Brent Spiner is happy Data died in Star Trek: Nemesis

Brent Spiner is ok with the fact Data died in Star Trek: Nemesis.

Brent Spiner is known to most Star Trek fans as Data, the android who served as a Lt. Commander on the bridge of the U.S.S. Enterprise-D and E. His journey through the show and the films, where he tried to understand things like humanity, emotions, and even relationships made him highly relatable and entertaining.

Yet, when The Next Generation crew was wrapping things up on the film front with Star Trek: Nemesis, the call was made to have Data sacrifice himself to save his captain and crewmates. The script writers left an explainer in case a fifth film was made, with Data’s “brother” B4 surviving the film and looking just like Data.

So if a fifth movie happened, Spiner could just play B4. In fact, that became the gimmick for Spiner in the 21 years following the film, Spiner would play various other characters but only once did he ever reprise his iconic Next Generation role.

So it’s not surprising that Spiner doesn’t mind that Data died, because it’s not like Spiner has been left on the sidelines.

Brent Spiner’s totally cool with having Data killed off in Star Trek: Nemesis

Spiner spoke to the New York Times about Data’s demise, and revealed that he’s been fine with it, saying;

"…You know, I was perfectly happy with the ending of “Nemesis,” even though I know that a lot of fans weren’t. And then I feel that was sort of redeemed, in a way, for the fans in the first season of “Picard.” I would hate to have missed both those moments.So no, I’m perfectly happy with the way it’s gone. I can’t say much more. I haven’t really seen much of the show — they’ve kept it away from me because they know I’ll blow it."

Spiner’s turn after Data’s death has allowed him to explore more as an actor. He’s played various incarnations of the Soong family, as well as returning to Picard as the villainous android Lore. Lore is the third brother, sharing “parentage” with Data and B4. So it’s not surprising that Spiner would be happy to return to the property over and over again with a new challenge to pull off.

Being stuck with one character can be a blessing, but after a while you often get written into a box, much like some characters have been in Star Trek currently.