Star Trek: Picard made fans’ years by bringing back a bunch of classic Trek actors for its first season. Voyager’s Jeri Ryan had the biggest role, but Jonathan Frakes, Marina Sirtis and Brent Spiner were among Patrick Stewart’s old colleagues from The Next Generation who returned as well. There’s something of a promise, then, that more familiar faces will feature in season 2. And we’ve now got a hint about one of them.
Entertainment Tonight recently spoke with LeVar Burton and quizzed him over a potential comeback as Geordi La Forge on the future of Picard. The actor gave a cagey response, but ET were ultimately able to get it out of him that it’s “been talked about.” Burton even revealed that he’s pitched his own take on where Geordi would be in his life by the time of Picard to EP Alex Kurtzman.
“I have suggested to the producers that we find Geordi in a position where he is teaching and passing that knowledge and information on to another generation. We’ll see. Alex [Kurtzman] and the folks are in charge and they are doing an amazing job. When they call and whatever they want me to do, I’m pretty sure it is going to be spectacular.”
This echoes previous optimistic comments Burton gave last year, when he seemed pretty sure that he and the rest of the TNG crew would appear on the show eventually. Likewise, he was just as certain about this while talking to ET. “I think it is reasonable to assume that those people are still a part of Picard’s life,” he said, before adding:
“You will see us all. Probably not all at the same time, although, never say never.”
Burton isn’t really spoiling anything here, as we already know he visited the set during season 1 to reunite with Stewart, Frakes and Sirtis, so it only stands to reason that he would have already have had a chat with the producers about appearing on it himself. Assuming we can take his heavy teases as confirmation, then, that means he’s the third classic character we can expect to show up in season 2, alongside Robert Picardo’s the Doctor and Whoopi Goldberg as Guinan.
Star Trek: Picard season 2 has had its production delayed due to the lockdown, but scripting is still underway, so it should hopefully still be with us sometime next year.