With the highly anticipated Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 expected in 2025, Captain Christopher Pike actor Anson Mount's breakout role in another series could provide the perfect binge-watch in the meantime. Mount has a varied career, from small roles in Sex in the City to Law and Order. He didn't become Captain Pike until joining Star Trek: Discovery season 2's cast in 2019. Before taking to the stars, though, Mount starred in his breakout role in a very different setting.
In 2011, AMC released a Western called Hell on Wheels, and Anson Mount landed the starring role as battle-worn soldier Cullen Bohannon. Set in the late 19th century and following the story of a traveling town following the construction of the first transcontinental railroad, Hell on Wheels couldn't be further removed from the Star Trek timeline. Hell on Wheels' 5 seasons provide an amazing opportunity for Star Trek fans to get their Anson Mount and Captain Pike fix before Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 premieres next year.
Hell On Wheels Is The Perfect Binge Before Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3
All five seasons will be available on Hulu on September 15, 2024
Period dramas like Hell on Wheels provide the perfect escape from everyday life, not unlike the sci-fi utopia featured in Star Trek TV shows and movies. However, Hell on Wheels is based primarily on history, which would give the average sci-fi fan a diverse new genre to discover. In 1865, Mount's Cullen Bohannon sets out to avenge his wife and finds a town called "Hell on Wheels." This town travels along with the ongoing construction of the railroad, providing another similarity with Star Trek – the ability for the narrative to shift and change with the main character's travels.
Hell on Wheels also incorporates romance plotlines and classic gun-slinging Western action into its narrative. Mount shows off his acting chops in a variety of different ways, skillfully portraying and balancing Cullen's happiness, agony, and dry humor. In St ar Trek: Strange New Worlds, Anson Mount as Captain Pike continues to showcase his acting ability, with Pike's knowledge of his future plaguing him every step of the way. Both roles give audiences a real taste of Mount's acting range: while Cullen is plagued by his past, Pike is preoccupied with his future.
Cullen Bohannon mirrors a few of Christopher Pike's character traits
Fans of "Starfleet's Boy Scout" Captain Pike might see a few similarities between Pike and Mount's character on AMC's Western drama. Hell on Wheels' Cullen Bohannon is plagued by his past and the death of his wife in the Civil War, while Captain Pike is haunted by the vision of his agonizing future. Both characters are brave and headstrong with a strong sense of what they want. Pike is a known lover of all things Western; his love for horses traces back to Star Trek: The Original Series, and he even has a real saddle in his office.
With drama, romance, exploration, and 57 episodes in total – 55 of which Anson Mount appears in – Hell on Wheels is the perfect concoction of binge-worthiness. While Captain Pike undoubtedly rises far above Cullen Bohannon where morality is concerned, both characters are fascinating aspects of Anson Mount's career. The hit shows have also provided Mount with two vastly different avenues for his performances. Hell on Wheels is coming to Hulu on September 15, 2024, and could give fans of Mount's portrayal of Captain Christopher Pike something different to watch before the 2025 premiere of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3.
