Summary
Star Trek: Discoveryseason 1 was a hit, but introducing Anson Mount as Captain Christopher Pike madeStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2 even more popular.Discovery’s premiere in 2017 ushered in a new era ofStar TrekTV shows. The diversecast of characters onStar Trek:Discoverymade it popular with a new generation of Trekkers. Mount ensured that popularity didn’t fade through his excitement about being a part of theStar Trekfranchise and the continued support for his rendition of Captain Pike, who was originally portrayed by Jeffrey Hunter and Sean Kenney in the 1960s.
Star Trek: Discoveryseason 2 not only brought back Captain Christopher Pike but added a dark twist: Pike discovers he will be horrifically disfigured inStar Trek: The Original Series.Pike’s vision will haunt him even as his character continues to develop as Captain of the Enterprise inStar Trek: Strange New Worlds. AlthoughStar Trek: Discoveryended with season 5,Mount still makesDiscoveryseason 2 memorable. Anson portrayed Captain Pike’s strengths through bravery and vulnerability, all while being a hugeStar Trekfan behind the scenes.
Star Trek: Discovery Season 6 Or Movie - Everything We Know
Star Trek: Discovery season 5 is the final season, but will Captain Burnham and the USS Discovery be back for season 6 or a Paramount+ movie?
Anson Mount’s Captain Pike Added Original Series Appeal To Star Trek: Discovery
Mount reprised the role and earned Discovery major nostalgia points
Part of the reason many argue thatStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2 isStar Trekat its bestis that Anson Mount reintroduced a classicStar Trek: The Original Seriescharacter to a new audience. The originalStar Trekpilot, “The Cage,” featured an adventure involving Captain Pike (Jeffrey Hunter) and the USS Enterprise crew traveling to the dangerous world of Talos IV. While NBC rejected the pilot and requested a new one with William Shatner replacing Jeffrey Hunter as the series lead,Star Trek:Discoveryseason 2 gave Captain Pike a second chance over 50 years later.
This inevitable setup ofStar Trek:The Original Series' pilot was unmistakable and garnered a lot of excitement for Discovery.
Star Trek: Discoveryended a 12-year stretch without aStar TrekTV show, butDiscoveryseason 2 leaned more intoStar Trek’s past, successfully evoking nostalgia to bring older audiences aboard. Along with Number One, who was given the name of Lt. Commander Una Chin-Riley (Rebecca Romijin), and a young Lieutenant Spock (Ethan Peck),Anson Mount’s Captain Pike started to gather the original USS Enterprise crew. This inevitable setup ofStar Trek: The Original Seriesgarnered a lot of excitement forStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2. Mount being aStar Trekfan behind the scenes definitely helped harness that excitement.
Anson Mount’s Social Media Excitement Boosted Support For Star Trek: Discovery
Mount’s BTS pictures added an extra layer of hype for season 2
Unlike in the previous golden eras of sci-fi, newerStar Trekprojects can appeal to more audiences than ever before through the use of social media. Anson Mount took to Instagram while filmingStar Trek:Discoveryand shared behind-the-scenes pictures to excite fans and increase the hype for season 2.Mount even hinted at the canon fate of Captain Pikewith pictures depicting him being life-casted for “future Pike.” Check out his post below:
Because Jason Isaacs' Captain Lorca exitedStar Trek: Discoveryseason 1 with a dark plot twist, the USS Discovery’s crew needed a new leader who could reestablish their faith in the mission at hand.Mount teased set pictures and bolstered excitement for Captain Pike’s addition to theStar Trek: Discoverycrewto ensure fans thatDiscoverywas in good hands. Sharing a picture of the first time he sat in “the chair,” Mount got fans excited about seeingStar Trek: The Original Series' Captain Pike in modern action. Check out the picture below:
Anson Mount’s portrayal of Captain Pike created ahunger for more Captain Pike content, so Mount shared a never-before-seen set picture fromStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2 during the show’s hiatus. The picture not only reminded fans of Pike’s popularity but also featured Vice Admiral Katrina Cornwell (Jayne Brook) accompanying Mount on the bridge of the Discovery—and Mount’s dog, Mac. The picture was shared byCommander Will Riker himself, Jonathan Frakes, who is a recurring director forStar Trekprojects. See the post below:
Anson Mount’s Captain Pike Was So Popular, Fans Demanded Strange New Worlds
Star Trek’s newest hit show exists thanks to Mount’s popularity
InStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2, Anson Mount’s Captain Christopher Pike juggles this dark destiny with selfless charm and charisma, never letting the knowledge of the future deter him from trying to be Starfleet’s best captain. Mount was so popular as Captain Pike thatfans demanded his own show after hisStar Trek: Discoveryexit. Petitions were signed, executives were begged, and social media was ablaze over the desire for Mount’s return as Pike. Since Mount’s breakout role onAMC’sHell on Wheelsended, the actor could take on another award-winning series.
Star Trek Goes For Emmy Gold & Submits For 71 Awards
Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Lower Decks, and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds boldly submitted for consideration for 71 Emmy Awards.
Without Mount’s part in Star Trek:Discoveryseason 2, Captain Pike couldn’t have boosted the show’s popularity, eventually leading to one ofStar Trek’s best new shows.
In May 2020, Paramount announcedStar Trek: Strange New Worlds, the newest addition toStar Trek’s streaming family. The show would follow Anson Mount’s Christopher Pike as Captain of the USS Enterprise.Strange New Worldsfeatures classicStar Trek: The Original Seriescharactersplayed by new faces, includingDiscovery’s Peck and Romijin as Spock and Number One, and new actors such as Jess Bush as Nurse Chapel and Celia Rose Gooding as Cadet Uhura.Without Anson Mount’s part inStar Trek: Discoveryseason 2, Captain Pike couldn’t have boosted the show’s popularity, eventually leading to one ofStar Trek’s best new shows.
Star Trek: Discovery
Cast
Star Trek: Discovery is an entry in the legendary Sci-Fi franchise, set ten years before the original Star Trek series events. The show centers around Commander Michael Burnham, assigned to the USS Discovery, where the crew attempts to prevent a Klingon war while traveling through the vast reaches of space.
