Dave Foley Fulfilled A Lifelong Dream By Playing “A Geeky Hugh Hefner” In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4, Episode 3 – “Human Best Friend”Dave Foley achieved a lifelong dream by appearing in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, and it was in a guest spot that perfectly suited the Canadian actor-comedian and lifelong Star Trek fan.

Foley played Dendru in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4, episode 3, “Human Best Friend.” The host of the Cesnar Grand, the bizarre resort on a planet with a psychedelic atmosphere that the crew of the Starship Enterprise visit on shore leave, Dendru does his best to keep the party going in what becomes Star Trek’s version of The Hangover mind-melded with Dude, Where’s My Car?

“I grew up with the original cast and the original episodes,” Foley told ScreenRant’s John Orquiola to affirm his Trekkie credentials. “I don’t think I ever missed an episode, no matter how many times I’d seen it.”

Appearing on Star Trek was always a goal for Dave. “Every time there’s a new iteration, I kept thinking, ‘I’ve got to get on there somehow.’ And finally, it happened!” Foley said with excitement. “It was a real thrill just to be on the set and walking around the Enterprise. I was beside myself with joy.”

Dave Foley Discusses His “Geeky Hugh Hefner” Star Trek Alien

Image credit: Paramount+

Even in his Cesnarian prosthetics, complete with distinctly alien feet, Dave Foley is recognizable as Dendru, who he describes as “a facilitator. A bit of a pusher, I guess, because it’s a psychedelic planet. The whole planet, the atmosphere, is psychedelic and tailored to each individual’s need.”

“He’s kind of a geeky Hugh Hefner, I’d say, which might be redundant if you ever met the real Hugh Hefner,” Foley laughed. “He wanders around in very lounge-y clothes and just wants everyone to be happy. Yeah, he’s the facilitator and the camp activities organizer of this weird planet.”

This is Foley’s first live-action guest spot on Star Trek, but he previously voiced Parth in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4’s “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place.” Parth was a Ferengi who was also the host of a hotel on their homeworld, Ferenginar, so perhaps Foley is being typecast in Star Trek series’ fourth seasons.

Dave Foley Fit Right In With Strange New Worlds’ Comedy

Dave Foley is a renowned comedian and comic actor. The co-founder of The Kids in the Hall comedy troupe is perhaps best known for playing Dave Nelson on NewsRadio among his numerous TV and movie roles. Foley fit right in with the comedic chops of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds‘ cast:

Because I’m a fan. I’d seen every episode of Strange New Worlds because, for me, I think it’s the closest to the original shows. It really captures the feel of the original cast and the original storytelling. I’d seen every episode, and I knew how funny they could be. knew what kind of risks they took in terms of the narrative for the episodes, and how inventive they could be, and just how funny they all were, so I was ready for that.

I was more worried whether I’d be funny. That was my biggest concern. It’s because I love Star Trek so much. I really didn’t want to disappoint them in any way, so I hope I didn’t.

It’s safe to say no one who watched “Human Best Friend” will claim that Foley didn’t hold up his comedic end of the wacky proceedings. Dave was also in his element when the cast was allowed to go off-script and improv, a trademark of Strange New Worlds‘ loose and inventive filming style, compared to previous Star Trek series that required actors to stick to the script:

“They let me play around,” said Foley. “I always try to be word-perfect when I show up, but they definitely gave me room to play around with some of the dialogue and ad-lib a little bit, which was fun.”

Dave Foley Jokes That Anson Mount Isn’t As Handsome As He Seems

There were scenes of Dendru partying with Strange New Worlds‘ characters left out of “Human Best Friend,” and most of Dave Foley’s on-screen interactions were with the bickering frenemies, Lieutenants Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia) and Scotty (Martin Quinn). “They’re great,” Foley praises.

“They have such great energy, and it was cool, especially because the Scotty character was still new to the show, and they’re still developing the dynamics between all the characters with Scotty.” Martin Quinn passes Foley’s Scotty test with flying colors: “He’s a great Montgomery Scott, if you ask me.“

Foley also calls Navia “an awesome actor, just a great actor and a great character.” According to him, “She’s got this great kind of energy on set and is so nice. Again, everyone there was so incredibly nice to be with, just friendly and really welcoming, and they made you feel like you were a part of the family right away. I couldn’t have had a happier experience.”

Tongue fully in cheek, Dave declares that the only downside of working on Strange New Worlds was Anson Mount: “Well, Anson’s hard to look at. But other than that… The man’s hideous in person. I don’t know what they do… some special effect to make him look so beautiful on camera. It’s just amazing prosthetics. He doesn’t have any hair. He’s bald, you know.”

Leonard Nimoy Directed Dave Foley In One Of His Earliest Movie Roles

Going through Dave Foley’s incredible list of credits, one of his earliest roles fortuitously intersected with his Star Trek fandom: Dave played a grocery store clerk in 1987’s Three Men and a Baby, where he was directed by Mr. Spock himself, Leonard Nimoy.

“Being a Trek fanatic, I was incredibly excited,” Foley recalls. “I think that was when I was just starting out. I was like 22 or something. And I got all these one-day parts in Toronto that summer, and that was one of them. And I’ll never forget Leonard. I was directed by Leonard Nimoy! After a take, Leonard came over to me and said, “Faster, David.” And you know, and that is far from the last time I’ve gotten that note.”

Dave Foley Reveals Why Sky High Failed At The Box Office But He’d Return For A Revival

Screen Rant: You played All-American Boy in Sky High. Sky High was supposed to get a sequel on Disney+ that was canceled, but would you have come back if it happened?

Dave Foley: “Oh, my God! Yeah. I love Sky High.I think we all hoped that would be more of those when we were making it, because it felt ideal for it to be a franchise. But unfortunately, it came out the same weekend as The Incredibles, which was bad planning since they were both Disney films.”

ScreenRant: You’re also in one of my favorite movies from the ’90s: Blast from the Past. I love that movie, and you’re great in it. Brendan Fraser’s great. Alicia Silverstone is great. They don’t make them like that anymore.

Dave Foley: That was such a fun time. Brendan is a dear friend, so it was great to get to work with him. I remember just realizing in the morning that I’m in a trailer with Sissy Spacek and Christopher Walken. I thought, ‘Oh my god, I think I might be in show business.’ That was a really fun time.

Dave Foley’s Deep Star Trek Connections Will Pay Off At His First Star Trek Convention

Incredibly, Dave Foley has never attended a Star Trek convention. He finally gets a chance as a guest at STLV: Trek to Vegas, annually the biggest con of the year for Trekkies that also celebrates Star Trek’s 60th anniversary.

I’m very excited. I have a bunch of friends from The Next Generation and from Picard. And my friend Nikki de Boer, who was in Deep Space Nine, is an old friend of mine from the Kids in the Hall days. So yeah, I’m really looking forward to it. It’s my first Star Trek convention, so I’m expecting that it’s going to be quite a spectacle.

The biggest Star Trek party of the year coinciding with Dave Foley’s party-centric episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 premiering on Paramount+ could not be better timing.

Release Date

2022 – 2027-00-00

Network

Paramount+

Showrunner

Henry Alonso Myers, Akiva Goldsman

• 
  

•