Star Trek: Jonathan Frakes Teases Conflict Between Jean-Luc and Riker in Picard Season 3

Paramount+ is getting ready to premiere the third and final season of their most prominent Star Trek series, Star Trek: Picard. The series will try to wrap up the story that they began telling about Jean-Luc Picard and it looks to be really good. While we don’t know if the series will lead into a spinoff, the showrunner revealed that he looks at the third season as a continuation of Star Trek: The Next Generation. During that same interview with Den of Geek, actor Jonathan Frakes teased the conflict between Riker and Picard while the events of season three happened.

“He really gets Next Gen,” Frakes revealed about the showrunner’s writing in season three. “Without blowing too much smoke up Terry’s ass, he’s a wonderful writer. And the stuff he gave me to do was exciting. I know that Gates felt the same way, and I think LeVar [Burton] did, too. Terry wrote Riker in conflict with Picard, which I thought was quite exciting.” 

“Roddenberry was, for some reason, opposed to conflict. It was a peculiar ask back in the day, but he wanted everyone to get along. Not so much with Terry. He’s really stirred the pot. Conflict, which, as we know, is an absolute necessity in drama.” The Star Trek: Picard actor added.

While the Star Trek: Picard Season 3 trailer released at New York Comic Con called the story their “final mission,” the crew seemed to differ on that account. When a fan asked the crew if this really is their final outing, McFadden responded by saying she be happy for it to go on “forever.” Frakes noted that they’re “not dead yet,” with Sirtis wryly chiming in that they’re “Just old.”

Stewart said, “I know there are some Paramount+ people here and also from Paramount Pictures, we could still make a movie.” This came after following his comments at San Diego Comic-Con when he replied to a fan with a resounding “yes” when asked if he’d like to make another Star Trek: The Next Generation movie. 

Star Trek’s head producer Alex Kurtzman, perhaps trying to prevent excitement from getting out of hands without any firm plans in place, replied, “I think that in some ways season three is that. But of course, I mean, look, if you guys love it, let’s see what happens.”

Star Trek: Picard Season 3 showrunner Terry Matalas previously expressed his excitement at reuniting the Star Trek: The Next Generation crew. “I remember watching the premiere of Star Trek: The Next Generation almost 34 years ago with my father like it was yesterday. It was the spark that ignited my love for science fiction,” Matalas said in a press release. “So, 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. It would be an understatement to say that giving these characters a proper send-off is an honor. The entire Star Trek: Picard team and I can’t wait for fans to experience this final, high-stakes, starship-bound adventure in season three!”

The first two seasons of Star Trek: Picard, along with all seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation, are streaming now on Paramount+. Star Trek: Picard Season 3 premieres on February 16th on Paramouint+.

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