Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' fourth season delivered an episode that boldly went where few Star Trek installments have gone before, transforming the starship Enterprise and its crew into puppets. The episode, "Level Five Transporter Accident," saw a transporter mishap instigated by Montgomery Scott accidentally turn the ship's organic inhabitants into fabric creations. Spock, who was off the ship at the time, was left as the sole unaffected crew member, tasked with protecting the puppeted Enterprise from external threats.
Director Jordan Canning, who also helmed multiple seasons of Apple TV+'s Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock, drew upon her extensive puppetry experience for the episode. "The Strange New Worlds crew just dove in with open minds and open hearts for this very different process," Canning told Polygon. "Like with all the amazing genre swings they do, the characters stay grounded. The world stays real and grounded despite what sort of insane things are happening within it that week." Canning collaborated with the episode's writers, Dana Horgan and Henry Alonso Myers, incorporating the inherent limitations of puppets into the narrative. "They embraced all of this stuff that puppets are kind of bad at, like holding certain things or really dextrous hand movements," Canning explained. "They built that into the storyline, which I think was so brilliant. We're not pretending that they're not puppets. They are aware that they’re puppets. What comes along with that is the pros and cons of being puppets."
The vulnerability of the puppeted crew became apparent when Orion pirates attacked. Unable to operate most of the ship's controls, the puppet crew found themselves in precarious situations, being tossed around the ship and dodging flying debris. Rachael Harris, playing the Orion captain, and Joe Lo Truglio, her second-in-command, found themselves in numerous puppet-centric fight scenes. "It was amazing getting to just throw these little puppets around," Harris remarked. "It was actually hard to be mean to them."
Despite the absurdity, the episode maintained a grounded emotional core, particularly through Spock's perspective. In a harrowing moment, the pirates tossed a puppet version of Captain Christopher Pike out the airlock, prompting Spock to deliver a Vulcan salute as Pike uttered the iconic line, "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few." Canning noted the challenge of maintaining Spock's stoic demeanor amidst the chaos. "Ethan is such a terrific guy and a great actor that it was very easy to act with him on a more serious level and insert some moments of lightness in," Lo Truglio said. "He was super thoughtful and sweet to both Rachael and I. He was always saying ‘You guys are so funny but I can’t laugh. I can’t react to you guys. I’m Spock. But just know that you guys are doing great and we’re so happy you’re here.’"
Filming puppets alongside human actors presented unique challenges. Special considerations were made for scenes involving furniture, such as a new captain's chair designed to accommodate a puppeteer. Many set pieces featured hidden compartments and holes to conceal puppeteers who often operated from the floor, sliding on dollies or crammed into tight spaces. "The puppeteers will cram themselves into any little corner to make something work," Canning observed.
The first five episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 are currently available for streaming on Paramount Plus, with new episodes releasing weekly on Thursdays until September 24.