To answer the question of why we should care about Paramount Plus, the service is going back to the well of nostalgia and snagging some of our favorite Star Trek: The Next Generation characters to be featured in season 3 of Star Trek: Picard.
A brief trailer for the news shows just Patrick Stewart in his role as Jean-Luc Picard but uses voiceovers to tease the upcoming appearances of LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Jonathan Frakes, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, and Brent Spiner.
Without showing them, it’s unclear if we’ll see the use of often-controversial de-aging technology applied to the stars or if there’s any other plan to deal with the impact of time and plot circumstances. Guinan’s return in season 2 has included both Whoopi Goldberg and a new performer, Ito Aghayere, assuming the role of young Guinan, as well as some timeline chicanery. So anything seems possible for William Riker, Beverly Crusher, Geordi La Forge, Deanna Troi, Worf, and Data.
The third season will be Picard’s last, and in a statement, showrunner and EP Terry Matalas says “it’s most fitting that the story of Jean-Luc Picard ends honoring the beginning, with his dearest and most loyal friends from the U.S.S. Enterprise.” Co-EP Christopher Monfette confirmed the third season finished filming last month.
There’s no release date mentioned for the show’s third season, although season 2 is still airing, with new episodes arriving each Thursday and episode 6 poised to drop this week. Today’s announcement was timed to coincide with “First Contact Day,” celebrating the 2063 date in Star Trek lore marking when humans and Vulcans meet.
