July 10, 2023

Becoming... Series Regular Melissa Navia (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on Paramount+) Season Finale

59 minutes

Let's end Season 4 with another interview with a Series Regular, shall we?

I'm so happy to have Melissa Navia on the podcast. I've known her for years as a working actor in NY, booking co-stars and guest stars in some of our favorite NY shows. During the pandemic, Melissa booked the dream gig, a Series Regular role of Lieutenant Erica Ortegas on the incredible Paramount+ show: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. The second season debuted on June 15th and has already been renewed for a third season.

On the television side, Navia’s most recent credits include recurring on CBS’s Bull and AMC’s Dietland. She also recently guest starred on NBC’s New Amsterdam and Showtime’s Billions and Homeland.

On the big screen, Navia has appeared in a variety of indie films and shorts. In 2013, she won the award for Best Actress at the Wild Rose Independent Film Festival for her leading role as ‘Dawn’ in “The Paragon Cortex.” Navia has also appeared in films like “Sleeping with the Fishes,” “Bel Canto,” “The Chosen,” “Hymns,” and “What It Was,” among others. In March 2020, she made her Off-Broadway debut in the world premiere of the highly praised “Bundle of Sticks” from J. Julian Christopher at INTAR Theatre. Navia is Colombian-American. She plays the banjo and is also the creator of the upcoming essay collection and stand-up show, Girl With Short Hair.

In this episode, we talk about:

• First audition she booked with her agent was Girl Most Likely with Kristin Wiig and first co-star on The Affair

• Joining SAG-AFTRA with advice to actors on when they should join

• The story of how she booked her first guest star on Billions, which included losing out to another role

• The crazy story of choosing between a second episode of Billions and a role on Homeland

• If she change how she approached self tapes that helped with booking her series regular role on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

• How the callback for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds went and how she felt when she found out she booked the role

• Tips and encouragement for actors who want to book a Series Regular

• Working with the co-Showrunners and crew, including Akiva Goldsman (who I have worked with on the feature film Winter’s Tale, but who also did films like A Beautiful Mind, I am Legend, Cinderella Man, and more)

• Great story: How wardrobe gave her a heads up about a sword fight scene

• How her creative ventures like writing and stand up help her as a creative/actor

Guest:

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Host:

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If you like this episode, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠Becoming... Actress and Series Regular Madison Shamoun ("The Lake," "Blackish," "#blackAF")⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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By Michelle Simone Miller

4.9

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