Late last week we got the surprise announcement that the Star Trek: Khan (formerly titled Khan: Ceti Alpha V) audio series had not only been cast (with Lost actor Naveen Andrews in the title role), but production had already wrapped, with a release coming later this year. We also got a brief synopsis, but there are still many questions about this project, and thankfully one of the co-writers has been kind enough to provide a few answers.
9 episodes with full cast, sound effectsm and new music
Star Trek: Khan is based on a story by Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan writer/director Nicholas Meyer, with Star Trek authors Kirsten Beyer and David Mack serving as writers on the audio series. Mack has been answering fan questions on Facebook and Bluesky, so now we have more details about the scripted drama audio series.
We got some useful logistical details, including the confirmation that there are 9 episodes of “roughly 30 minutes each,” with run times that “will vary” episode by episode. Mack also confirmed each episode features sound effects and music. Regarding the latter, he believes the series will feature an original musical score. Last week we learned Naveen Andrews will play Khan and Wrenn Schmidt (For All Mankind) is voicing Marla McGivers, and Mack confirmed the series has a “full cast,” adding:
“The two leads are the only ones announced so far, but all the roles have already been cast and recorded. More announcements about the cast will come in the next few months.”
The writer also confirmed that Star Trek: Khan will be “available on a wide range of streaming podcast platforms.” CBS Studios has partnered with leading podcast distributor Realm, who also distributes official podcasts tied to other franchises and shows like DC’s Harley Quinn and the Joker, Peacock’s Those About to Die: Rise or Die, and Orphan Black: The Next Chapter. Mack was not sure if the series will be released all at once or on a serial basis.
The writer revealed that he and co-writer Kirsten Beyer penned the scripts for the series “around this time last year.” He also talked about how writing an audio drama was a new experience:
“We did our best. It was a fascinating challenge learning to tell a story with only sound and dialogue, and not having visuals to help carry major moments. I had to do a crash-course in the art of writing radio plays.”
Responding to another question, Mack talked more about the process:
“It was an exciting challenge to learn to tell stories in dialogue and sound alone, to not have the luxury of narration or visuals to carry a narrative or sell a dramatic moment.”
Author David Mack at Star Trek: The Original Series Set Tour in 2017 (Photo: Lisa Sullivan/Facebook)
Direct follow-up to “Space Seed”
The Star Trek: Khan series fills in a gap between when the character was first introduced in the TOS episode “Space Seed” (set in the year 2267) and his return in the film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, set 18 years later in 2285. During this time, Khan had been exiled by Captain James T. Kirk to the remote world of Ceti Alpha V along with his fellow exiles from the Eugenics Wars and joined by the USS Enterprise’s historian (and Khan’s new love interest), Marla McGivers.
Many fans were curious about the wrinkle when it comes to Khan’s backstory with the Eugenics Wars. They were said to have taken place in the 1990s in “Space Seed,” but the Strange New Worlds season 2 episode “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” did a bit of a retcon on the timeline, moving it into the early 21st century via some time travel shenanigans.
This was brought up by several fans curious as to how the audio series will deal with the discrepancy, such as this query: “Question: 1990s Eugenics War, or SNW Alternate/Shifted Timeline?” Mack’s reply to that was “It’s a direct sequel to the 1967 TOS episode ‘Space Seed.’” The question kept coming up, so Mack added a more detailed reply:
“All I can tell you for certain is that we pick up right from the end of the 1967 episode ‘Space Seed.’ There are references to some of the events of the Eugenics Wars, but I don’t think we pinned them to specific dates.”
It seems clear the audio series will pick up on the early days of Khan’s exile on Ceti Alpha V and follow the story as laid out in “Space Seed.”
Christina Chong as La’an Noonien-Singh and Paul Wesley as Kirk in episode 203 “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow”
No tie to Eugenics Wars books
The incongruity of no apparent Eugenics Wars during the 1990s was addressed in the “Star Trek: The Eugenics Wars” trilogy of books by Greg Cox released in the early 2000s. When asked if the audio series would look to that trilogy for inspiration or adaptation, Mack was clear:
“No, it is not based on Greg’s novels. Nicholas Meyer had a completely different take on the story of Khan’s exile, and Kirsten and I were tasked with developing the series from the core elements of Nick’s story.”
Mack also hinted that the Khan series has some surprises in store:
“We did our best, and I think this story will not play out the way many fans might expect it to.”
“Kirsten and I are hoping that fans will be genuinely surprised at some of the twists and turns; the story doesn’t always go the way one might expect it to….”
For his part, “The Eugenics Wars” trilogy author Greg Cox jumped into Mack’s Facebook thread on the announcement, saying “Wow! Congratulations! And great casting for Khan, btw.” Cox added “FYI: I admire your restraint when it comes to keeping mum about this for so long!” to which Mack replied “Only about 18 months….”
First “Eugenics Wars” book by Greg Cox
New look to come
And one last thing. This is an audio production but the announcement last week did come with an image with the series title. Responding to one fan who said he was “not a fan of that logo,” Mack offered some comfort, saying “Relax, it’s temporary art for the press release.”
Artwork from the press release
There are still many more details to be revealed, including when the show will be released, but hopefully Mack has tied fans over for now with his generous sharing of details.
For more Star Trek from David Mack, pick up his most recent Star Trek novel Star Trek: Picard: Firewall. You can also pre-order his next Star Trek novel, Strange New Worlds: Ring of Fire, which comes out in August.
