Star Trek: Discovery’s Jason Isaacs is kind of rare as far as Trek actors go in that he’s an actual fan of the franchise (his fellow castmember Anthony Rapp also has some Trekker street cred, as anyone who follows him on Twitter can attest to). And for Isaacs, who plays the Discovery’s Captain Gabriel Lorca, that doesn’t just mean that he knows the ins and outs of James T. Kirk’s Enterprise, or that he can namedrop episode titles. No, he also understands that, at its best, Gene Roddenberry’s creation has to be meaningful to audiences in a way that reflects what is important in the real world of the here and now.

I spoke to Isaacs recently during a break from shooting Discovery in Toronto, and we dug in on this notion of making Star Trek count for something beyond just entertainment, as well as how Lorca is a wartime captain, what the character thinks of the Klingons, why it’s O.K. to have conflict among Starfleet members, and more. Read on for highlights from our chat…

Klingons: Dehumanizing the Enemy

Setting Discovery 10 years before Captain Kirk’s era, during a time of war between the Federation and the Klingons, will be a key aspect of raising the stakes for Lorca and his crew. And while Isaacs says that we can expect a textured take from the show on the Klingon perspective and why they feel they must fight, Captain Lorca has a pretty narrow view of the enemy.

“War being the most heightened, high-stakes situation we’ve ever come across, the question is often asked, what do you do with your enemy?” says Isaacs. “How much can you empathize with your enemy? How much do you need to kill them, because they’re trying to kill you? Lorca’s relatively simple on that front. He’s a very good wartime leader. You can’t spend too much time… you have to dehumanize them, or else you’ll let them kill you.”

Jason Isaacs as Captain Gabriel Lorca

Interestingly, he sees this era -- and its Starfleeters -- as perhaps being made of tougher stuff than what would follow in most subsequent Trek shows. That’s not a knock; just the reality of living through a war.

“The Federation mandate, as we discover in The Original Series, is much more peaceful, and they might have been steamrolled,” he says. “But luckily, this is pre-them. I’m in charge, and I take no prisoners. So I have a relatively clear-cut view of [the Klingons]. The story, on the other hand, delves deeply into what the Klingons are thinking and feeling, and their different culture. And that’s one of the ways this iteration differentiates itself from previous ones. That everybody has a point of view, and our real world and our Star Trek world is a complicated place. No easy choices.”

So while science and exploration will be part of Discovery’s mission, we’re a far ways off from Captain Picard sipping tea while he talks things out, or even the state of affairs by the time of Kirk’s era.

What to Look for in a Number One

Commander Michael Burnham (played by Sonequa Martin-Green) is the main character of Discovery, and we know that at some point she becomes the first officer -- Number One -- to Captain Lorca. Beyond that, however, Isaacs is reluctant to reveal too much about his relationship with his Number One…

“It’s true to say that she’s a remarkable person,” he says. “She’s physically incredibly capable, but she’s also very smart -- raised as a Vulcan. But it’s not just about her background; it’s about who she is. She has an instinctive capacity, I think, for leadership that has not been recognized. And I, in many ways, kind of pluck her up and… mentor is the wrong word. But I’m her captain and I look to her. I have an interest in her that is curious at first [for the] viewer. And then they’ll see where that goes… But she’s very enigmatic, and she is someone you want to watch.”

To Boldly Entertain... with a Vision

“The reason to tell a story is to be entertained,” says the actor. “The prime directive, from an entertainment point of view -- not a Federation point of view -- is to entertain and engage. But beyond that, the initial version of Star Trek was born out of very troubled and tumultuous times, and Gene Roddenberry’s desire not only to make a successful TV show, but to hold out a vision of hope for the future. Well, these are very complicated and difficult times, and our characters are put in very difficult situations morally -- hopefully that aren’t simplistic.”

Isaacs hopes that, despite the dark era Discovery portrays in the history of Star Trek, the show still can provide a version of the future for humankind to look forward to.

“I’m happy that the story that I’m part of holds out a beacon of hope for the future,” he says. “In a time when it’s very hard to have any hope, to see any optimism, we want to put up a story at least that says -- in our fictional version of the world -- everybody works together and it works out fine, and difficulties are not easy to iron out but they’re overcome. Because it’s easy to get bleak right now.”

Star Trek: Discovery debuts on September 24 on CBS, CBS All Access and Netflix in most international territories.

Talk to Senior Editor Scott Collura on Twitter at @ScottCollura.