Picard’ Isn’t Just About Reuniting ‘Next Generation’ Crew

Terry Matalas is bringing an iconic series to an end, which feels appropriate given where he started.

Actor Jeri Ryan explains that when she started on Star Trek: Voyager as the character Seven of Nine, “Terry was a [entry level production assistant]. He has loved, loved Star Trek and followed it religiously. So, it’s not hard for him to know all the canon details.”

She adds, with affection, “He is such a nerdball and such a huge Trekkie.”

Now, Matalas is the showrunner on Star Trek: Picard, which is entering its third and final season.

It’s time to bring the story to a close, says Matalas, as he gives some details on how the series will wrap up. “In this particular season, one of the north stars that we were following was that Jean-Luc Picard and his Next Generation cast really never got a final sendoff. How better to end that journey than to look back at the beginning and to bring his friends and family from Star Trek: The Next Generation back. So, there is a very strong sense of conclusion to that particular storyline.”

The characters appearing this season on Picard from Star Trek franchise include Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden), Worf (Michael Dorn), Seven of Nine, and as Captain Will Riker, Jonathan Frakes, who has also directed several episodes of Picard.

Alex Kurzman, executive producer, points out that while there are characters from the past, the narrative is, ‘less [about] going back to things,’ as he points out that, “in order for Star Trek to thrive and grow, it has to change. But changing it doesn’t mean changing the essential nature of what Trek is. So, for us, that’s always about [creator Gene] Roddenberry’s vision of optimism. It doesn’t mean you can’t go into dark places; it just means that optimism is the core tenet of Star Trek.”

Michelle Hurd, who plays Raffi Musiker on Picard, adds, “The whole concept of Star Trek was always to hold up a mirror to society, right? Our world is changing, things are challenging. If we didn’t adjust in that way, we wouldn’t be holding that mirror up. That’s part of why we evolved.”

Series star Sir Patrick Stewart says that for him it all started when his agent got a call from Gene Roddenberry requesting to meet the actor.

At that moment, Stewart says that, “I had to turn to my kids, and say, ‘Kids, kids. I think you watch Star Trek. Tell me about it. What was it? Did you like it? Was it any good at all?’ And, of course, they raved about it.”

Stewart, who was a stage actor at the time, continues the story with, “I remember coming home after matinees from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre just in time to be able to give my kids their supper, read to them and I would find that they were watching this thing on television with these guys in colored T‑shirts. I knew nothing about it, and I did not even recall the name Gene Roddenberry. So, I had a lot to catch up on. But as time went by, I began to see that the Next Generation cast, crew, producers, writers, directors, were creating an expansion of Gene’s world, and that has continued until today.”

Matalas says that this is, ‘a really exciting time in the Star Trek universe for long-time fans’ because, “There were so many storylines that were set up that we were thrilled to explore and [that allowed us to] unite some of the Voyager, Next Gen, Deep Space Nine cast together and really immerse [viewers] in that canon.”

However, Stewart believes, “The most important thing for me was that it should not just simply look like a three-series reunion, because that would just simply be stepping back.”

He goes on to ruminate how the on the passing of time has influenced the current series, saying, “I had lived nearly 35 years since I first put on the captain’s uniform, and there is no doubt that in that time, the world has changed. I have changed too. I’m not the same person that I was then. I wanted the series to show the impact of those years that had passed and how much one might change and whether fears become greater or less. Right now, about the condition of the world, my fears are high and full of anxiety. So, I wanted that to be incorporated.”

And, continuing the Roddenberry trait of optimism about this series end and whether there could be more for Picard going forward, Stewart says, in his familiar dulcet tone, “There are doors left open still. We didn’t close all of them.”

The third and final season of ‘Star Trek: Picard’ streams on Paramount+ beginning Thursday, February 16^th.