Star Trek’s Baddest Villain Comes Back to Life in New Tragic Love Story: “She Was Opening Up Sides of Him"

Khan Noonien Singh, the most memorable and iconic villain in Star Trek history, is back. He’s the star of a new scripted podcast, Star Trek: Khan. It’s going to fill in the missing pieces of Khan’s life, and detail how he transformed from the suave would-be conqueror Captain Kirk exiled to Ceti Alpha V in the Original Series episode “Space Seed” into the single-minded instrument of vengeance from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

Star Trek: Khan takes place across two timelines. One details the lives of Khan (Naveen Andrews) and Starfleet turncoat Marla McGivers (Wrenn Schmidt) in exile on Ceti Alpha V. The second comes in the wake of Khan’s rampage after escaping from exile, as historian Rosalind Lear (Sonya Cassidy) sifts through Khan’s history with a pair of Starfleet legends in their own right: officers Hikaru Sulu (George Takei) and Tuvok (Tim Russ). The podcast is based on a story by Nicholas Meyer, who wrote and directed Wrath of Khan, and was written by Trek veterans Kirsten Beyer and David Mack. With Khan‘s first episode out now, Collider sat down with Beyer, who is a prolific writer of Star Trek novels and has penned episodes of Discovery, Picard, and Strange New Worlds.

COLLIDER: First off, Star Trek: Khan centers around one of the most iconic villains in Star Trek history. Was it intimidating to delve deeper into that character than ever before? And what excited you about that challenge?

BEYER: I wouldn’t call it intimidating. We play with lots of big toys around here, so it is exciting and thrilling. But at the end of the day, there are a lot of, sort of basic ways in which you approach this stuff. It all comes down to character. And, you know, “What do we know about this guy? What don’t we know about this guy? And what is the story we’re trying to tell here?” And for me, the way it had to do with the Khan that we see in “Space Seed” is one guy. And the Khan that we meet in Wrath is a very different guy. And the first time I really caught that, I was like, “Well, so what happened there?” I mean, we sort of know, right? Well, the planet exploded, his planet was laid waste, and his beloved wife died. And it looks like they’ve had a hard time with it, but I don’t know. The Khan of “Space Seed” is so layered and so complex, and there is so much going on there that it felt like there was so much more story there to get us to Wrath.

COLLIDER: The project also features a real-life Star Trek legend in Nicholas Meyer, who directed Wrath of Khan and later Undiscovered Country. What was it like working with him?

BEYER: Nick is a delight. He is one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever known. He’s also really very kind. When we had disagreements or challenges in terms of the material, we just had a way of working through them that was really informed by the perspective that we both bring to this project. He has this deep, deep knowledge of film history and story that is extraordinary. And I have this deep, deep history of Star Trek, and all of that universe and everything that it encompasses. The task at hand was to sort of marry those two things together so that we could dig out and, in the most compelling way for today’s audience, tell the story that he wanted to tell, which was really the tragedy of this character.

What Brought Two ‘Star Trek’ Legends Together For ‘Khan’?

COLLIDER: That story also features a framing device with two other Star Trek icons in the form of George Takei and Tim Ross, and they’re returning to play Sulu and Tuvok. Those two actors and characters have a connection, having appeared in the Voyager episode “Flashback.” At what point was the decision made to bring those two on board? And why were those two crucial to the story?

BEYER: That decision was made the moment I came on board and sort of looked at the material that we had. It felt to me like one of the things that was missing was a sense of, “Why are we telling this story now?” You could very easily have just started this thing with Khan on the planet and told it straight through, however it goes. But to me, knowing that the Augment history had had such a profound effect on the wider Star Trek universe felt like something essential that we also had to be tapping into. But in order to do that, you had to have some characters on board who had that perspective.

So, characters who were alive after the events of Wrath, and the introduction of the historian character, is very much about introducing the perspective and the question that I had, “Is our understanding of this guy complete?” Because looking at all the things I know, I’m not sure that it is. The Federation is such an extraordinary, in theory, organization. And one of the things that it has always prided itself on is its infinite diversity and infinite combinations, right? Everything that is out there is good and beautiful and has a purpose, even when it’s trying to kill us.

I think that this one issue, this Augment issue, is so fascinating because we know all the way through Deep Space Nine, this is still a practice that is banned and for good reason. And it’s just a hard thing to put together in your brain like, “Well, we get everything else. And there are so many good uses for this sort of technology. Why?” But then you look at sort of like, whatever this cultural memory of that experience was, and how horrible it had to have been for them to just go, “No, beyond this point of dragons, we are not going any further than this, and stop talking about it.”

And the ripple effects that that would have on the people of the Federation and all the other species out there, and how we developed, it’s such a good question and an interesting place to explore, because I don’t think there’s a right answer here. I understand why they feel the way they feel. And I also understand why it’s a problem for the people who are sort of subjugated or suffer in a way because of it. Those are the fun Star Trek issues, right? Those questions that don’t have an easy answer. That’s one of the things you’re always digging for.

COLLIDER: You certainly have an extensive Star Trek resume, and you’ve written, I believe, 11 novels based on Star Trek: Voyager. But this is, I believe, your first time writing for Tim Russ himself. Was it difficult to get back in?

BEYER: No, it was the easiest thing in the world. And delightful. And then, of course, to actually sit with him and record this and to actually [hear him] saying these words was one of those thrills that you never imagine you’re going to have in life. And then there you are, don’t you? It was just magical for me to get to do that.

COLLIDER: You have written novels and now TV episodes as well, but this is one of your first scripted podcasts. How do you approach that differently?

BEYER: Actually, it’s my second. The first one I did of these was something called “No Man’s Land” for Star Trek: Picard. It sits between Seasons 1 and 2, and it was released by Simon & Schuster a couple years ago, so that was the first time that I had really delved into this. This was my second. And the biggest difference is, frankly, that you lose some tools when you’re working in audio that you have when you’re working on screen — which is essentially the ability to communicate a lot of things visually, things you don’t have to put into words.

But for an audience who’s just listening to the thing, the ability to find a way to make clear what’s happening without taking people out of the story is the whole trick to it. People don’t walk up to somebody and say, “Well, now I’m carrying a generator,” right? And yet you need them to understand he’s carrying a generator, so you have to find a way to get all of that information out, but still make it sound like people are just living their lives, and the listener is eavesdropping on that. It’s just a different challenge.

Creating a Love Story for ‘Star Trek: Khan’

“The goal became to create that dynamic between them.”

COLLIDER: Crafting compelling relationship dynamics is one of your strengths as a writer. And this podcast, in large part, is the love story of Khan and Marla McGivers. How did you unpack their unconventional relationship?

BEYER: Well, obviously, you start with “Space Seed,” which is problematic at best. I think that the character of Marla McGivers, as she appears in that show, was very much of her time. I don’t think audiences at the time particularly would have had a very strong reaction to what was going on there. I looked at it, and I think modern audiences and modern women would look at it and go, “Well, that’s abusive.” Like, that’s there’s really nothing attractive about that. So you can’t ignore that. You can’t pretend it doesn’t exist. What you have to do is figure out who Marla was at that time. That would have allowed for that behavior, and then begin to go deeper into what her life was really like and what would have driven her to sort of get to that place and then move her beyond it.

Because ultimately, in stories like this, the romance only works for me if the two people that are involved in the relationship are meeting as equals. And it seemed clear to me, at least as I initially looked at Khan, that I had a very hard time imagining the woman whom he would ever see as equal, ever. So the goal became to create that dynamic between them in such a way that she was opening up sides of him that he wasn’t even aware of, that had to do with basically his humanity and vulnerability. And I think there’s something to the challenge of someone who isn’t going to just take the bulls***, which she makes clear from the very first moments she appears, is the case. So that’s some of it.

COLLIDER: I loved the first four episodes. I feel that you’re really nailing that balance so far.

BEYER: Oh, good. Good. I’m glad to hear that. And of course, so much in the performances of Wrenn and Naveen, obviously. They bring it to life in the most interesting ways.

COLLIDER: And you are involved with the recording process. What sort of guidance did you give the actors?

BEYER: A lot of times it had to do with very, very subtle things in terms of motivation and clarity. Our director, Fred Greenhalgh, was also a genius in his own right. Had such a deep, intuitive knowledge of the story that we were telling and how he wanted the actors to communicate that. But there are also just levels to it that I’m holding in my head with the entire story, where I’m like, “Okay, but this thing actually refers to the thing that’s going to happen in two episodes. So I kind of need this instead.” And so I was there to sort of keep connecting those dots and kind of keep everything moving toward that direction. We had a wonderful dynamic together. We would take passes. He’d be like, “Kirsten, are you happy?” And we would move on. It was a great, great experience creating it together.

COLLIDER: You’re also working on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, and it touches on Khan briefly in Season 2, and he turned up as a child in 21st-century Toronto. I appreciate it as a Canadian.

BEYER: Yes, yes.

COLLIDER: Could we see some more cross-pollination between the podcast and the TV series?

BEYER: If it did, it would be one-sided. By which I mean, I think any podcasts would pull from story, but I don’t know what the stories would pull from that. I mean, I suppose anything could happen, but I would be surprised. And to be honest, I’m actually no longer working on Strange New Worlds as of Season 4. I’ve actually been with Starfleet Academy for the last few years.

What Can We Expect From ‘Starfleet Academy’?

“Fans have wanted to see this part of Starfleet for such a long time.”

COLLIDER: I’m very excited about that one as well. What are you most excited for fans to see with Starfleet Academy?

BEYER: I love these kids. I just love them. They’re delightful and surprising, and I think fans have wanted to see this part of Starfleet for such a long time. But it really is delightful to dig into characters who have the same sort of goals and aspirations that many of our hero officers that we’ve seen for 50 years have, but don’t quite yet have it pulled together inside enough to be that, and are in a very specific place in terms of the formation of just who they are as people. It just brings new challenges to the work that they have to do from a very unique perspective that we’ve never really gotten to see before. We’ve caught glimpses of it with Tilly as a cadet on Discovery and Uhura for her first year on Strange New Worlds. But now we’re right in the thick of it. And it really, really is fantastic.

COLLIDER: People have been speculating about a Starfleet Academy series since the 90s. I’m really excited to see that finally happen.

BEYER: Yeah, yeah, it’s been a lot of fun.

COLLIDER: If you were given the chance to do another Star Trek scripted podcast, what would be your subject matter of choice?

BEYER: I have no idea. I’m going to fail you utterly on that question. What I will say is that the Star Trek universe is vast, and I see it as sort of this gigantic puzzle, and there are so many blank spaces — things that we don’t know, time periods we haven’t yet covered. I know there’s a lot of people itching to just sort of continue the story forward from the early 21st century — 2400s and beyond — and keep telling things in order. But there are so many things that we know happened later, and filling in the gap in between them, “What was that like?” Those are the things that sort of excite me when I look at new material. But at this moment, there is nothing specific that I’m eyeballing because I’ve got more than enough to do, is what it comes down to.

The first episode of Star Trek: Khan is available to listen to below and on your favorite podcast platforms. New episodes arrive weekly on Mondays.