Sonequa Martin-Green of 'Walking Dead' to play lead in 'Star Trek: Discovery'

Actress Sonequa Martin-Green, best known for her on AMC's mega-hit The Walking Dead, has landed a lead role in the upcoming series Star Trek: Discovery.

The 31-year-old star will play a lieutenant commander on the eagerly anticipated new CBS All Access drama, reported Entertainment Weekly.

The casting has brought the actress back to the CBS family. She previously played Courtney Wells on The Good Wife. She also starred as Tamara on ABC's Once Upon a Time. Martin-Green represents the first African-American woman to lead the cast of a Trek ensemble, fulfilling a years-long goal by the project's original showrunner Gene Roddenberry.

The series will also have the TV franchise's first openly gay character, a lieutenant played by Anthony Rapp.