‘Star Trek: Discovery’: Is Patrick Stewart Teasing a Season 2 Role?

Could Star Trek: The Next Generation star Patrick Stewart be returning to Starfleet duty for a role on Star Trek: Discovery? A new video may suggest just that.

Red Carpet News caught up with Stewart outside of the Park Theatre gala and asked the man who was Captain Jean Luc-Picard of the USS Enterprise if he has watched Star Trek: Discovery. It’s an innocent enough question that Stewart has been asked in practically every interview he’s done since Discovery debuted, but his answer this time was a bit more interesting than usual.

“You mean the series, not the movie, because there is a new movie due out very soon,” Stewart clarified first, then went on to say, “No, I haven’t, but I may have good cause to look at it very soon.”

Good cause? Is he suggested that he has some homework to do before joining the cast in Toronto? His vague comment certainly isn’t confirmation of anything, but it is interesting, to say the least.

One possibility is that Stewart will reprise his role as Captain Picard through some means of time travel, though that seems a bit far-fetched. He could perhaps place one of Picard’s ancestors. It wouldn’t be the first time a Star Trek actor has pulled such a trick.

Stewart has directed episodes of Star Trek in the past as well, so it is possible he’d follow in fellow Next Generation star Jonathan Frakes’ footsteps and helm an episode of Star Trek: Discovery, but it has been decades since Stewart directed anything, so this would be a surprising turn.

Another Next Generation star, Marina Sirtis, was on the Discovery set recently. As far as anyone knows, she’s was just visiting Frakes while he was directing one of his episodes, but perhaps she’s the one who is actually going to appear on Discovery and Stewart will want to give it a look for that reason. It’s thin, but a possibility.

Previously, co-creator Alex Kurtzman has teased that some prominent actors from past Star Trek series were interested in appearing in Discovery, saying, “So many actors are fans. We literally got a list of them that were like, ‘Here are people who said they want to be on Star Trek‘. It was awesome…To just be in an episode or come in or out.”

However, at least one Next Generation star, Brent Spiner, voiced skepticism over the idea of having a cameo on the show, saying at a convention, “I am very optimistic about this show. I am very hopeful that it is going to be fantastic. I hope it continues this wonderful epic journey that Star Trek has been on and I feel it probably will. I don’t know that I need to be a part of it necessarily but I encourage them and hope for the best.”

Star Trek fans will just have to wait and see how things pan out in Stewart’s case.

Would you like to see Stewart on Star Trek: Discovery? Let us know in the comments!

The first season of Star Trek: Discovery is available to stream in its entirety on CBS All Access in the United States, through CraveTV in Canada, and through Netflix in other international markets. Star Trek: Discovery Season Two is now filming in Toronto.

[H/T Trek Movie]