Star Trek Beyond is full of familiar faces. Stars from the first two films, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Zoe Saldana, are all returning to the franchise, with the original crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise pretty much intact. There are, of course, a few new additions to the Star Trek cast in Beyond — most notably Sofia Boutella as Jaylah and Idris Elba as Krall — but for the most part, the ensemble remains the same. That said, Star Trek Beyond managed to sneak in a few new faces using brief appearances. These cameos in Star Trek Beyond might be hard to spot, but they sure are sweet.
Before you get too excited, the cameos in Star Trek Beyond are not the showy, Marvel-esque ones you might expect from a giant blockbuster, especially when said blockbuster marks the 50th anniversary of the Star Trek series. Most of the cameos in Star Trek Beyond fly under the radar, whether it's because the people making them aren't as well known, or they're covered in alien makeup. And while there were rumors that the original Captain Kirk, William Shatner, would make cameo appearances in Star Trek Beyond, none of the original cast members filmed parts in the film. In fact, those rumors were quickly shot down by Shatner himself — "There was never any conversation," Shatner told SFX Magazine in January.
It's fair, and accurate, to say that the cameos in Star Trek Beyond are much more low-key in nature, but that's not to say they aren't exciting. Here are the five major Star Trek Beyond cameos to look out for. Obviously, spoilers ahead.
1. Danny Pudi And Kim Kold
Pudi and Kold have discreet cameos in Beyond, playing two, heavily masked aliens, Fi'Ja and Zavanko, who attack Scotty after he crash-lands on Altamid. Director Justin Lin worked with Pudi on Community and Kold in Fast & Furious 6, and teased the cameos on Twitter early on in production. You won't recognize the actors in Beyond, but it's still a fun appearance to look out for.
2. Greg Grunberg
Grunberg, a JJ Abrams regular, has a small role in Beyond as Commander Finnegan, a Federation officer on the Yorktown space station. Fans might recognize Grunberg as a rebel pilot in Star Trek: The Force Awakens, or from his recent role in Heroes and Heroes Reborn. This is actually not Grunberg's first Star Trek cameo. A longtime collaborator with Abrams (you can spot him in almost all of Abrams' projects), Grunberg is credited as playing Kirk's stepdad in Star Trek (2009), though the role only required voice work.
3. Doug Jung
Beyond co-writer Jung makes a small cameo appearance as Ben, Sulu's much talked about partner. Instead of stunt casting the role with a high profile celebrity, filmmakers decided to have Jung play the part. Jung is only shown briefly, and he has no lines, but the importance of his role will no doubt be dissected and talked about for years to come.
4. Jeff Bezos
Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, is said to have a cameo in the film, thought you'd have a tough time finding him. He appears as a Starfleet alien in a group shot — he is officially credited as a Starfleet Officer. It's unclear how, or why, Bezos got a cameo in the movie. I guess, they really like Amazon in space?
5. Original Star Trek Cast
So, I know I said that Shatner doesn't make a cameo appearance in Beyond, and that's mostly true. But, it's also true that he does appear on screen in the film, just in photograph form. In a particularly touching scene made to pay tribute to Leonard Nimoy, the actor who originated the role of Spock, a photo of the original series' Enterprise crew is shown. The photo is only on screen for a few seconds, but it's a nice nod to the series that started it all.
These Star Trek Beyond cameos are exciting, but don't overtake the movie. In the end, if you're seeing Beyond for the celeb appearances, you're probably doing it wrong.
Images: Paramount Pictures; CBS
