WARNING: Contains SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery’s finale, “Life, Itself”.
Summary
All life in theStar Trekuniverse began with the Progenitors, an alien species originated byStar Trek: Deep Space Nineactor, Salome Jens.Star Trek: The Next Generationseason 6, episode 18, “The Chase” revealed that billions of years before theStar Trektimelinebegins, an ancient alien race planted their DNA as seeds from which all humanoid life grew.Star Trek: Discoveryseason 5 returned to this concept, by sending Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and the USS Discovery in search of the Progenitors' technology.
TheStar Trek: Discoveryfinale, “Life, Itself”, written by Kyle Jarrow & Michelle Paradise, and directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi, saw Burnham meet another member of the Progenitor species, played by Nigerian actress and model, Somkele Iyamah-Idhalama. She follows in the footsteps of Salome Jens, who played the Humanoid Progenitor inStar Trek: The Next Generation, before being cast as the Female Changeling inStar Trek: Deep Space Nine. Now thatDiscoveryhas continued the story of the Progenitors,both of Salome Jens’Star Trekroles have had a lasting impact on the canon.
How To Watch All Star Trek TV Shows In Timeline Order
The Star Trek TV franchise has existed for 57 years and consists of 12 shows (and counting). Here’s how to watch them all in timeline order.
Who Is Star Trek: TNG’s Orginal Progenitor Salome Jens?
Salome Jens is an actress and dancer who has been performing on stage and screen since the mid-1950s. Between 1967 and 1973, Salome Jens appeared in 500 episodes of the American daytime soap,Love is a Many Splendored Thing, and went on to have a recurring role as Mae Olinski inMary Hartman, Mary Hartman. After these two regular roles, Salome Jens went on to clock up numerous guest spots on shows likeMacGuyver,Cagney & Lacey, andL.A. Law.In 1993, Jens was cast in the role of the Humanoid Progenitor inStar Trek: The Next Generation’s “The Chase”.
Star Trek: The Next Generationseason 6, episode 18, “The Chase” was directed by Jonathan Frakes, who has also directed 8 episodes ofStar Trek: Discovery, including its penultimate episode, “Lagrange Point”.
Star Trek’s Progenitors were a long-dead race of humanoid aliens, who seeded their DNA across the entire galaxy 4.5 billion years ago. Salome Jens played the holographic recording of a Progenitor, who delivered the message explaining that all humanoid life in theStar Trekuniverse shared the same origin. The Progenitors hoped that this information would bring people together under a common ideal, but it was clear the 24th century wasn’t ready for this message.Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s Dominion Warerupted a few years afterTNG’s “The Chase”, proving that humanoid life was still divided.
Salome Jens Also Played Star Trek: DS9’s Female Changeling
Salome Jens' best-known role inStar Trekwas the Female Changeling inStar Trek: Deep Space Nine.To many of the Dominion’s member species, the Changelings were creators of life, just like the Progenitors. The Changeling Founders genetically engineered both the Vorta and the Jem’Hadar to suit the Dominion’s needs for both administrators and soldiers. The Female Changeling and her kind also saw all humanoid life as being the same, albeit from a much darker perspective than the Progenitors. The Changelings saw humanoids or “solids” to be cruel and violent, and believed that they had to be conquered and controlled to preserve peace in the galaxy.
Star Trek: Discoveryseason 5, episode 3, “Jinaal” revealed that the Dominion War was one of the reasons that the scientists hid the Progenitors' technology from the rest of the galaxy.
Although she made her debut in the previous episode’s cliffhanger, Salome Jens' first full appearance as the Female Changeling was inStar Trek: Deep Space Nine, season 3, episode 2, “The Search, Part II”. The episode wasdirected by Jonathan Frakes, who had previously directed Jens inStar Trek: The Next Generation’s “The Chase”. It’s unknown if Frakes suggested Salome Jens for the role, or if it was a happy coincidence. However, Salome Jens enjoyed the role greatly, reflecting on her experiences onDS9toGrigware Interviewsin 2010:
The cast was wonderful; the stories were interesting. Like a Greek tragedy, there’s something quite wonderful that happened with all of them.
Why A New Actor Played Star Trek: Discovery Season 5’s Progenitor
Salome Jens doesn’t reprise her role as the Progenitor inStar Trek: Discovery’s finale for a couple of reasons. Firstly, Salome Jens is now 89 years old, and hasn’t acted on screen for a number of years. The amount of time in make-up required to play a Progenitor inStar Trekis grueling enough for a younger actor, let alone someone who is nearly 90 years old. This is one of the reasons thatSomkele Iyamah-Idhalama was cast as a different member of the Progenitor species in theDiscoveryfinale.
The Nigerian actress was also chosen to play the Progenitor inStar Trek: Discoveryseason 5 to better demonstrate the infinite diversity that exists in the universe. Much as the Progenitors seeded a diverse range of humanoid species across theStar Trekuniverse, the casting of Somkele Iyamah-Idhalama reflected the diversity within the Progenitors' own species. The casting of Somkele Iyamah-Idhalama builds on Salome Jens' legacy as the first Progenitor by revealing a tiny bit more information about this most mysterious ofStar Trekspecies.
All episodes of Star Trek: Discovery season 5 are available to stream on Paramount+.
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.
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation follows Captain Jean-Luc Picard and his crew aboard the USS Enterprise NCC-1701D as they embark on interstellar explorations, seeking out new worlds and civilizations.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, also known as DS9, is the fourth series in the long-running Sci-Fi franchise, Star Trek. DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, and stars Avery Brooks, René Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, and Cirroc Lofton. This particular series follows a group of individuals in a space station near a planet called Bajor.
