After announcing his retirement last year (and breaking Trekkie's hearts everywhere), actor Leonard Nimoy has agreed to appear on CBS's hit series The Big Bang Theory - well, sort of.

On March 29th, the sci-fi-legend will appear in an episode during one of Sheldon's dreams. Unfortunately, Nimoy's cameo comes with one slight hitch: we won’t actually see him onscreen. Instead, Nimy's appearance will be following in the same vein as his other recent roles, with the actor appearing via voice-over only.

Though he may have been on the top of the producers' wish list, Nimoy is just the latest in a string of Star Trek alumni to appear on the CBS geek comedy. Previously, the series also featured cameos from Star Trek: The Next Generation’s LeVar Burton and Brent Spiner, as well as original cast member George Takei.  The most notable appearance on the series has been from Will Wheaton (Wesley Crusher in The Next Generation), who has a recurring role on the series as an antagonistic version of himself and Sheldon’s "mortal enemy."

While it seems that lately we can’t even turn on the TV without seeing William Shatner’s face (not that we’re unhappy about it), Nimoy has been relatively quiet since announcing his "retirement" last April. Though the seasoned actor has not taken any additional on-camera roles, he has recently lent his distinctly smooth voice to William Bell in an animated episode of Fox’s sci-fi thriller Fringe, as well as voicing Sentinel Prime in Transformers: Dark of the Moon.

The Spock episode of The Big Bang Theory may shape up to be the best the hit series has seen yet. High standards have been set, with sci-fi fans of both shows eagerly anticipating the Star Trek legend’s cameo - even if they can’t actually see him. Everyone will keep their ears (pointy or not) open for the faintest flicker that Nimoy’s treasured “live long and prosper” catchphrase will be uttered.

That being said, some pickier fans may take the voiceover gig as more of a tease than a treat, but either way, given the BBT characters' intense infatuation with Spock, we can only imagine just how bizarre (and hilarious) Sheldon’s Vulcan dream sequence might turn out.

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The Big Bang Theory airs Thursdays @8pm on CBS

Source: TV Line