Fans of Star Trek: Picard may be happy to hear Patrick Stewart hinting at more past faces appearing on the CBS All-Access series.
Star Trek: Picard ended with some trippy stuff going on. In a series that had twin android-hybrids, a Star Trek approved Matrix, downloadable consciouses going into man-made bodies that somehow still age and die…Picard’s first season was weird. Season two may be just as weird. As part of CBS’s push to get Picard an Emmy nomination, the man who plays the titular hero, Patrick Stewart, spoke with Gold Derby about season two, other faces returning and more.
The interview had a lot more topics covered, so it’s worth checking out.
During the interview, Stewart alluded to what could be coming next in season two of the series.
"There are startling events predicted in season two. I am so excited about them, because it is taking season one on from where we were. We are not going to be covering the same ground. It is going to be extraordinary. I am very excited about it. Of course, I can’t go into detail at all. I have a long conference planned for tomorrow where I hope for certain aspects of how season two will develop, and I’m looking forward to it very much."
Considering some of the zany things that happened in season one, anything being “extraordinary” for season two is baffling. Beyond that, the hints at former Next Generation stars returning to Star Trek have been popping up. Brent Spiner wants back in, just not as Data. Even LaVar Burton wants back in, but probably not as Data either. Jokes aside, Burton alluded to the talks of returning as Geordie La Forge in an earlier interview and said he was open to it, just that nothing has become official or even unofficial.
Regardless of who returns, they would need to “evolve” from prior appearances. Stewart continued by saying;
"In meetings when we talked about bringing in members of the Next Generation crew, that was one of the things I was most passionate about, which was not only should Picard have changed during the 18 years that had passed, but the same has to be applied to Counselor Troi, to Commander Riker, to whoever it is. And by the way, I am very hopeful we will see more of The Next Generation crew before we say goodbye to Picard. And that is just what they did, and there is no better example than the episode [“Nepenthe”]."
With news that CBS may add James Kirk to the purposed Pike spinoff series, and now talks of even more iconic names returning to the franchise; it’s very evident that the showrunners are trying to utilize nostalgia for ratings and subscriptions.
Will it work? Only time will tell.