James Frain to Play Sarek, Spock’s Father, in “Star Trek Discovery”

Sarek – A Familiar Character

The casting announcements just keep rolling in for Star Trek Discovery.  It seems that CBS is really leaving some decisions to the last minute, with filming of Star Trek Discovery starting in just a few days time.

Nonetheless, the character and casting announcement is indeed an interesting one.  This time, its someone familiar to us already.  Spock’s father, Sarek (originally portrayed by Mark Lenard), is slated to be played by English stage and screen actor James Frain.

Frain certainly has the look of a Vulcan; able to portray the perfect straight face.  Exactly how his Sarek character will fit in with Star Trek Discovery still remains to be seen.  It’s also unclear if Frain will be a series main character or if he’ll just have a recurring role.

Astrophysicist Sarek or Ambassador Sarek?

We do know that Sarek is an astrophysicist, and later, the Vulcan ambassador to the United Federation of Planets.  It will be interesting to see which role he will be engaged in during Discovery’s time period.

Sarek has been a favourite character for decades among the fans.  He has appeared in Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and a number of the movies, including the 2009 Star Trek reboot.

Whatever capacity he ends up playing in Star Trek Discovery, its sounding like the Vulcans may have a more significant role in the series than originally anticipated.  That makes Starfleet, the Klingons, and now the Vulcans apparent primaries on the series.  The series sounds like its shaping up to be as much about diplomacy as anything else.  This bodes well for most Star Trek fans, many of whom worry the series will take on a more Kelvin timeline style.  Star Trek, on television, has survived so long because of its cerebral nature.  Sarek was certainly a character that fits that description.