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Star Trek: Prodigy's Kate Mulgrew Explains Her Two Different Janeways
Star Trek: Prodigy star Kate Mulgrew reveals how she approaches her dual role as Hologram Janeway and Vice Admiral Kathryn Janeway in Paramount+ and Nickelodeon's acclaimed animated series. Originally, Mulgrew portrayed Hologram Janeway, the USS Protostar's training program who became the mentor to the six ragtag alien teens that commandeered Starfleet's fastest ship. But in Star Trek: Prodigy's midseason 1 finale, Admiral Janeway arrived to hunt the Protostar aboard her own starship, the USS Dauntless.
Hologram Janeway is based on Captain Janeway, who commanded the USS Voyager and led the starship home to Earth after seven years of being stranded in the Delta Quadrant. Captain Janeway was then promoted to Vice Admiral, but a holographic version of Kathryn was programmed into the USS Protostar, which was originally commanded by Janeway's dear friend, Captain Chakotay (Robert Beltran). After Dal R'El (Brett Gray), Gwyn (Ella Purnell), and their friends became the new crew of the Protostar, and they escaped from the evil Diviner (John Noble), Hologram Janeway became the kids' advisor and began instilling the values of Starfleet into her new charges. But now, Admiral Janeway is hunting the Protostar as she searches for Chakotay in the second half of Star Trek: Prodigy season 1.
In *******s interview with Kate Mulgrew at the Star Trek: Prodigy season 1.5 junket during New York Comic Con, we asked the iconic star about what it's like portraying the two different versions of Kathryn Janeway, and how much she enjoys the challenge of playing two sides of her legendary Starfleet character:
********: Let me ask you about playing flesh and blood Admiral Janeway along with Hologram Janeway in this next phase of Star Trek: Prodigy episodes. How do you approach the two roles? Do you have fun differentiating the two in your performances?
Quote:
Kate Mulgrew: Well, that's the greatest fun. [It's] this distinction; making this distinction, building it, creating it, shaping it, and then following through with it. Sometimes in the recording booth, it becomes quite challenging because they can be stacked one on top of the other. So, I have to have them well established in my imagination, and well established by virtue of temperament; by virtue of tone, nuance, [and] everything that would define Vice Admiral Janeway and distinguish her from Hologram Janeway. It's a delicate process, and it's also very, very pleasurable.
Kate Mulgrew Has Now Played Many Versions Of Janeway
Kate Mulgrew is certainly no stranger to playing multiple versions of Kathryn Janeway. She portrayed different versions of Janeway throughout the seven seasons of Star Trek: Voyager, including an alternate future version of Admiral Janeway in Voyager's series finale, "Endgame." But Star Trek: Prodigy is a unique experience for the actress because Hologram Janeway is both a computer and an idealized version of Kathryn's younger self, while Vice Admiral Janeway is the same iconic character from Voyager, but more experienced, a bit wearier, and desperate to find Chakotay. Admiral Janeway also has no idea that six alien teens now command the USS Protostar when Star Trek: Prodigy returns for the next ten episodes of season 1.
Of course, Star Trek fans undoubtedly want Kate Mulgrew to also reprise Admiral Janeway in live-action. Encouragingly, the actress has noted that the idea has been discussed. Executive Producer Alex Kurtzman also told Mulgrew at the Star Trek NYCC panel that she can play "as many Janeways" as she wants. Mulgrew also briefly played an evil version of Hologram Janeway in Star Trek: Prodigy season 1, so who knows how many iterations of Janeway Kate Mulgrew will eventually portray.
Star Trek: Prodigy season 1 returns October 27th on Paramount+.
