‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Cast Member Kate Mulgrew Jokes She Was ‘Summoned’ To Return To Janeway Role

Kate Mulgrew is thrilled about reprising her role as Captain Kathryn Janeway in the upcoming Nickelodeon animated series “Star Trek: Prodigy.” Her reprisal of the role was confirmed on Thursday during the “Star Trek” universe virtual panel at New York Comic-Con.

Mulgrew, who played Janeway for seven seasons on “Star Trek: Voyager,” will now star as the lead in “Star Trek: Prodigy.” The new series will follow a group of teens who find an abandoned Starfleet ship and use it to have adventures.

Following the announcement, Mulgrew took to Twitter to joke about what inspired her to return to the “Star Trek” universe. “Someone said ‘coffee’ and ‘Janeway’ in the same sentence, and I was summoned,” Mulgrew tweeted.

The “Orange Is the New Black” alum told Variety that she was looking forward to the animated series.

“I have invested every scintilla of my being in Captain Janeway, and I can’t wait to endow her with nuance that I never did before in ‘Star Trek: Prodigy,’” Mulgrew said.

“How thrilling to be able to introduce to these young minds an idea that has elevated the world for decades. To be at the helm again is going to be deeply gratifying in a new way for me.”

While the 65-year-old is excited about her return, the studio executives can’t want to see her back in action

“Captain Janeway was held to a different standard than her predecessors,” executive producer Alex Kurtzman told the outlet.

“She was asked to embody an inhuman level of perfection in order to be accepted as ‘good enough’ by the doubters but showed them all what it means to be truly outstanding. We can think of no better captain to inspire the next generation of dreamers on Nickelodeon, than she.”

“Star Trek: Prodigy” is expected to premiere in 2021 on Nickelodeon.