As revealed to Entertainment Tonight earlier this year, John Cho’s Hikaru Sulu has a young daughter in STAR TREK BEYOND – but in a new interview with the Herald Sun at the Australian premiere of the film, the actor also elaborated on Sulu’s family: the helmsman’s got not just a daughter, but also a male partner – making BEYOND the first Star Trek adventure to feature a same-sex couple.

John Cho:

“I liked the approach, which was not to make a big thing out it, which is where I hope we are going as a species, to not politicize one’s personal orientations.”

This new development for the Sulu character has been reported to be a tribute to Original Series actor George Takei, who has become a prominent voice for gay rights in American culture after publicly coming out himself in 2005.

While LGBT themes have been touched upon in TV Trek – most notably in TNG’s “The Outcast” and “The Host,” and of course DS9’s “Rejoined” – this will be the first time that a true same-sex relationship will be depicted in the Star Trek franchise.