Those unfamiliar with “Star Trek: New Voyages” have a very interesting road of discovery ahead. In January of 2004, enterprising Trekkies James Cawley and Jack Marshall decided to make a high-quality, full-length, wholly unauthorized continuation of the original “Star Trek” using the same characters and starring themselves. Cawley, through his connection to various “Star Trek” collectors, was able to assemble the few surviving pieces of the original “Star Trek” set (which was dismantled in 1969) and recreate the most accurate version of the U.S.S. Enterprise in existence; one can still tour Cawley’s reconstructed set to this day.

Cawley played Captain Kirk in “New Voyages,” a series that ran 10 episodes from 2004 to 2016. Many in the “Star Trek” community were impressed with the production values and quality of the show’s pilot, “Come What May,” and it wasn’t long before Jack Marshall left the fan project to work on the new “Battlestar Galactica.”

Meanwhile, several “Star Trek” veterans were moved by Cawley’s gumption and decided to help. “Star Trek” writers D.C. Fontana, David Gerrold, and Marc Scott Zicree wrote episodes of “New Voyages,” while “Star Trek” actors like Walter Koenig, Grace Lee Whitney, and Denise Crosby appeared periodically.

Takei played the “older” Sulu in the episode “World Enough and Time.” While filming, he met John Lim, the fan actor — formerly a lawyer — who played the younger Sulu. Lim, Takei thought, would do nicely in Abrams’ film:

“I saw the man who plays me, as Sulu, as a young man, and he’s a wonderful actor, a powerful actor. There’s one scene where he breaks down in anguish and it’s very moving. John Lim is his name, and despite his success as an attorney, after having done this he wants to be an actor.” 

Lim is quite good.