Rock is in great shape at 51, but ‘WrestleMania injury will be debilitating,’ it’ll be a shock if he’s too physical

• Emma Bussey , Senior Lifestyle Reporter
• Published : 9:07 ET, Apr 5 2024
• Updated : 8:06 ET, Apr 6 2024
• Published : Invalid Date,

THE Rock's WrestleMania headline extravaganza will be scripted in his favor and to maintain his money-spinning brand, a bodybuilding expert has claimed.

He guaranteed Dwayne Johnson would be "worried" participating in the massive event despite likely spending over $1 million to protect his world-famous physique.

Dwayne, 51, arrived in Memphis at a Smackdown event in March.

A clip shared on his Instagram page showed fans screaming “Rocky." 

The six-foot-four star stood in the ring before headlining at WrestleMania on Saturday and at Lincoln Financial Field.

“Usually, every single week, The Rock comes out here, and he tortures and scorches every city that he is in,” Dwayne shouted.

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“But tonight is different,” he added.

“Finally, The Rock has come back home," he said before sitting on a chair and singing using an auto prompt.

Bodybuilder Skip Hill claimed Dwayne would be "worried" ahead of April 6.

The Rock and WWE Undisputed Champion Roman Reigns will muscle up against Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins in Philadelphia.

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If The Rock and Roman Reigns win, then Reigns' world title match against Rhodes will be a Bloodline Rules match.

“I will be shocked if WrestleMania 40 is incredibly physical,” Hill told The U.S. Sun.

“Dwayne has put a lot on the line, which means the scripting will favor him.

“He knows getting any injury would be incredibly bad, which will be a worry.

“It would be devastating because maintaining his physique is vital to his brand.

“This is more about the slamming, suplexes, and bouncing on the mats, which is usually brutal.

“He also needs to think about his joints, back, hips, and shoulders and moving around at his age in the ring.

"I would not be surprised if the storyline were to play out in which he is not beaten into oblivion in any way.

"I anticipate his role not being very physical.

“This applies to slams and jumping off and into the ring.”

Fans watched Dwayne through February and March at Smackdown and Raw events across the US.

The movie star posted clips and images on Instagram of crucial moments in Texas, Arizona, and New York, to name a few.  

“Can’t wait to hear the glass shatter at Mania,” wrote one fan on Thursday.

“Man can’t barely walk now he is done,” added another.

Hill claimed Dwayne would have spent over $1 million protecting his precious body in the run-up to WrestleMania.

“In your 50s, you have less cartilage between your vertebrae,” he explained.

“If Dwayne was going to be taking any slams, there are a lot of nerves in between those vertebrae.

“Cartilage keeps those nerves from getting irritated. There is a risk of herniating or slipping a disc during the match.

“Dwayne would have bought in extra people to minimize impact.

Dwayne’s body will be insured and so the cost would be beyond what the rest of us can comprehend. Skip Hill

“His team would have to double because of his age and the potential for injury.

 “He would have a team exclusive to him leading up to this match, and they will be on call 24/7.

"Celebrities insure themselves much like the rest of us insure our vehicles.

"For Dwayne’s body to be insured, the cost would be beyond what the rest of us can comprehend.

"This is why he likely would pay his team over $1 million to minimize the risk of injury.

“He will have been getting soft tissue work to ensure he is not even going to pull a muscle."

The Rock’s last WWE match was against Erick Rowan at WrestleMania 32 in 2016.

Before that, he appeared in WrestleMania 29 when he battled against John Cena in 2013.

Then he injured his abdomen and got a hernia.

Since then, Dwayne's fitness regimen has included split workouts and eating six times daily.

The father of three alternates between chest, legs, arms, back, and shoulders, with days six and seven being rest days.

Dwayne's physique is impressive in his 50s. Skip Hill

Dwayne sustains 60 minutes of cardio five times a week.

He includes training his abs and calves two or three times a week at the beginning of each workout.

"I hit my cardio on an empty stomach — which has kept my metabolism nice and tight,” he told Mens Health in 2022.

According to ESPN , the mega star set up a training camp and ring for his WrestleMania 40 appearance.

"You’re getting bruised up, you’re hitting the ropes. It comes back fairly quick. … It’s like riding a bike," he said in an interview.

Hill assured Dwayne was in peak condition for his age. He said his body looked "impressive."

“Dwayne is in great shape for his age, and his physique is impressive in his 50s," he said.

This match is all about the ring, the moves, the storyline, and the script. Skip Hill

“We can see he is in perfect cardiovascular condition and continues with his weight training.

“For WrestleMania, this has probably not changed much at all.

“He may have pulled back a little to ensure his body is recovered instead of growing bigger and leaner.

“This match is all about the ring, the moves, the storyline, and, in this case, the script.”

Dwayne focused on acting and business ventures during his WWE hiatus.

The Californian-born wrestler is now worth a massive $320 million.

As a teenager, he started using weights in the gym alongside his father, wrestler Rocky Johnson.

Following a stint playing football, Dwayne joined the WWE cast in 1996.

In 1999, he starred in Star Trek: Voyager and movies like The Mummy Returns.

When he ends up in the ring on Saturday, I guarantee Dwayne will be worried. Skip Hill

Wayne’s Instagram feed also shows many images and clips promoting his new skincare brand, Papatui.

In one, he can be seen delicately smoothing cream on his skin ahead of the Oscars.

"Outside of his other work, brands, and business, there is nothing bigger than The Rock," added Hill.

"Getting him back for WrestleMania is a big deal for the WWE.

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"But when he ends up in the ring on Saturday, I guarantee Dwayne will be worried.

"His body is worth so much money these days."

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