Rising to fame through the US version off The Office, Rainn Wilson’s ability to lean into the weird and quirky was a perfect fit for paper salesman and beet farmer Dwight Schrute. Taking on the role of the by the book suck up, originally portayed in the UK version by Mackenzie Crook, Wilson’s take on the role was straight faced repressed anger in a beige suit. As time went on, and the US version deviated from the original scripts, Dwight Schrute became one of the most insane characters while still being one of the most popular for his wit, complete lack of charm and near psychotic loyalty to his associates.
Having studied theatre and the arts at the University of Washington, Wilson came from a creative background and would often cite his father, author and painter Robert Wilson, for his passion for the arts; often sharing his fathers works on social media before his passing in 2020. Over the Office’s nine year run, Wilson would earn himself three Emmy nominations and spread his creative wings by writing and directing for the show. Since it’s final episode he’s appeared in both drama leading shows such as the American adaption of Backtrom to appearing alongside Jason Statham in comedy The Meg.
Being a fan of Star Trek since his childhood in the 70’s, when Discovery was announced to bring a new lease of life to the franchise, Wilson chased down his chance to get involved.
“As soon as the writers staff was formed, I begged my agents, ‘Can I just have a general meeting?’ Wilson told StarTrek.com back in 2017 while discussing a meeting with the producers who discussed their visual ideas at the time, “Then, I don’t know, six months later I got a call. ‘How about Harry Mudd?’ I was like, “That’s perfect.”
First appearing in Choose Your Pain, Wilson had the chance to show the darker side of a desperate and imprisoned Harry Mudd who found himself in a Klingon holding cell alongside Lorca and later in the season, in the shows most standalone episode Magic To Make The Sanest Man Go Mad, would follow up with Mudd using time altering technology to get his revenge for Lorca leaving him behind.
Sharing more of his talents with the Star Trek universe, Wilson would return a third and final time for an episode of Short Trek’s focused solely on Harry Mudd’s mischievous adventures. Written by Mike McMahon, the short was directed by Wilson himself and bridge the gap between Mudd’s more sinister side with the mischief of the original performance by Roger C Carmel.
Outside of the acting world, Wilson is a huge advocate for mental health, climate change and the environment and spiritual wellness, all of which he writes about with depth in his book The Bassoon King. Still writing and performing today, Wilson continues to work with non profits and charities including LIDE which he co-founded with his wife.
With Discovery racing to the 32nd Century in it’s third season, it’s uncertain if we’ll see Rainn Wilson’s version of Harry Mudd again on screen. But we can live in hope that with Strange New Worlds continuing for five seasons that Captain Pike might just run into the rogue having jippers on the beach….
About the author
A Fistful of Familiar Surroundings
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo. President Forward During the Next Generation multiple set pieces were re-used and recycled from the set pieces built for the film franchise. From the obvious re-use of internal corridors, to smaller pieces such as Dr Crushers office being McCoy's, it's hard for a keen eye to ignore how much the productions shared between them. But as The Next Generation became the dominant forcer with ongoing production and full standing sets, eventually the turn tabled and by the final original cast instalment, it was the TNG stages that became the obvious redress solution. The most jarring of the films set re-uses was the office of the president. As Kirk and McCoy were charged with assassination, a political poop show begins and the Federation […]
Who is Jet Reno?
As Academy reopens it's doors, we've been introduced to a whole new cast of cadets ready to take on the responsibility of being Starfleets next generation of explorers. But among the new faces are familiar ones sharing their knowledge and experience with one of their new tutors making the jump from Discovery. If you jumped straight into Academy though, you may be wondering just who is temporal mechanics class lead, and occasional sports coach, Jet Reno...? Making her first appearance in Discovery's second season opener 'Brother', Commander Jett Reno is a Starfleet engineer renowned for her razor-sharp intellect, unflappable calm under pressure, and famously dry wit. A veteran of numerous high-risk assignments, Reno has built a reputation as one of Starfleet’s most resourceful and unconventional problem-solvers.Before Discovery, Reno began her career as a starship engineer, specializing in propulsion systems, power […]
[Treknology] The Iconic Communicator
Few pieces of tech in science fiction have been as influential or recognisable as Starfleet's communicators. Essential tech for life in Starfleet, handheld communicators were originally used most commonly with landing parties to communicate with both home base and the rest of the team on the ground, or could be used on board a starship or facility while linked in to the on-board communications network. In the 22nd and 23rd centuries, the communicators were simple clamshell designs that could be flipped open to make a call home. Appearing first in the original series, the first communicators were designed by prop maker Wah Ming Chang, who developed other tools of the trade for the series, as a sleek and slimline device that looked significantly more advanced than the bulky radio's and telecoms devices of the 60's. With a flick of the […]
A Fistful of Forgotten Technology
Travelling the stars is a lot more fun when you have engineers who can turn rocks into replicators and scientists who come up with some crazy ideas on a whim and bring some brand new tech into creation to solve this weeks problem. But sometimes you have to wonder what happens to the inventions that didn't last the week.... Borg Again Once upon a time, Neelix died. Then Seven came along, casually unstuffed some Borg probes in him and suddenly he's back to life again. Mortal Coil is an episode that focuses on Neelix's belief and psychological after effects of being dead, even if just briefly, only to experience nothing but his revival. It's a common story throughout all genre's of TV. It's just this time there were nanoprobes to speed up the 'coming back to life' part. Seven's nanoprobes […]
Across The Universe This November!
As the year comes to an end, the new cycles are spinning up as Star Trek looks ahead towards new frontiers... UNDER CONSTRUCTION.... AGAIN... It's safe to say the biggest news of December had all eyes back on the film side of the Star Trek franchise again as Paramount seems to have found a new plan to revive Trek on the big screen. Which, sure, comes with a lot of scepticism. We've already had the Tarantino plan, the Kelvin revival announcement, the Hawley film that went into pre production before another announcement and probably more that we've forgotten about. But this one comes from the all new Paramount under Skydance, so lets be cautiously hopeful! According to Deadline the new pitch is coming from Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley who will write and direct a completely new take on […]
[Ships of the Line] Send ‘nubes! The Danube Class Runabout
The world of Star Trek is filled with graceful and elegant ships, huge forces of nature packed to the rafters with a bustling crew with every skill imaginable under one roof for any situation. But not all of the fleet's numbers are massive hulks ready for adventure. Sometimes you just need a little runner to get you from one place to another for missions that might last a few weeks more than a few years. Put into action in the late 2360's, the Danube Class Runabout was ideal for short term missions or teams that needed more than a cramped and empty transport shuttle to get the job done. At at least four or five times the size of a standard shuttlecraft, the Danube class was a step up from the range of short-range craft. Designed as a tightly condensed […]
Related
[Inside Trek] Behind the Viewscreen; Robert Blackman
One of the most long serving and influential visual architects of the Star Trek universe, Robert Blackman became part of the Star Trek franchise during the Next Generations second season as lead costume designer. Responsible for re-shaping Starfleets style, his work and influence was a vital parts of shaping the look of an entire era. Blackman's introduction to the Star Trek Universe had an awkward start. Having a background in theatre and film, he was already committed to another show as it's costume designer when the Star Trek office began courting his services. The Next Generation was in it's second season and already had a defined look, but it wasn't quite right. Not yet. Accepting the contract with conditions - primarily by keeping his word and finishing his commitments elsewhere, his first task was to update the spandex jumpsuits of the […]
Inside Trek/Outside Trek: Isa Briones
When Star Trek Picard premiered in 2020, one of its brightest revelations was Isa Briones. New to the franchise, Briones was a core part of the story who's first season came in two parts; Dahj, who was swiftly killed off in the first episode revealing her synthetic origins as one half of a pair, giving us her second and most vital character, Soji. Having been in the spotlight since she was three years old, Isa Briones is one part of a family of actors. Her parents - Megan Johnson and Jon Jon Briones – are both working actors, as is her brother Teo. Having been raised within the industry, Briones had a huge learning experience throughout her life and career before being cast in Picard. Coming fresh off a Broadway run of Hamilton, Briones was only twenty years old at […]
That Guy From That Thing: Billy Campbell
Gaining his first major role only two years after his screen debut, Campbell gained the role of Luke Fuller in the iconic American soap opera Dynasty, acting opposite Jack Coleman a love interest of Steve Carrington until Luke's death. It was a huge role for Campbell's early career and, much like Coleman, a launching pad to becoming a workhorse of an actor in TV and film. Soon after leaving Dynasty, another set of producers had their eyes on Campbell for their own show; a sequel to 60's space drama Star Trek. Campbell was eyed for the role of the bold first officer, Commander Riker, and the favourite to take the role. Telling StarTrek.com that 'the best man got the job' in 2014, and had elsewhere commented that he didn't feel his final audition went well, but that disappointment didn't slow […]
[Inside Trek] Behind the Viewscreen: Roxann Dawson
Best remembered for her turn as Voyagers volatile half Klingon Engineer B'Ellanna Torres, Roxann Dawson seven years on Voyager was a breakout moment for her on screen acting career as well as a transition to a new aspect of her career. Drawn to acting from an early age, Dawson began her career on stage in regional productions following her studied at the University of California earned her a Bachelor of Fine Arts. Moving into television in 1985, Dawson racked up dozens of credits ranging from Matlock to Baywatch in guest roles before being cast for Voyager in 1994, a role that quickly saw her become a fan favourite in the complex role of an engineer with a temper, lending her talents to Starfleet as an outsider. During her time on the show, her passion for the inner workings of building […]
Inside Trek/Outside Trek: Scott Bakula
Joining the world of Star Trek to lead the prequel series Enterprise, Scott Bakula wasn't exactly an unknown star when he arrived on the bridge to take the centre seat. Becoming a household name a couple of decades earlier, Bakula made the move from stage to screen only a year after his Tony Winning performance in Broadway show Romance/Romance after taking on the short lived role of Dr Sam Becket in cult classic Quantum Leap. Co-starring Dean Stockwell as his holographic companion, Bakula's Sam Becket was a physicist who'd figured out who time travel worked and used himself to test the theory after learning the project was soon to be shut down. Becoming lost in time, Sam's consciousness would embody a different person every week as his machine, the Quantum Leap Accelerator and it's semi-sentient computer Ziggy, would guide him […]
Relay Recap: July 2024
All Features Universe Categories Fleet Alert Comms GORN GIRL recap; july 2025 Picking up on the Season 2 cliff-hanger, Strange New Worlds returned to our screens this month to find Captain Pike and his crew on the edge of war with the Gorn as Season 3 was finally released!Exploring new worlds and new problems, the Enterprise crew are back in action on Paramount Plus and we're keeping ourselves up to date with weekly episode discussion threads on our FB Continuing Mission Group & Weekly episode reviews from Admin ! Explore... Episode Reviews Spoilers Group ACROSS THE UNIVERSE As we look back on Pike's adventures on the Enterprise in the prequel series, Paramount also gave us a look at whats to come next as Entertainment Weekly and SDCC's Star Trek Universe panel gave us a sneak peek at the reopening of […]
