It’s been a busy week for Star Trek: Picard, with the upcoming addition to the Star Trek universe debuting a new trailer and poster teasing what’s to come. One of the most satisfying bits of information in the CBS All Access preview though was learning that the former Enterprise Captain worked his way up to being an Admiral. However, this isn’t the whole story, and the new series picks up after Jean-Luc has left Starfleet.
The trailer ends with Picard being asked “Why did you leave Starfleet, Admiral?”, setting up a potentially fraught backstory that will likely cover the destruction of Romulus and Picard’s role in a rescue armada. Perhaps the trauma of that event led to him resigning and seeking a quieter life in the Picard vineyard?
While we wait to learn more, Patrick Stewart’s co-star on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Jonathan Frakes, had this to say about Picard’s identity in the new series:
“Patrick isn’t playing Capt. Jean-Luc Picard this time, he’s done with [that phase of his career in] Starfleet in this show.“That’s about the only thing I do know about the show. Patrick and I had a steak dinner a couple of weeks ago and this man, who I’ve known for 31 years now, is so excited about this show he’s like a little kid. It’s fabulous! He’s thrilled and excited to be invited into the writer’s room and he’s a producer on the show and he’s part of the development of the story arc. It’s terrific. I mean he is a guy who is fully engaged.”
It’s clear that it would’ve taken something special for Patrick Stewart to return to arguably his most iconic role. The actor will certainly be putting his Shakespearean experience to good use as the older Picard, perhaps even with the role of Prospero in The Tempest in mind. We also see some similarities between the reclusive Picard of the trailer and Sherlock Holmes’ retirement to beekeeping.
The ongoing glimpses into Star Trek: Picard, from Starfleet uniforms to posters, is getting us excited about how the series will pick up the story of the Captain, and we’ll surely learn more when it premieres on CBS All Access in late 2019 and globally via Amazon at likely the same time.
