Chase Masterson returns to ‘Star Trek Online’ as a terrifying Terran: Admiral Leeta

Mirror Leeta on Star Trek Online
Mirror Leeta on Star Trek Online

Chase Masterson, the actress Star Trek fans know as Leeta, stars in the newest season of Star Trek Online, known as “Reflections.” People who watched her on Deep Space Nine know that Leeta is a sweet, loving person who falls for the dopey Ferengi Rom. Despite her lovely exterior, Leeta was smart and studied sociology.

But this time, Leeta is the opposite of sweet. Masterson returns to the video game franchise to give her voice and body — which was scanned into the game — as someone from the Terran Empire. Mirror Leeta is no one to be trifled with. In fact, she is an admiral and is sure to bring joy to Trek fans all over who know that it feels good to be bad.  

“Mirror Leeta will stop at nothing to get what she wants,” says Masterson. “She is the polar opposite of Prime Leeta. And the fun thing about this is that they are so opposite.”

“Leeta was so beautifully… compassionate and warm and gentle and open and kind and loving and accepting and all of these soft, lovely… soft things,” says Masterson. “Admiral Leeta would eat the Borg Queen for breakfast!”

Admiral Leeta is part of the 24th Season of STO, including a new featured episode, a new task force operation, special Reflections content, new Lower Decks animated series content, and a Captain Elite Training Token. As always, the game is free to play and available now on PC. The 24th Season will be available for console soon.

Mirror Leeta from Star Trek Online
Mirror Leeta from Star Trek Online

“The interesting thing about this next episode is that the player and Admiral Leeta need to work together for the good of saving the universe,” says Masterson.

She says that it was “so much fun,” bringing life to the total opposite of what fans know and love from DS9.

“You’ve got to keep these things grounded in reality… obviously, there’s a part of all of us that wants to be on top,” says Masterson. “You know. Be respected… be in charge. Those feelings are in everybody, and as an actor, you need to magnify that and think, ‘what would it be if you were just the Nth degree of that in a bad way.’”

Masterson says when she is portraying Admiral Leeta, she must care only about “power.”

“That’s what the Terrans are like, but Leeta is over the top on that,” she says.

Masterson is a fixture in the Star Trek Universe, on her show and in STO, and at conventions across the nation. She says that she really enjoyed the recent Star Trek Las Vegas con and is looking forward to joining Trek fans on the upcoming Star Trek Cruise.

“It’s the most fun ever,” says Masterson. “It’s like if you’ve been to the Vegas convention, but on steroids. It’s really full emersion. It’s like when a child goes to French immersion school, and everything is in French. That’s what the Star Trek: The Cruise is.”

“As soon as you walk onboard, everywhere you go, there are fun things to do in every hallway and elevator,” says Masterson. “Everyone is in the best, most fun Star Trek mood. There are a ton of events obviously… cosplay, shows… I’ve thrown a pajama party for several years.”

Masterson and Max Grodénchik as Leeta and Rom. Courtesy of CBS
Masterson and Max Grodénchik as Leeta and Rom. Courtesy of CBS

Masterson says that karaoke is a favorite among both the fans and the stars and there are also many games available. But, she admitted that there’s one game, which is near to her heart, that has never been played.

“There is no real game of Dabo,” says Masterson. “No game company has pitched this. But there ought to be. There aren’t even actual rules — I hate to break it to you!”

Masterson says that on the DS9 set, she and the other actors would just spin the wheel and occasionally yell “DABO.”

“Maybe they’ll have a Dabo wheel on Picard,” says Masterson.

Though some of the actors who appear on Picard are from the 1990s era of shows, she says that she has not been asked to return to any of the shows that air on Paramount+. Masterson says that she wouldn’t mind, but in a way, her show really never ended.

“For everyone who has asked for more of our characters, will there be more Deep Space Nine, I say ‘yeah, in Star Trek Online,’” says Masterson. 

“The last episode I did, it was a couple of seasons ago, there was a whole Ferengi heist. You had a lot of the actors coming back doing their original roles.

Masterson works with the Pop Culture Hero Coalition when she is away from the franchise, which supports an emotional learning curriculum for kindergarten through 12th-grade students. This includes healthy identity, conflict resolution, and the challenges of growing up and learning in the era of COVID-19.

She is thankful for all of the help and support that the fans of Star Trek have shown her through the years. Masterson says that she “guarantees” that there is no other franchise, and there are no other fans like those of Star Trek.

“It’s just a blast to be a part.”