Posted in: Paramount+, Star Trek, TV | Tagged: brooklyn nine-nine, lucifer, star trek, strange new worlds

Strange New Worlds: Harris & Lo Truglio on Peck, BKN99, Lucifer & More

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' Rachael Harris and Joe Lo Truglio discuss their scenes with Ethan Peck, Lucifer, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and more.

They say the best kind of jobs you work at won't feel like work at all, and that would best describe the experience Strange New Worlds guest stars Rachael Harris and Joe Lo Truglio had on the Star Trek series, as they felt immediately embraced by the sci-fi franchise family. Even when Ethan Peck (Spock) was the lone cast member filming alongside them on set, it was probably the kind of welcome they haven't felt since their signature shows Lucifer and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. In part two of our interview, the two, who play invading Orion invaders Captain Ch'Rol and Ejachi to take advantage of a mostly compromised Enterprise crew who have been turned into puppets in the latest episode "Level-Five Transporter Accident," spoke to Bleeding Cool about their favorite scene from the episode, their surprise to find out how much of a fan Peck is of them, how Peck and Lo Truglio's grounded interaction is another example of the franchise's lasting appeal, and exploring the respective legacies of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Lucifer, five years later and the common thread they share.

Strange New Worlds: Rachael Harris and Joe Lo Truglio on Bonding with Ethan Peck During Their Scenes, Reflecting on the Legacies of 'Lucifer' and 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' Five Years Later

Bleeding Cool: Did you have a favorite scene from the episode that you both were involved in or personal?

Lo Truglio: I'll say that one of my favorite scenes is the first scene that there's not a lot in it, because they had to take a lot out, but there's a scene when Ch'Rol and Ejachi are sitting, and he's behind her with his knife. I loved shooting that scene, because it was the first thing where Rachael and I got to really kind of play, and they rightfully needed to edit it down because it's not, as Rachael says, the Ejachi and Ch'Rol show, but my memory of that scene was great, because that was the first time Rachael and I were able to get it up on our on its legs and really start to get a hold of these characters and then to have Ethan there as well, like the three of us.

Harris: That was the first time Ethan was like, "You guys, I'm so sorry, I am Spock. I cannot respond, but you guys are so funny," and you're saying, "I was up in his face. He couldn't respond, and he broke character and was like, 'You guys were amazing and hilarious.'" He knew that was our first day, where he was just immediately accommodating, kind, and sweet to us. But did I cut you off, Joe? I felt like you were saying something.

Lo Truglio: No, that was it. That was it, yeah.

Harris: Okay, dig it. Okay. Oh, but my favorite scene, and I'm not in it, is the scene where Ejachi and Spock have that come-together moment where they're talking.

Lo Truglio: Really? Oh, that's nice.

Harris: I think that scene could have been taken. You could do that scene anywhere, like take it off of the bridge, take it, take all the makeup off, and just have these two guys talking about the stress or any gangster film. You know what I mean?

Lo Truglio: Well, it's true, and then you take…it's nice to have a scene where two males, or rather, an Orion male and a Vulcan male can have [Harris laughs] a real intimate conversation about tenderness and about connection is…

Harris: Gender.

Lo Truglio: But that's what Star Trek is. They're able to handle issues like that, human and social issues in such a great way. It's why it's gone on for 60 years. It's so beloved; you have scenes like you don't see on television ever. So, it was great to be part of it.

Harris: No, and also Tom fully- just my ego loved getting to do it when we walk onto the bridge, and also, that stuff got cut down appropriately. We had a huge scene where Joe and I come in, we shoot, and then step over a body that we've already knocked down and come in. Just to get to do that, Joe has said this before, for the two of us to be in an episode where we get to play those kinds of characters or on a series where we can play those types of characters, doesn't happen to us a lot. For me, being the badass and shooting Ethan was a dream. It was so cool to get to do that.

Lo Truglio: It was. There was a lot of gratitude, because it was one of those jobs where You're on set, then you're doing the scene, and in the middle of the scene, you say to yourself, "Oh yeah! That's why I do this! That's why I put up with all this other crap in this business! It's this! It's right now! I'm wearing the makeup, and I'm with the puppets. "Oh, I get it!" It's very affirming.

Harris: This moment, right now. Yeah, we're not paid to act. We're paid to show up, and not even turn green. Just be available. Yeah, it sounds fun.

Final question: you guys are coming off five years from your respective biggest signature shows with 'Lucifer' and 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine.' I was wondering, what do you miss most about being on your respective show, introspectively?

Lo Truglio: I miss the cast, and I include the crew family in that. You spend eight years with people, then you go through all these big life changes. They have kids, get married, and you get used to the rhythm of having that family. [Brooklyn Nine-Nine] was amazing. The writers were amazing. I'm proud of the show, but you miss the people.

Harris: Yeah, you miss the connection. You walk onto a lot that you're shooting, the familiarity; you have the structure. I get there, I go to my trailer, just those things that feel like home. It's like your second home and your second family. We were very tight, all of us with Tom Ellis, Lauren German, and our dear writers too, who just came and hung out. Also, I think, Joe, you can relate to this too, is that we both had such a huge fandom for 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' and 'Lucifer,' both for similar reasons. We all got canceled, and it was our fans who went nuts and got them back. I miss that whole thing, because it was so exciting to be like, "Here comes the new episode, and see what people say."

I know this is a long answer, but I think we both can relate to it that it's exciting to come onto a show like Star Trek, a series that's so beloved, and to know how much the fans love this show. I think we understand that, so we got really excited to be a part of that fandom and a part of this family in a small but important way.

Lo Truglio: Yeah, well said. That's true.

New episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, which also stars Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn, Melissa Navia, Jess Bush, Christina Chong, Celia Rose Gooding, Babs Olusanmokun, Paul Wesley, and Martin Quinn, stream Thursdays on Paramount+.

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