For all you Star Trek fans out there, you are going to be happy to hear that Sir Patrick Stewart will be making his return. It’s been rumored for a while, but CBS finally made the announcement that Sir Patrick Stewart, who played Captin Jean Luc-Picard on Star Trek: The Next Generation, will be reprising his role in a new series. The series will explore “the new chapter in Picard’s life”. But what does that mean? Well, there haven’t been a lot of details released, so it’s a bit speculative at this point. What we do know is that the announcement was made at a Star Trek convention in Las Vegas where Stewart was quoted as saying “it may not be the Jean-Luc you know and love”.
But we’ve seen this before in other Star Trek franchises. Spoiler alert (if you haven’t finished watching Season 1) – Captain Philippa Georgiou comes back later in the season as Emperor Georgiou. Which, doesn’t necessarily make that much sense, but it does if you watch it as it involves some kind of rift in the time/space continuum. No, I’m not trying to mix metaphors here, but I think you get the picture. When it comes to science fiction, it’s not always that straightforward. So, who he will come back as, or what is not something we know at this time. Does that make it less likely that you’ll want to watch the show? I think any fan is going to tune in because Sit Patrick Stewart plays an incredible character, regardless of who it is.
Stewart made the following statement regarding this news:
“I will always be very proud to have been a part of Star Trek: The Next Generation, but when we wrapped that final movie in the spring of 2002, I truly felt my time with Star Trek had run its natural course. It is, therefore, an unexpected but delightful surprise to find myself excited and invigorated to be returning to Jean-Luc Picard and to explore new dimensions within him. Seeking out new life for him, when I thought that life was over.
During these past years, it has been humbling to hear many stories about how The Next Generation brought people comfort, saw them through difficult periods in their lives or how the example of Jean-Luc inspired so many to follow in his footsteps, pursuing science, exploration, and leadership. I feel I’m ready to return to him for the same reason — to research and experience what comforting and reforming light he might shine on these often very dark times. I look forward to working with our brilliant creative team as we endeavor to bring a fresh, unexpected and pertinent story to life once more.”
What will this mean for Star Trek: Discovery? In my opinion, it can only make it better. I think that CBS sees an untapped market that is ready for more Star Trek. While many are hard-core fans of the older series, it’s certainly time that more series are developed so that they can create new fans and delight the old ones.