We’re back with our next interview from October’s New York Comic Con extravaganza, continuing our chats with the cast and crew of Star Trek: Prodigy — straight from the convention floor.

Along with a few other outlets, TrekCore had the chance to sit down with Prodigy newcomer Jameela Jamil (Ensign Acensia of Admiral Janeway’s USS Dauntless), who told us about her love of Trek growing up, how the franchise continues to stay relevant despite it’s long life, and who she’s most like to meet if Prodigy ever crossed over to live-action television.

TREKCORE: Did you know you were auditioning for Star Trek when you first went out for the role? These things are kept so secret sometimes…

JAMEELA JAMIL: No, I was told – and I jumped for it. I didn’t even look at the pay, I didn’t care! [laughs] My brother was the first person I called when I got it, and he’s so excited for me.

TREKCORE: You’ve said how much of a Trek fan you were from growing up.

JAMIL: The Next Generation was my first big introduction to Star Trek, and then I worked my way around to the other shows after that. Deep Space Nine? So good. Like, when did we ever see stories about Black fatherhood in these worlds? DS9 was just so ahead of the game, and I can’t wait to see if what we’re doing now on Prodigy will be as relevant in twenty years’ time.

QUESTION: As someone who loves nerdy things, how does it feel to be part of something that’s meant so much to you growing up – and something that may mean so much to another generation?

JAMIL: I’ve hit my nerd EGOT, Right? It’s like MCU, DC, Star Trek. If I hit Star Wars, that’s it. It’s amazing. Science fiction, especially Star Trek – and I think Marvel and DC are doing a really good job too – they were some of the first places where kids like me could see people like them represented, and there were ideas about class and race hidden in all of these stories being told.

I think these are some of the greatest stories ever told, in spite of how unrelatable the environments may be, the kind of intersocial and emotional politics that get told through these stories are very good for children to learn – and to learn about people who are so different, who come from very different backgrounds, and who even sometimes can’t communicate with each other, but still find ways to work together to reach a better outcome.

That is vital in these times where there’s so much division, for kids to be able to see that. I’m so glad to see children now really invited into the Star Trek world with something made specifically for them – not just for them, though, because I think there’s also a lot of adult undertones as well – but we are definitely making a statement that this is for kids, you know?

I think they’ve done a really good job of not condescending to young people. It’s such a massive legacy to take on; decades and decades of Star Trek history to catch up on. The Prodigy writers have been so smart to have these kids who aren’t from this world join Starfleet, and kind of learn from scratch in a way that’s really easy to introduce people to this legacy – but without being like, “go watch 55 years of history.”

QUESTION: Did you get to see Asencia’s character design before you began recording?

JAMIL: I got to see some rough sketches, but I had no idea how beautifully drawn it would all be – I was blown away just seeing the incredible opening shots from the pilot episode.

So I had a little bit to work with, but really I had a lot of freedom because it was still in such early stages, and they built her facial expressions and her mannerisms around my performance.

TREKCORE: Asencia’s accent is obviously different from your speaking voice – was a choice you made in recording?

JAMIL: It was the creative team’s idea – I think they just wanted me to just blend in, for reasons that will make sense later on in the show. It’s important that she doesn’t stand out too much – she’s got her own voice, and she’s precocious and she stands up for her ideas, but she’s still very much a team player.

QUESTION: If the Prodigy characters ever made the leap to live action, would you want to be a part of that?

JAMIL: Oh yeah! I mean, I would die to be in live-action Star Trek. If I could interact with, like, Data, I’d lose it. He’s always been my favorite character; I’ve been talking about him all day. I’m obsessed with him, he’s my favorite character in anything ever.

And Worf – I love Worf! Somehow people even decided to love the Ferengi before they loved Worf. I’m a very grouchy person like he is, and I love him. I love his mating call. I love his deadpan delivery, he’s so funny.

TREKCORE: What’s been the biggest surprise to you as you’ve become part of the Star Trek universe yourself?

JAMIL: Knowing how fandoms can be on the internet, you know…. I wasn’t sure what to expect from this one, because the legacy is so dense and rich. But I’ve found Star Trek fans to be the kindest and most welcoming – I don’t know if it’s because “Live Long and Prosper” sets a tone of “I want the best for you,” but that’s what it feels like.

But also, with how long the franchise has existed, the fan base is really of all ages, and that’s really cool. To be able to talk with people who’ve loved this for such a long time – even longer than I have! I’m having a blast so far, and I really wasn’t allowed to talk about Prodigy much until now.

So get ready for me to not shut up about it!

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Star Trek: Prodigy will return with “Asylum” on Thursday, October 27 on Paramount+ in the United States, and on October 28 in Latin America, Australia, Italy and the U.K. The series is said to air “later in the year” in South Korea, Germany, France, Austria, and Switzerland.