Actor Walter Koenig, known for Star Trek's Pavel Chekov, dies at 90
Walter Koenig, who portrayed Pavel Chekov in Star Trek and later appeared in Babylon 5, died of natural causes at his North Hollywood home at age 90.
Walter Koenig, the actor best known for playing Russian crewman Pavel Chekov in the original Star Trek series and its first seven films, died on Sunday at his North Hollywood residence. The actor’s representative said the cause was natural.
Born in Chicago in 1936 to Lithuanian immigrant parents, Koenig joined Star Trek at the start of its second season and appeared in 36 of the 50 episodes that aired in 1967-68 and 1968-69. He later reprised Chekov in the franchise’s film series from 1979 through 1991.
Koenig also played the antagonist Alfred Bester in the science-fiction series Babylon 5 and wrote episodes for several television shows, including The Powers of Matthew Star and The Incredible Hulk. He authored two memoirs, Warped Factors: A Neurotic’s Guide to the Universe (1998) and Beaming Up and Getting Off (2020).
"I didn’t watch Star Trek before I came aboard. I’d flip through the channels and I’d see Styrofoam rocks – they were so obviously Styrofoam – and I said, ‘This has got to be phony.’ I didn’t give it a chance," Koenig told the Television Academy Foundation in 2013.
He married actress Judy Levitt in 1965; they remained together until her death in 2022. Their son, Andrew Koenig, died in 2010, and they are survived by daughter Danielle Koenig, an actress and screenwriter.
Koenig’s career spanned stage, film and television, and his portrayal of Chekov remains a lasting part of Star Trek history.