Whenever you consider an important individuals in Star Trek historical past, by way of actors a minimum of you would possibly look to the legacies of individuals like William Shatner or Patrick Stewart. However the true reply to that query is most likely Jonathan Frakes, who has been part of just about all televised Trek for the reason that ‘70s—and when Discovery ends in just a few months, it’ll break the pattern of his affect, a minimum of in entrance of the digital camera.
Since starring as William T. Riker in The Subsequent Technology, Frakes has made a visitor look in virtually each Star Trek sequence since, both as Riker or a facsimile of him, or his villainous transporter clone brother Thomas (accountable for the best faux beard reveal in tv historical past, because of Deep Area 9). Simply three sequence have gone with out an on-screen Frakes look to this point—Discovery, Prodigy, and Unusual New Worlds—and now we all know a minimum of one in all them by no means will.
When requested by Den of Geek at a current look throughout SXSW whether or not or not Frakes would make an on-screen look in Discovery’s ultimate season, co-creator and producer Alex Kurtzman provided a really resoundingly flat “No.” It’s not stunning contemplating that, as Discovery is now to this point into Star Trek’s future, Riker is extraordinarily lifeless at this level. At the very least it’ll all the time have a particular connection to Frakes by way of his position as a equally constant Trek director—Frakes has been recurrently directing episodes of Discovery since its first season, and can direct the penultimate episode of the present in season 5. But it surely does certainly imply the tip to a decades-long pattern of creating Frakes probably the most constant Trek actors within the franchise historical past, and there’s one thing oddly unhappy about that.
Prodigy and Unusual New Worlds each nonetheless have time to have their very own Frakes appearances—Prodigy is about in 2385, whereas Riker was nonetheless in lively service even after the beginning of his son Thaddeus, for whom he would step again from lively responsibility to attempt to assist deal with when he was identified with mendaxic neurosclerosis within the run-up to the occasions of Star Trek: Picard. Unusual New Worlds (which like Discovery has a Frakes connection by way of directing; he shot the present’s unbelievable crossover with Decrease Decks, “These Previous Scientists”) being pre-original Trek would make a Riker look very troublesome, however Frakes might nonetheless play some position, whether or not it’s an ancestor or a completely new character.
We’ll have to attend and see—and behold what Frakes cooks up as his parting present for Discovery—when season 5 begins streaming on April 4.
This story initially appeared on io9. Need extra io9 information? Take a look at when to count on the most recent Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s subsequent for the DC Universe on movie and TV, and all the pieces it’s good to learn about the way forward for Physician Who.
