Leonard McCoy payment for his appearance. In the "" episode "", McCoy mentions he has a daughter, Joanna. Although Chekov's friend Irina in the original series episode "The Way to Eden" was originally written as McCoy's daughter, it was changed before the episode was shot. In the 2009 "Star Trek" film, which takes place in an "alternate, parallel" reality, McCoy and Kirk become friends at Starfleet Academy, which McCoy joins after a divorce that he says "left [him] nothing but [his] bones." This line, improvised by Urban, explains how McCoy earned the nickname "Bones". McCoy later helps get Kirk posted aboard the
Star Trek: Discovery and said that "we want to carry on what "Star Trek" does best, which is being progressive. So it's fascinating to look at all of these roles through a colorblind prism and a gender-blind prism". A month later, Kadin clarified that the series would feature minority, female, and LGBTQ characters. In August, Fuller said the series would feature "about seven" lead characters, and unlike previous "Star Trek" series would star a lieutenant commander to be played by a non-white actress. He said the series would also include more alien characters than other "Star Trek" series, and would feature at least