Ever since we heard his voice over in season 2 of Star Trek: Discovery, Spock, as played by actor Ethan Peck (grandson of Gregory), somehow became the sexiest, emo Vulcan and brother to Michael Burnham ever in the history of Trek.
Now part of the ensemble cast of the hit Strange New Worlds, Peck is bringing Spock to a place he’s never been, heartthrob.
Part of the secret sauce behind Strange New Worlds is, of course, Spock. Peck has nailed everything fans know and love about this legendary character, from his arch formality to his bone-dry humor, while also boldly going where no one has gone before. For the first time ever, viewers get a peek into Spock’s sex life; in one standout episode, a soul-sharing ritual gone wrong sees Spock and his fiancée swap bodies, leading them to profound insights about duty and sacrifice (and, of course, some funny hijinks). But Peck doesn’t want too much credit for his rendition of the role. “I don’t feel like I have any ownership over Spock,” he tells Esquire. “I’m just a custodian.”
A lifelong science fiction fan and a deep, scholarly thinker, Peck has been thrown into the deep end of a multi-decade phenomenon—and come out the other side grateful and changed. He Zoomed with Esquire to discuss all things Star Trek, from what it’s like wearing the Vulcan eyebrows to how he ended up on an ocean cruise full of Trek fans. This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Esquire: What was your relationship to Star Trek before you joined the franchise?
Ethan Peck: I’m a big science fiction fan, but in my younger years, I somehow avoided or overlooked Star Trek. Then I became a big fan of J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek movies. I remember the very first time I saw the posters. Each character looked so developed and thrilling. I thought, “I wish I could do something like that.” Now I’m on Star Trek. It’s crazy, but it’s exactly where I want to be in terms of genre.
ESQ: What are some other meaningful science fiction touchpoints for you?
EP: It started with Golden Age science fiction books. I recall reading Isaac Asimov’s The End of Eternity when I was around twelve years old—that was really seminal in terms of how I perceive the universe, and the bigger philosophical quest it sent me on. From a young age, Akira was huge for me, too. It asks so many big questions. It’s an allegory for the threat of nuclear war and the mass destruction we can wreak on ourselves, but it also asks: what is consciousness? That was the first time I’d been exposed to those ideas in a way that I could begin to understand. Of course, 2001: A Space Odyssey made a huge impact, too. Oftentimes a book comes out before a movie, but with 2001: A Space Odyssey, Kubrick reached out to Arthur C. Clarke and said, “I want to create the quintessential science fiction film. Will you help me?” The script was actually completed before the book. I remember reading the book and thinking, “I wish hadn’t seen the movie so I could create my own imagery for this,” only to discover that it came out after. I love that book.
ESQ: When you first auditioned for Discovery, how did you feel about stepping into the iconic role of Spock?
EP: When I first auditioned, I didn’t even know what I was auditioning for. The project had a code name, so I was blissfully unaware. We knew that it was code for Star Trek, but I had no idea what the role was. I assumed it was something small. By the time I learned what the role was after two auditions, I was quite frankly terrified. I was terrified of the audition, but also of the need to live up to this mythical icon, as Spock has become. I blacked out the very last audition—I barely remember what I did. After getting the part, I was still terrified. I felt unworthy of it. I felt I had so much personal growth to undergo in order to fulfill the needs of this character. Spock is such a vast-minded person—he’s otherworldly, hyper-intelligent, and has great integrity. I’m constantly working to live up to him.
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ESQ: Now that you’ve played Spock across multiple television shows, what keeps you coming back to him?
EP: I’m still trying to grab the Vulcanism in myself. I felt that I was called to undergo profound evolution to serve the needs of this character, because he’s just so extraordinary. I’ve been pushed to develop in ways that maybe I wouldn’t have if I hadn’t been cast in this role. I was cast in 2018, but I’m only just starting to feel like, “I’m here, and I’m doing this, and I’m capable of it.” I still have doubts about that sometimes because there’s so much nuance to the character. That challenge is what brings me back. I don’t see that it ever would get old or stale or known to me, because the writers keep presenting me with new challenges for this character, and I’m on my toes constantly.
ESQ: Strange New Worlds finds a lot of new shades in Spock. Within the first fifteen minutes of Episode One, he’s falling into bed his fiancée, T’Pring. Spock has had romances, but now, for the first time ever, he has a sex life. What was that like, to be the actor who gets to take him there?
EP: It was really scary, because there’s no blueprint for that. Unfortunately, Leonard Nimoy is not alive to offer me any guidance or advice. Those moments are quite terrifying, because I’m treading into the unknown, and I’m captaining whatever ship is taking me there—albeit with a huge amount of support from the people that I work with. During my preparation for that scene, I thought, “What’s too human? What’s too sexual? What’s too Vulcan? What’s weird enough? What’s so weird that it doesn’t feel relatable to viewers?” That discussion was ongoing with Akiva Goldsman, who directed the episode, and Gia Sandhu, who plays T’Pring. It was a very careful and cautious process.
ESQ: Another shade you bring out in Spock is his capacity for humor. How do you make this guy who has no sense of irony or sarcasm so funny?
EP: A lot of that has to do with the writing. It’s always funny to see Spock in a situation where you think, “Oh no, this is going to be bad for Spock. He’s going to do something awkward and goofy and strange.” When he comes into conflict with his own social constructs, that presents a lot of possibilities. For example, there’s a moment where Captain Pike smacks Spock on the shoulder, and he’s mystified by the idea of someone touching him. The writers do such a great job of putting him in humorous situations and allowing him to be jocular.
ESQ: How has your grandfather Gregory Peck’s legacy figured into how you approach your own work as an actor?
EP: I didn’t know him very well. Ten or fifteen years ago, I wanted to reject the part of me that comes from him, because I felt so undeserving of that pedigree. There’s nothing I did to earn a position in my family tree—I could have been born anywhere. That’s something I ruminate on quite a lot, and now, I feel extremely lucky to be a part of this family, because it does come with perquisites. I think the greatest gift from my grandfather is the possibility of huge success. A lot of people are born into families that don’t have this level of recognition, so to attain that seems like an impossible, otherworldly thing. For me, that level of respect and public appreciation felt achievable. In terms of success, it’s given me an openness to the strange or the weird. I’m so proud of being on this show. I can’t believe it. I feel so lucky to be a part of Star Trek and to be Spock; that feels like a really big achievement. I can trace that sensation of success back to being born into this family.
