“He makes the set a fun place to be.”
Jonathan Frakes began carving out an incredible career for himself as a director while still working as an actor on Star Trek: The Next Generation nearly 40 years ago. And so, it’s no wonder that Strange New Worlds executive producer and co-showrunner Henry Alonso Myers praises his unswerving ability to sit in the director’s chair today.
During an interview with Awards Radar, Myers was asked why Frakes was hired to direct Strange New World’s holodeck murder mystery, “A Space Adventure Hour,” and the SNW showrunner replied: “Well, I mean, we can speak to many reasons, but one of the great ones is that he is just terrific with actors and performance.”
Myers, who oversees Strange New Worlds with fellow showrunner Akiva Goldsman, continued during the same sit-down by saying, “[Frakes] knows how to work with them. He really gets them to try different things."
" I don’t know, it’s a fun episode for him because all of the actors are coming in to do something different," Myers added. "And so, he makes the set a fun place to be. And I feel like the more you do that, the more that actually comes out through the show.”
Frakes first sat in the director’s chair to helm The Next Generation memorable season 3 episode “The Offspring,” which introduces Lt. Commander Data's daughter, Lal, to the science fiction franchise. However, Frakes has directed many episodes across Star Trek’s series over the years, including installments of Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and most recently Starfleet Academy's "300th Night."
For those who may be new to the fandom, Frakes also directed two of Star Trek’s feature films: First Contact and Insurrection. For my money, though, Frakes did it best from the directing chair when he helmed the Strange New Worlds and Lower Decks crossover episode, “Those Old Scientists.”
I imagine most Trekkers and Trekkers will praise Frakes for his direction on First Contact, which remains one of the best Star Trek movies to this day. Nevertheless, share your own thoughts and comments with us on Jonathan Frakes' directing acumen via the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages.
Live long and prosper, Trekkies!
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