For actors, joining a franchise as iconic as ‘Star Trek‘ is indeed a big career achievement. After all, it is the universe that revolutionized sci-fi on television when it first aired in the 1960s and has built a rich legacy since. So, it’s no surprise that joining the universe usually comes with plenty of well-wishes.
But when Jerry O’Connell officially became part of the ‘Star Trek’ universe, the very first message he received wasn’t from the person fans would expect. Instead, it came from someone whose friendship with the actor stretches back nearly four decades, when they worked together on ‘Stand by Me.’
Wil Wheaton Welcomed Jerry O’Connell To Starfleet First
Appearing in the panel celebrating the 60th anniversary of ‘Star Trek’ at San Diego Comic-Con 2026, Jerry O’Connell shared an interesting story about the very first congratulatory message he received after being cast in the role of Commander Jack Ransom in ‘Star Trek: Lower Decks.’
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Surprisingly, despite his wife Rebecca Romijn being part of the ‘Star Trek’ universe as Una Chin-Riley aka “Number One,” O’Connell stated that she wasn’t the one to congratulate him first.
“Man, it’s so funny. My wife had been a commander on the Enterprise on Strange New Worlds, and my wife wasn’t even the first to congratulate me,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “The first text I got was from Wil Wheaton.”
According to O’Connell, the text sent by Wil Wheaton consisted of three words: “Welcome to Starfleet.” This message was sweet and nostalgia-coded, since Wheaton and O’Connell had known each other for almost four decades through their work together in the 1986 movie ‘Stand by Me.’
Meanwhile, O’Connell made his debut on the show in August 2020 and has now completed five seasons. He voices Commander Jack Ransom, the charming, athletic first officer of the USS Cerritos. Interestingly, Wheaton has himself appeared in the universe and is a long-term fan.
Friendship That Has Lasted Far Beyond ‘Stand by Me‘
Wil Wheaton played Wesley Crusher, a major character in the first four seasons of ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation.’ Later, he reprised his characters in films and animated series. These include ‘Star Trek: Picard,’ ‘Star Trek: Lower Decks,’ and ‘Star Trek: Prodigy.’
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This fact makes the actor’s congratulatory message to O’Connell very appropriate. It’s basically a welcome message from an experienced crew member to a rookie officer. But beyond films, the two shared a very tight bond that goes back to their filming days on the set of ‘Stand By Me.’
Together with Corey Feldman, their co-star in Rob Reiner’s film, they have been participating in various events dedicated to celebrating the 40th anniversary of the adventure-comedy. “We’re three guys who share something,” Wheaton said of the trio earlier this year.
“Each of us, there’s two people in this world we can talk to about some things, and it’s the three of us right here.” Wheaton also noted that the experience has been bittersweet after the passing of Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele, and co-star River Phoenix, who died in 1993 of a drug overdose.
“When we are watching this movie in a theater with an audience, and we’re sitting next to each other for the first time in 40 years, we have these wonderful moments of asking, ‘Do you remember blah, blah, blah about this?’ or ‘Wow, I had totally forgotten about that.’ We’ve had a lot of those moments, and they’ve been really special to me,” Wheaton added.
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