How They Did The Makeup On Star Trek Discovery

Cyberspace Civilization

Published Jan 29, 2019 Updated May xx, 2021, viii:25 pm CDT

When Star Trek: Discovery gave the Klingons a makeover last yr, sometime-schoolStar Trek fans saw the move as pretty controversial. The Klingons had already inverse a lot since their first appearance in 1967, and people were pissed well-nighDiscovery giving them yet another new look.

So for flavour ii, the prove has decided to dial things back. Starting with this calendar week's episode, the Klingons will await more like they did inThe Next Generation.

Each Klingon redesign has a uncomplicated real-world explanation: better makeup and prosthetics. The 1960s Klingons were essentially humans, just the original characteristic films and 1990s Star Trek had the budget and expertise to develop a more alien await with ridged foreheads and bushy wigs. (Those costumes too involved white actors wearing brown facepaint, a compelling reason to shake things up for Discovery.)

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Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) revamped the Klingons again, making them bald and reptilian. But a lot ofTrek fans hate the reboot movies, which caused a problem forDiscovery. IfDiscovery also featured bald Klingons, it had a stronger visual link to the flashy blockbuster movies than the honey TV franchise. This led to a weirdly intense animosity against Discovery's Klingons, and the showrunners decided that alien makeup was not a hill worth dying on. Along with a newly upbeat tone, season 2 volition reintroduce the Klingons looking like this:

star trek discovery klingon redesign — Star Trek: Discovery/CBS All Access

In the trailer for Th's episode, "Point of Light," you lot tin meet more Klingons with long hair, creating a closer resemblance to their 1990s expect.

Why practice the Klingons expect different inStar Trek: Discoveryflavour ii?

In the chiliad tradition of sci-fi retcons, there's a canon caption for the Klingons' new look. While the humanoid Original Serial Klingons were retroactively explained as victims of a genetic illness,Discovery's baldheaded Klingons were apparently making a style statement.

According to actress Mary Chieffo (L'Rell), designer Glenn Hetrick decided that the Klingons weren't "bald" in flavour one—they but shaved their heads. Speaking at New York Comic Con final year, Chieffo said Hetrick was inspired by theNext Generationepisode "Rightful Heir."

"There is a reference to when [legendary Klingon hero] Kahless is brought dorsum equally a clone. The style he proves himself is he tells the story of how he cut off a lock of his hair and dipped it into a volcano and fabricated the first bat'leth, with which he killed Molor, the terrible tyrant who was running Qo'noS at the time. We took that i little beautiful seed… and kind of expanded on that, and we see that in a time of war the Klingons would shave their heads, and in a time of peace, nosotros kickoff to abound it back out. I really beloved the symbolism of that."

Not just is this an impressively deep cut intoStar Trek lore, it's an appropriate addition to Klingon warrior culture. With L'Rell every bit the new chancellor and the Klingon Empire in turmoil after the state of war, we're going to run across a lot more than of these guys. Season 2 volition introduce more of the Klingon "houses"—each with a unlike artful and subculture—and other planets outside the Klingon homeworld, Qo'noS.

Editor'due south note: This article has been updated to clarify the Klingons in the originalStar Expeditionmovies.

*First Published: Jan 29, 2019, ten:19 am CST

Gavia Bakery-Whitelaw

Gavia Bakery-Whitelaw is a staff author at the Daily Dot, covering geek civilisation and fandom. Specializing in sci-fi movies and superheroes, she also appears every bit a film and TV critic on BBC radio. Elsewhere, she co-hosts the pop culture podcast Overinvested. Follow her on Twitter: @Hello_Tailor