Many a Star Trek: Discovery fan would've wanted to be a fly on the wall when David Cronenberg was cast for season 3. Jumping forward 900 years into the future, the Star Trek: Discovery crew stumbled across plenty of unexpected phenomena - a collapsed Federation, a massive cat... and a legendary director popping into sickbay. When the Discovery finally located the hidden remains of Starfleet in the 32nd century, Burnham and the gang were met with an understandable aura of suspicion. Charged with interviewing these visitors from the past was Kovich - a cold scientist with knowledge of time travel and a questionable moral compass.
To the surprise of many, however, Kovich was portrayed by none other than David Cronenberg. An award-winning and critically celebrated director, Cronenberg's extensive list of credits includes Scanners, Videodrome, The Fly, A History of Violence and Eastern Promises. Though Cronenberg is far better known for his exploits behind the camera, the Canadian has made the short hop into frame on numerous occasions, including a few episodes of Alias, as Dr. Wimmer in Jason X, and via a handful of cameos in his own movies - The Fly included. Nevertheless, a recurring role in Star Trek: Discovery season 3 is not where many expected Cronenberg to lend his talents.
In a 2020 interview with Variety, David Cronenberg explained his presence in Star Trek's far-future with typically dry humor. Despite conceding that he hasn't followed Star Trek's more recent exploits (Discovery included), he did claim to be a big fan of the original series featuring Kirk, Spock and McCoy, acknowledging how this connection piqued his interest in playing Kovich - to become part of that same world. Of course, practicalities also played their part. Cronenberg describes how Alex Kurtzman (Star Trek: Discovery executive producer) earmarked the director for a character in season 3, and Cronenberg happened to be available for the gig. He's based in Toronto where Star Trek: Discovery is filmed, and his last big screen project came in 2014, leaving some calendar space free. Finally, Cronenberg admits that his services come cheap (for acting only, one would assume) which helped seal the deal on his Kovich role.
David Cronenberg might only feature in Star Trek: Discovery season 3 by virtue of being a cheap and available Star Trek fan, but his presence still adds a great deal to the landscape of the 32nd century. When Burnham lands in the future, there's much mystery to be found, with the Burn, the Temporal Wars, and a highly cynical Starfleet all inciting curiosity. Kovich becomes the embodiment of that uncertainty. He plays his cards close to his chest, knows far more than he lets on, and his dark interest in folks from the Mirror Universe betrays a scientific hunger that almost certainly trumps his loyalty to the Federation. Kovich is also one of precious few characters linking the Star Trek TV franchise to the J.J. Abrams Kelvin timeline. Though his part is relatively small, Cronenberg is a very worthy addition to Star Trek: Discovery, and his character is set to return in the upcoming season 4.
Indeed, Kovich might enjoy an even more pivotal impact in Star Trek: Discovery's upcoming season. Not only does the trailer reveal plenty of scenes at Starfleet HQ (with the Federation clawing back more and more lost allies), but season 4's primary threat is a giant space cloud eating anything in its path. That's hardly an enemy James T. Kirk could dropkick in the face, so the Discovery crew will be relying on their scientific minds to beat it - with Kovich surely the foremost voice of authority. David Cronenberg may not be known for his work on-screen, but you wouldn't guess that watching him in action as Star Trek: Discovery's Kovich.