Jean Luc Picard will return to boldly go in an all new series for CBS All Access. Patrick Stewart himself made the announcement last night at a massive Star Trek convention in Vegas, and on his personal Twitter.
“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,” Stewart said. “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.”
“With overwhelming joy, it’s a privilege to welcome Sir Patrick Stewart back to the Star Trek fold,” Kurtzman said. “For over 20 years, fans have hoped for the return of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and that day is finally here. We can’t wait to forge new ground, surprise people, and honor generations both new and old.”
Stewart will lead the new show, which will not be a reboot of The Next Generation, but a continuation of Picards Story.
The new show will be executive produced by Alex Kurtzman, the current showrunner on CBS All Access’ Star Trek: Discovery. Kurtzman issued this statement:
“With overwhelming joy, it’s a privilege to welcome Sir Patrick Stewart back to the Star Trek fold. For over 20 years, fans have hoped for the return of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and that day is finally here. We can’t wait to forge new ground, surprise people, and honor generations both new and old.”
Patrick Stewart was at the controls of the Enterprise from 1987-1994 through seven seasons of The Next Generation, and four films. Star Trek Generations, First Contact, Insurrection and Nemesis all pushed the story of Picard and his crew forward, something that hasn’t been done since.
The new series is pretty significant, in that it will see Star Trek finally go forward again. The first Star Trek series pushed the characters to “Boldly Go”, and Star Trek the Next Generation jumped forward a few hundred years in the Star Trek timeline, along with Deep Space Nine. After those two series ended, and the four feature length Star Trek films concluded, the entire series jumped back in time with Voyager, Enterprise and even the three new Star Trek films. All of those were either prequels or reboots of the series, with the latest Star Trek: Discovery also being a prequel.
With the return of Jean Luc Picard, the series will push forward once again. It’s unclear what we’ll see Picard up to, or if any of the other crew members will return, but it’s amazing to see the series moving forward, and discovering new life and boldly going where no one has gone before.
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