Zachary Quinto Casts Leonard Nimoy’s Widow Susan on Medical Drama ‘Brilliant Minds’ as an 80-Year-old Nymphomaniac (EXCLUSIVE)

Marc Malkin
·2-min read

Leonard Nimoy’s widow Susan will make a surprise appearance on Zachary Quinto’s new NBC medical drama, “Brilliant Minds.”

Quinto became close to the Nimoys while playing Spock in three “Star Trek” movies starting in 2009. Nimoy, who died in 2015, originated the role of Spock in the original “Star Trek” series. Quinto stars in “Brilliant Minds” as a hospital neurologist treating patients with rare mental health conditions. It is inspired by the late Dr. Oliver Sacks, the neurologist and writer who was portrayed by Robin Williams in 1990’s “Awakenings.”

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“One of the most wonderful, significant experiences of my career was playing Spock,” Quinto says in an interview for the next episode of the “Just for Variety” podcast, premiering next week. “The relationship that I shared with Leonard Nimoy still has reverberations to this day. As a result of Leonard, I became very, very close with his wife Susan.”

So close that Quinto flew Susan, 81, to Toronto from her Los Angeles-area home for a guest spot on an episode of “Brilliant Minds.” “She plays a woman who suffers from a condition that causes her to experience hypersexuality. So she’s an 80-year-old nymphomaniac,” Quinto says. “She did such a great job.”

He adds, “She was an actress like 40 years ago. … I just know her so well, and I know where she is in her life. She’s 81 years old. She’s one of the most vibrant open, curious people I’ve ever met.”

Susan made her acting debut in 1963 on an episode of “The Many Lives of Dobie Gillis.” What followed was decades of episodic work, including playing Admiral Rollman on “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.” She wrote, directed and starred in the film short “Eve” in 2018.

“Brilliant Minds” premieres Sept. 23 on NBC.

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