TrekMovie had a chance to speak to some of the cast and crew of Star Trek: Discovery at a press event at San Diego Comic-Con, including actor Anthony Rapp. Our brief chat focused on how at the end of the first season, Rapp’s character, Paul Stamets, found himself at a crossroads, with the loss of his partner and his invention of the spore drive. (Video of the interview is below the transcript)

Stamets is in flux

A lot changed for you at the end of the first season.

I’ll say.

So, is it over for the spore drive, and what does that mean for you and your job onboard the USS Discovery?

I can’t really say too many things, except that I am really grateful that the writers have given me the chance to really deal with the aftermath of everything that happened in season one. Because in season one, there was so much to get done with the war and everything, that there wasn’t much time to really process and deal with what had happened. Now, I get the chance to deal. So, there are some things that are in question about what it means for my future. It’s an exploration, which is really satisfying to get to play.

Do you have a new job? Or are you just being coy?

I’m not being coy, it is a bit in flux.

Earning quiet, character moments

You mentioned quiet moments [at the press conference]. Would you say this season has more of those in-between moments, character moments?

[Nods yes] I would say definitively, this season has many more of those quiet moments. And I’m really grateful for that. I think that we’ve earned them. I’m hoping, and certainly for us as we are playing them and reading these scripts, they feel very, very meaningful. And I hope that that reaches the audience in the way that we want it to.

Watch the interview

More from SDCC

There will be more exclusive interviews coming up from the Discovery press event. You may also want to check out our full panel report and the 8 things we learned from the press conference.

We have also been covering Star Trek merchandise and other Trek-related activities and panels from SDCC, with more on the way. Click here to see all our SDCC 2018 coverage.