Star Trek TNG Stars Tease Potential Exit After Picard Season 3: “Nobody Wants to Be Tom Brady”

Star Trek: The Next Generation stars LeVar Burton (Geordi La Forge) and Brent Spiner (Data/Lore/Altan Soong) are getting a new chance to shine in the franchise, thanks to Star Trek: Picard Season 3. (MILD SPOILERS) Star Trek fans got re-introduced to both Geordi and Data in Picard Season 3 Episode 6, “The Bounty”, and they were both definitely in very different places than where we last saw them! 

Geordi is now a respected Commodore and father, while Data is brought back in a new Soong android body, with a brain containing Data’s memories, as well as those of his “brothers” Lore and B-4, and his “daughter” Lal. By the end of the episode, it certainly seemed like Star Trek: Picard Season 3 had exciting story arcs for both Geordi and Data that will be explored. 

Now that Star Trek: Picard Season 3 Episode 6 is out, LeVar Burton and Brent Spiner have gotten to re-unite for some press interviews. While sitting down with Variety, the two longtime Star Trek veterans were asked if Star Trek: Picard’s Final Season were truly the end of the franchise for them both.

“That remains to be seen,” Brent Spiner admitted. “I don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. If the fans are there for us and enjoy it and want to see more…  You can quote me on this…’I, for one, would like to see one of these ten-episode movies every single year as long as they can do it.’”

LeVar Burton has a more zen outlook on his return to Star Trek: not looking too far ahead: 

“Look, this was an unexpected gift. I don’t want to begin to think about that possibility. Because it’s not wise, right? I’m trying to really enjoy this for what it is. There’s no expectation of anything happening beyond this, because this is the thing that I never thought would happen – and it’s happened. To expect or ask for or even contemplate anything more is just greedy.”

Spiner added that a graceful exit is something to always consider: “LeVar and I’ve talked about the fact that if this lands in a way that we hope it lands, maybe it would be best to be the finale. And if there should be something more than this, well, as he said, that would just be another gift that we can’t really contemplate at the moment. “

That’s when LeVar Burton added that “Nobody wants to be Tom Brady.”

OUCH. We never thought we’d see the day when Star Trek got to throw shade at the NFL – but here we are.

Tom Brady has become something of a punchline after choosing to continue his NFL career at the cost of his marriage to supermodel Gisele Bündchen. Brady’s NFL performance declined in the last season, while Gisele has made it clear she’s embracing being single again. Tom Brady is now finding his image transition from that of the greatest football player of all time to that of another superstar who wore out his welcome. 

That all said, Brent Spiner does bring up a silver lining when he points out that Brady “got a movie at the end!” Referring to the film comedy film 80 for Brady, which was released earlier this year. 

Star Trek: Picard Season 3 is now streaming on Paramount+.