Christina Chong, who you may know as series regular La'an Noonien-Singh from the Paramount streaming series, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, lends her voice acting talents to a different kind of sci-fi project, Audible Original, Impact Winter.

Chong, who recently spoke with SciFi Vision, joins Impact Winter for Season three playing Kexian, a vampire who is part of the high council family. She describes her character as an explorer who tends to leave for long periods of time on adventures. When Kexian is first introduced in the series she has just returned home from a personally traumatic adventure. Since she has been away for such a long amount of time, she comes across as an outsider. Kexian is starting to break from her family and seems to be hiding something. Kexian is mysterious but as season three progresses, she reveals something which helps to drive the rest of the season and has potential in carrying over to a season four.

Chong was offered the role in Impact Winter directly. She listened to seasons one and two of Impact Winter; it became a no-brainer for her to be part of it. Chong credits her love of audiobooks as a child that made her more excited to take on the role in Impact Winter. This is Christina’s first time recording this type of project and she thought it would be challenging. She was drawn further into taking the role when she realized she knew some of the cast from previous seasons including her great friend, Andrew Gower (Being Human, Outlander), Caroline Ford (Carnival Row) and Sacha Dhawan (Doctor Who, The Great). Christina felt that it would be fun doing something new with people she already knew. Another draw to the project was working with writer Travis Beacham (Pacific Rim); she had loved his work on Carnival Row.’ Chong is thrilled with playing a vampire. She thinks they are cool. In fact, she has played a vampire on screen in the past and absolutely loved it.

Impact Winter was recorded with all of the actors in the room together. Chong did wonder how it would work out since the actors aren’t face to face and if the emotions would be as strong as projects made for the screen, but that thought quickly evaporated, the ensemble recording was very much like being on set for her.

If Impact Winter became a live action version, Christina couldn’t see herself playing any other character than Kexian. The only downside she says is that Kexian doesn't arrive until later in the seasons.

If there is a season four of Impact Winter, Chong couldn’t reveal much about where her character, Kexian, goes but her hope is that she would be a pivotal part of the story.

Interview Extras:

• Christina has a resume of sci-fi and fantasy roles, she says she loves these types of roles due to the imagination, creativity, and otherworldliness of them. She is open to taking on other roles outside of the sci-fi and fantasy genre, as well.
• On the subject of monsters, Christina has a soft spot towards the Gorn from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds because, La’an, her character in Strange New Worlds is the introducer of the Gorn to Star Trek.

Find Impact Winter on Audible or wherever you get your podcasts.

Read the full transcript below.

SCIFI VISION:   Can you tell me a little bit about how you became part of Impact Winter?

CHRISTINA CHONG:  So, I was offered the role directly, and when I looked into it and listened to some of season one season two, it was a no brainer for me, because not only had I loved audiobooks as a kid, I didn't know it was still a thing. So, I mean, and I know this isn't for children, but I'd never done one, and I just thought the challenge of doing that would be fun. And when I realized that I knew some of the cast already from previous seasons - Andrew Gower is a great friend of mine; I did not know he was a part of it. Caroline Ford I knew and Sacha [Dhawan], and so I thought, “Oh my goodness, this is going to be so much fun to learn to do something new with people I already know.” And Travis [Beacham]. I love his work, Carnival Row. It was a hard yes for me.

Can you share with us about your character? What can you reveal about your character?

So, Kexian, she is one of the higher up vampires. She's part of the council, one of the siblings, but she's an explorer. So, she goes off on these long adventures for periods of time and then returns. When we meet her, she's returned from a particularly traumatic adventure which is personal to her and which is part of what makes her come across as an outsider. She's kind of starting to step away from the family, and we don't know whether she's kind of hiding something. We don't know what it is. She's mysterious. But as we get further into the season, she reveals something which drives the rest of the season and potentially maybe even the next season, if we get a next season. So, she's a huge part of this story unfolding.

Do you have a love or hate relationship with vampires?

Oh, I love vampires. I think they're so cool. It was so cool. I was never into Twilight or The Vampire Diaries, or any of those shows, but I've always - I have played one vampire before and absolutely loved it, and I thought to be able to do that just as an audio without the visuals of the vampire would be very cool. And it's a primal need of needing blood and love and power, you know, needing love to survive, which we all can relate to. But yeah, so the vampire thing. The vampires have this strong, primal need of blood to survive, right? They need to own someone, overpower them to survive. And I think we can all relate to that in some way as a core primal need.

Tell me about the process of recording. Did you get to interact with any of your fellow actors?

Yes, we were all in the room together. So, I have never done an audiobook, as I said before. So, for me, that was more similar to an on set experience. And I did wonder whether being in the room, you know, you're not looking into each other's eyes the whole time, you're half reading from the script, whether the emotions would still be as strong as on screen, but they absolutely were. And you feel it all in the room just like you would on set. So, that was very cool to experience an ensemble recording.

Are there other monsters you have any affinity towards?

Yeah. There are the Gorn from Strange New Worlds, just because, I mean, I feel like La'an, my character in Strange New Worlds is kind of the introducer of the Gorn to Star Trek, and she has a lot of history. So, I guess I have a soft spot for the Gorn.

So, if this project were to be picked up on screen, would you like to play the live action version? Then, if you got to pick or choose another part of of the universe, which part would you like to play?

Oh, I mean, I've started Kexian. I would be a little bit upset, if I'm honest - wink, wink, nudge, nudge, Travis - if I didn't get to play Kexian in the live action show. I mean, that would be super cool. The only downside is, Kexian doesn't come in until later in the seasons, so I would have to wait a little while, I guess. But it could all change, right? You just don't know how many episodes they would merge together for a live action show, but yeah, I would definitely love to keep Kexian.

I know you have a long resume of sci-fi projects. Do you enjoy being part of that genre? What are your favorite things?

I love it. I love sci-fi and fantasy. I love doing it. I don't enjoy watching it as much, which is funny. Somebody was asking me this the other day at a convention. I love doing it, because it's so imaginative and creative and otherworldly, but I would, obviously, like to venture out into other genres as well. But for now, while it's coming, I'm going to take it

If you come back with a season four, where do you feel like your character will go?

Well, I can't really say too much about that, can I? But I think I would hope she would become quite a central, well, pivotal, part of the story. I can't really say, because that gives too much away.