Voice Actors Tawny Newsome, Jack Quaid, Noel Wells & Eugene Cordero talk to The Inside Reel about journey, perspective and the power of the opening credits in regards to the 5th and final season of their Star Trek animated series: “Lower Decks” on Paramount+.
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00:00This keeps getting cooler by the second.
00:15Wait, everyone shut up!
00:18This Kim's got two peps!
00:21You're all still ensigns?
00:24That's f***ed up!
00:27These characters, it's about community, it's about ambition, but it's also about their
00:31awkward adventures.
00:33Could you talk about how that balanced within the journey you saw with each of them?
00:37Tani, if you want to start first, and then Jack, Noelle, and Eugene.
00:41Sure.
00:42I mean, I think that's the concept of the show, right?
00:44That's the beauty in what Mike and the writers have created, is that, yeah, it's about these
00:49kind of high stakes adventures and the world that is Trek of seeking out new life and exploration
00:56and discovery.
00:57But it's also, we dedicate a lot of time and real estate to the stuff that other Trek shows
01:02kind of wouldn't waste time on.
01:04Like the downbeating moments, the little interpersonal back and forth, you know, two people fighting
01:09over how to water a bonsai tree, so they dress as Mark Twain, classic stuff like that.
01:12Classic.
01:13Things that happen in real life all the time.
01:14All the time.
01:15All the time.
01:16So yeah, I just think that permission to be able to focus more on the smaller, more character
01:21driven, sillier, weirder moments, that's like where my heart lives.
01:25So that's the secret sauce of this show.
01:27Yeah.
01:28I just love how every character has grown over these past five seasons.
01:32Like everyone has taken such a journey, not just us, but like the seniors, you know, the
01:37bridge crew as well, as all those characters are so well rounded and like, yeah, it's a
01:42silly comedy, but there are these real moments of like, like pathos, which I really, really
01:47appreciate.
01:48And also I love that, you know, Starfleet as depicted in a lot of the Trek shows, you
01:53know, obviously everyone is brilliant, like even the ensigns, like everyone is a very
01:57competent person, but I think, I love how this show shows that sometimes people can
02:02make mistakes and that that's okay, especially when you're like just kind of starting to
02:06rise through the ranks.
02:07So yeah, it holds a very, very special place in my heart.
02:11Captain's log.
02:12For once, everything's going better than expected.
02:15This is terrible.
02:17I wasn't sure how my junior officers would handle their new promotions.
02:22I don't want to get promoted.
02:23I want to stay charmingly unsubordinate.
02:26But they've shown remarkable composure.
02:29Everyone's obeying orders and working in lockstep.
02:31Nobody pull their disruptors.
02:35There's no chaos, hijinks, or interpersonal conflicts.
02:42Are you sure you broke up?
02:45Yes.
02:46This might be one of the most mature and capable crews in Starfleet.
02:51Let's do this.
02:53Yes.
02:54Totally.
02:55But you are sitting on it backwards.
02:56Damn it!
02:57The fact that all these things can exist in one thing, and to be very honest, to add it,
03:03there's understanding and acceptance.
03:04I mean, look with Tendi.
03:06Look at the journey she's gone through in finding herself.
03:09Talk about that if you would.
03:11Oh, great.
03:12Okay.
03:13So, well, first of all, I was thinking about how the show feels like everybody has their
03:19individual story arcs and everybody, as we said, has their character growth.
03:25But in many ways, when we always come back together in the end, it's like a slumber party.
03:29It's got this very cozy, warm, fun vibe.
03:32It's more like a, it feels more like a, it's like the sitcom-y energy that I really appreciate
03:37in terms of how they all relate to each other.
03:41But as far as Tendi's character arc, I love that she starts off like sort of naive and
03:48really eager to be in this new place, in this new world, and we sort of pull back the layers
03:52of the onion of like where she's come from and what she's really capable of and things
03:56that she's tried to get away from.
03:59Then she ultimately is like kind of having to embody some certain parts of her.
04:04So I love that in this show, we get to have a person who's cuddly and cute.
04:10And then we also get to see her do all this like crazy stuff.
04:13And in the world of animation, anything's possible.
04:16I feel like what we get to see with these characters and with this show is a way in
04:24for you to like be similar to.
04:28You can see those moments where they're not perfect.
04:31You can see the moments where they're moving, they're being positive, but trying to get
04:37to a place that we know all Trek is, which is like the bridge crew and everything.
04:42And now you're getting to like really feel like you're a part of something like, you
04:47know, you love a pro athlete, but you know, they didn't always start there and you're
04:52happy that they're human beings.
04:54So that the fact that these characters can be goofy and we get to see those moments where
04:59they mess up.
05:01But you also see like real friendship.
05:03I don't know why I'm pointing to these guys because of this.
05:07But you see real friendship.
05:08At least you didn't go real friendship.
05:10Real friendship.
05:11But like the fact that you can see that and how your community can help you and raise
05:16you up is something that you love to see.
05:19And yeah, I'm happy.
05:21What?
05:22All right, party people, what's the mish?
05:26Oh man, another quantum fissure?
05:28This is like the third one this month.
05:30Woohoo, interdimensional portal!
05:31They have been appearing with statistically abnormal regularity.
05:35Someone has to close the space-time potholes or who knows what kind of parallel universe
05:39stuff could drift into our dimension.
05:41How are the tachyon levels?
05:42Below the reaction threshold.
05:44Warp core will be fine.
05:45Wow, alternate dimensions.
05:46Imagine meeting like a bunch of weirdos with like feet for hands or feet for eyes or you
05:51know, something more creative than that.
05:57Captain, the fissure's losing integrity.
06:00Red alert!
06:01Get us out of here!
06:02We're cutting the penetration away!
06:04All crew, race for impact!
06:06Dunking into the Rift like a big ol' cookie!
06:12Damage report?
06:13All clear, Captain.
06:14Looks like that was more of a light show than anything else.
06:17We were lucky, but let's not push it.
06:19Set a return course through the-
06:21Captain, we're being hailed.
06:22Hailed?
06:23By who?
06:24It's...
06:25It's the Cerritos.
06:28Oh, stupid dimensional rifts.
06:36On screen!
06:37What up, Cerritos?
06:39This is Captain Becky Freeman.
06:41Looks like we have a lot to discuss.
06:45And my question, whoever wants to answer this one, it's, you know, it's interesting because
06:49it's about perspective.
06:50But as the actors playing these characters and looking at the visuals that accompany
06:55the voices, you know, could you sort of talk about looking at perspective of a world?
07:00You've seen this world expand with what Mike has done.
07:03Can you talk about what has surprised you the most?
07:05What has moved you the most?
07:08I mean, the thing that moves me still, and I say this all the time because I-
07:12is when I see those opening credits and all of our names-
07:18Yeah, it's crazy.
07:19And to be a part of Trek and to see that kind of classic, like the-
07:26Yeah, the font.
07:27TNG font, and then the theme music, and then like the Cerritos and everything.
07:33You're just like, what?
07:34It feels weird.
07:36It feels like you're part of this world.
07:38And it's still, every time I hear the theme start, I get more excited.
07:44Yeah.
07:45At the top of-
07:46Five seasons deep, and I'm still like, let me hear that theme.
07:49Oh, it's so good.
07:50When the choir comes in.
07:51I never skip the intro.
07:52Oh, never.
07:53Just watch out all the way through.
07:55Well, because also, I think I was so blown away by the fact-
07:58I'm still talking about the intro.
07:59It's so good.
08:00I was so blown away.
08:01Usually a cartoon, maybe there's like a little opening title crawl,
08:05but you almost never see actors' names in it.
08:07And then I think when I first saw it, I was like, oh yeah, it's a Trek show.
08:11And that's a thing that they do.
08:12They see the actors' names beforehand, and this is no different.
08:15And that was so crazy to see all of our names up there.
08:18It's so surreal.
08:19Especially when I was first reading the scripts for the first couple of-
08:23for the first season.
08:25You see all these names like T'Anna and Shaxx, and you don't really quite know.
08:30You have an idea of what that character might do,
08:33but you don't really know until you see it.
08:35And you're like, oh, how amazing Jillian Bigman is.
08:37Oh, yeah.
08:38Fred Tatasciore, all these incredible actors and how they fill their roles.
08:43I loved recording season two because I was like, oh, I've seen the show now.
08:46And I know what everyone's deal is.
08:48And I know, like, now I know exactly how you guys are going to say your line.
08:53Like, we don't record together anymore.
08:54You don't know me.
08:55Oh, I know exactly.
08:56Yeah.
08:57I see Amir in a lot of my time.
08:58He's going to read it like this.
09:00Unpredictable and chaotic.
09:02Yeah.
09:03Oh, it's instinct.
09:04Oh, wow.
09:05Thank you guys so much.
09:06Well, I enjoyed it.
09:07Yeah, when that monster's at the end grabbing onto the ship, I'm like, yes,
09:11this is where we are.
09:12That's awesome.
09:13Don't want to know what that guy's deal is.
09:15I don't know what it is.
09:16I think we never found out.
09:18Come on, danger time.
09:25I like when stuff isn't our fault.
09:31Firing pulse.
09:33Check me out.
09:34I'm a total T'Pol over here.
09:36Oh, yeah, that's the stuff.
09:41Oh, yeah.