Y&R casts Nichelle Nichols, Star Trek's Lieutenant Uhura, for  emotional  new role

Y&R casts Nichelle Nichols, Star Trek's Lieutenant Uhura, for  emotional  new role

Space may be the final frontier, but it looks like Star Trek's Nichelle Nichols (Lieutenant Uhura) will be exploring The Young and the Restless' Genoa City, as well.

The Young and the Restless has once again cast a very familiar television star in a new role: Nichelle Nichols, who played Star Trek's Lieutenant Uhura in the late 1960s.

Mashable reports that the actress will be heading to Genoa City for two episodes in celebration of the show's 11,000th episode. She'll be playing Lucinda, who shares an "emotional connection" with another character on the canvas.

As Soap Central previously reported, Y&R sent out a casting call for the role back in June and referred to Lucinda as "an African-American woman in her late 60s/early 70s who is looking to make peace with her past." There's speculation that she may be Neil Winters' (Kristoff St. John) mom, but that hasn't been confirmed.

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"I'm thrilled and honored to be a member of the cast of this historic moment in daytime television," Nichols says of her new role. "I've been a huge fan of The Young and the Restless for decades. I'm equally honored to be from Chicago like the Bell Family who created this incredible TV show."

"This is true! The first day on set is a wrap," Nichols wrote later on Twitter.

Watch for Nichols' Y&R debut on Thursday, September 1.

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