Jonathan Frakes would like to be in on the birth of a new Star Trek series

Jonathan Frakes is a well-known name in the Star Trek franchise.

Jonathan Frakes got his start in Star Trek as Commander Will Riker on Star Trek: The Next Generation. He eventually moved into directing, including the series’ massively successful feature film, Star Trek: First Contact. And though he’s returned to acting a few times, he mostly spends his time behind the camera, having directed a plethora of episodes for Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Discovery, and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.

Frakes recently appeared as a guest on To Boldy Go [via Trekmovie], the brand new podcast hosted by Ian Spelling, who can only ask questions that have never been asked of guests before. Spelling asked what Frakes would like to do within the franchise that he’s never done before. Frakes said he’d like to be in on the birth of a new Star Trek series.

"It’s a writers’ medium. And in the last five or ten years, there’s always a writer with you on the set. So when you get along with that writer, you can collaborate with that writer, and the actors, who always have questions about a scene or about the story or about an arc, the writer can take that, he or she can help you, or they can bail you out, or they can explain what’s going—what they know from the writers’ room what’s coming down the line, which helps actors understand why they’re doing this now. So I’d be thrilled in being part of the birth of one of these series, that would be a thrill."

What part would Jonathan Frakes like to play in the creation of a new series?

This wasn’t a question that Spelling asked him, but, knowing Star Trek as well as he does, from both the actor and the director’s side, Frakes would be the perfect showrunner for next series. To take a Star Trek project and guide it from the beginning to the end, with his knowledge, Frakes would have a massive impact on the fans and the new show.

If anyone is going to have a part in an upcoming series or one that has yet to be developed, it should be Frakes. He has shown his dedication and devotion to the franchise since 1987, and with him at the helm, we could look forward to some really great Trek.