Jonathan Frakes, who starred as Commander Riker in the Star Trek series The Next Generation and the TNG Star Trek movies, has said that more TNG follow on series could be coming down the line.
Frakes played Riker, the second in command on the Star Trek starship USS Enterprise-D, over the seven seasons of TNG and then four science fiction movies. The character left the Enterprise to captain the USS Titan, and his story was followed up in Star Trek: Picard season 1.
But that’s not all. Frakes will be returning as Riker in Star Trek: Picard season 3 along with the rest of the main TNG crew, for one last Star Trek adventure with Jean-Luc Picard. Or, is it the last adventure?
While Star Trek: Picard season 3 is the final season of the new sci-fi series, Frakes has spoken about the possibility of even more post-TNG, post-Star Trek: Picard spin-off shows about the TNG main cast. Speaking to Den of Geek, the actor and director made the surprising comments.
He said “As you’ll see by the end of the [Star Trek: Picard season 3], it’s ripe for a continuation of some version of what we’ve established in the show. Not more Picard, but certainly, Next Gen is alive and well.”
Those comments directly suggest that Star Trek: Picard season 3 has something of an open-ended conclusion, if it leaves space for more TV series with the TNG Star Trek characters or even more Star Trek movies. There has been no word as of yet about what those might look like – or how likely they even are at all – but it does make it clear that there is interest at least among the cast.
Whether that interest is shared by either studios or executives is another matter, and will likely depend on the reception to Star Trek: Picard season 3 after the divisive first two seasons. For more on Star Trek, check out our guide to the Star Trek: Discovery season 5 release date, or the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 release date. Or, take a look at our ranking of the Star Trek captains.