Posted in: Paramount+, Star Trek, TV | Tagged: star trek, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, Starfleet Academy

Starfleet Academy: Lynch on Colm Meaney, Fulfilling Star Trek Dream

Rebecca Quin (WWE icon Becky Lynch) discusses growing up watching Colm Meaney in Star Trek: TNG/DS9 and her Starfleet Academy role as Lt. Ya.

While Becky Lynch is not the first professional wrestler in a Star Trek series, she would be the first female superstar to be featured when she makes her debut as Lt. Ya on the upcoming Paramount+ series Starfleet Academy. At the very least, we see her, credited as her real name, Rebecca Quin, in her 32nd-century yellow Starfleet uniform. The 11-time WWE champion, and the company's sixth Women's Grand Slam Champion, spoke to Collider about growing up on fan favorite Colm Meaney, who played Chief Miles O'Brien on The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine.

Starfleet Academy: Becky Lynch on Growing Up a Star Trek Fan

"I grew up when Star Trek was one of the two shows that was on TV in Ireland, on whatever four channels we had, so it was always on in the background," Quin said. "I can't say that I sat down and watched, but I did love the movies. And Colm Meaney. We all love Colm Meaney; any time he was on, you sit down and watch that." Meaney appeared in all 14 seasons across both shows, initially in a recurring role on TNG across 52 episodes, before being elevated to the main cast on DS9 across all 173 episodes. Of what little Quin can say about her role at Starfleet Academy, "I'm on the bridge crew, and filming on the bridge, it was one of the most amazing sets I've ever been on."

The series, a direct spinoff of Discovery set in the 32nd century, follows Captain Ake (Holly Hunter), who not only runs her own ship but also serves as Chancellor to Starfleet Academy, trying to raise a new generation of cadets since Discovery's cataclysmic Burn that defined season four. With warp travel established again, season five sewed the seeds to a new beginning, and Ake won't be alone with Discovery alum Tilly (Mary Wiseman), Jett Reno (Tig Notaro), and Fleet Admiral Charles Vance (Oded Fehr). Also lending a hand is the 900-year-old Emergency Medical Hologram (EMH) in The Doctor, with Voyager alum Robert Picardo reprising his role.

Quin will be the fifth wrestler to appear in a Star Trek series after Tom Magee in TNG, Dwayne Johnson (WWE's Rock) in Voyager, Paul Wight (WWE's Big Show) and Tommy "Tiny" Lister (WWE's Zeus) in Enterprise. Quin also appeared in Netflix's Happy Gilmore 2 (2025), NBC's Young Rock, and the animated film Rumble (2021). Starfleet Academy, which also stars Sandro Rosta, Karim Diané, Kerrice Brooks, George Hawkins, Bella Shepard, Zoë Steiner, and Paul Giamatti, premieres January 15th on Paramount+.

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