Holly Hunter has finally admitted she enjoyed going barefoot Star Trek: Starfleet Academy.
The 67-year-old American actress plays Nahla Ake, chancellor of the newly relaunched Starfleet Academy and captain of the field training spaceship Athena, in the recently released television series created by Gaia Violo.
Her character has many of the same qualities as Picard, Captains Kirk and Janeway and other commanding officers in the science fiction franchise.
Nahla gets a little more cozy, like walking around her spaceship barefoot and bending herself like a cat in the captain’s chair.
Speak with PEOPLE magazine Hunter revealed that her character likes to kick off her shoes even when she’s on duty.
The Oscar winner joked with a laugh: “I thought it was really fantastic. That’s nice because it’s the antithesis of what you should be doing – people wear protective footwear – boots, maybe with steel toed toes.”
“And there I am completely unprotected, trotting around, walking around, lazing around. Yeah, I love the opposition of it.”
“Being both the Starfleet Chancellor and the Captain, I wanted to avoid rigidity. I wanted to avoid formality and sort of a more militaristic attitude. I wanted to be adaptable and lean into them, curious and playful. And I wanted to be approachable. I wanted to lead with some humor,” Hunter explained.
Before concluding, it is pertinent to mention this Star Trek: Starfleet Academy debuted with two episodes on January 15, 2026 on Priority+. The ten-episode series will end in March this year.
