Walter Koenig, the Star Trek and Babylon 5 star, has passed away at the age of 90. Audiences know him for his portrayal of Pavel Chekov in Star Trek, a role he is remembered for, even today.Walter Koenig passed away on Sunday, October 25, 2026, due to natural causes at his home in North Hollywood.Walter Koenig's life and career at a glanceWalter Koenig's acting career began in 1962, but his first significant role was in The Lieutenant (1964) as Sgt. John Delwyn. Koenig then starred in other projects like Nightmare Honeymoon, Jericho, and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour before starring as Pavel Chekov in Star Trek: The Original Series. Chekov was introduced in Season 2, and Koenig played the character for 36 episodes, across Seasons 2 and 3. View this post on Instagram Instagram PostWhile he starred in the show only from 1967 to 1969, he continued to play the character of Chekov in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: Renegades, and Star Trek: Captain Pike, among other projects of the franchise.Walter Koenig's Pavel Chekov was a human Starfleet officer, who was known as the young, enthusiastic Russian navigator of the USS Enterprise. He had a heavy accent, but was an eager character who had the habit of claiming that famous inventions and historical milestones originated in Russia.Walter Koenig was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Isadore Koenig, a businessman, and his wife, Sarah Strauss. During his childhood, the family relocated to Manhattan's Inwood neighborhood, where he continued his schooling.His parents were Jewish immigrants from Russia who had previously lived in Lithuania before leaving the Soviet Union. The family originally carried the surname Königsberg but later shortened it to Koenig. Koenig initially attended Grinnell College in Iowa, where he studied pre-med. However, he later transferred to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology.His interest in acting developed after a professor encouraged him to explore the profession. Following that advice, Koenig enrolled at New York City's Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, where he studied alongside future actors Dabney Coleman, Christopher Lloyd, and James Caan.Koenig also went on to play Alfred Bester in the science fiction series Babylon 5 from 1994 to 1998. Alfred Bester was a recurring antagonist of the show who was a senior Psi Cop holding a P12 rating, the highest natural telepathic power ranking in the human Psi Corps.According to The Hollywood Reporter, Walter Koenig almost did not play the character because he couldn't join the show initially in 1993 after suffering a heart attack that required quadruple bypass surgery. However, the show's creator, J. Michael Straczynski, later offered him the role of Alfred Bester once he had recovered and was returning to acting.Besides his performances in Star Trek projects and Babylon 5, Walter Koenig is also known for his roles in The Questor Tapes, Moontrap, and Starlost. As a screenwriter, he's best known for writing episodes of What Really Happened to the Class of '65? (1977), Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973), Land of the Lost (1974), and The Powers of Matthew Star (1982). He is also known for writing the thriller, InAlienable (2008).Walter Koenig was married to Judy Levitt until her death in 2022. They had a son, Andrew, who committed suicide in 2010. Koenig is survived by his daughter, Danielle Koenig, who is an actress and screenwriter.For more articles like this, follow Soapcentral.