The Trek track took over the Marriott Atrium Ballroom Saturday morning to host a Q&A panel of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Picard stars. Garrett Wang, track director and panel moderator, oversaw Jonathan Frakes, Gates McFadden, Brent Spiner, and John De Lancie, in an hour of conversation that spanned far and wide across the world of Star Trek.
The panel began with an unusual and unexpected development: Wang was late. Frakes introduced his colleagues and proceeded to repeat the most common questions asked by fans at conventions. Moments later Wang arrived, and Frakes immediately donned his director’s voice to remind the tardy moderator that an actor has two responsibilities: to know his lines and be on time! For his part Wang blamed it on the parade and his inability to cross the street!
In response to a question early in the session, McFadden got to reflect on her directorial debut in Star Trek: The Next Generation. The last of the castmates to direct an episode, McFadden helmed “Genesis,” the 19th episode of the seventh season. A make-up heavy episode, she was quick to praise the work of Michael Westmore, who wanted to nominate the episode for an Emmy in the make-up category. She also noted the outstanding acting of Frakes and now deceased Patty Yasutake (nurse Alyssa Ogawa). She enjoyed the detail work involved in the creative process, having an opportunity to use things on set that had never been used before.
It’s well known that Frakes turned his directing opportunities on Star Trek: The Next Generation into an ongoing successful career as a director. He was asked what it was like to direct the live action/animation crossover episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (“Those Old Scientists”) in which characters from the animated series Star Trek: Lower Decks travel back in time. Tawny Newsome and Jack Quaid played their animated characters in the episode. Directing the episode was, according to Frakes, like “herding cats!” He praised Newsome and Quaid for their improvisational skill and Anson Mount’s comedic ability. Frakes pointed out that in that episode the “laws changed.” He “opened up” the production, building off of the creative energy of Newsome and Quaid’s improvisation. The rest of the cast fed off it and a great episode was born.
Creating something new was a key component of John de Lancie’s deliberations over joining Star Trek: Picard. He sat down with the show runners of the series and asked if the goal was to “create” or “recreate.” It was a pivotal question because, according to de Lancie, the quest to recreate something you did in the past is a trap to be aware of and avoid. The creative team was emphatic that Star Trek: Picard was about creating something new. In that moment de Lancie was able to “exhale,” not just reprising his role of the quixotic Q but creating him anew. The Q of Star Trek: Picard was more mature, generous, and able to show concern for someone (in this case Picard) in a meaningful way. De Lancie’s effort to understand and engage characters fully gave the panel one of its most significant moments. In answer to a question about difficult and uncomfortable roles, de Lancie told the story of a production in which he played a government functionary in occupied Europe during World War II. His character had scenes that were very uncomfortable, including conversation with a town’s mayor over the logistics of deporting the town’s Jewish population during the “Final Solution.” He initially saw his character as a “monster” who he found very difficult to play. That was all to change, though, due to an incident during lunch. While standing in line to pay for his lunch a person in front of him dropped a $5 bill. De Lancie picked it up and immediately gave it back to its owner. He could have slid his foot over the $5 bill and casually picked it up. The owner wouldn’t have known, and there would have been no consequences or repercussions. That tiny step, however, that compromise, would have started a series of actions and rationalization that would, at the end of the arc, allow a man to “put kids on a train.” It was a startling moment that unlocked his character. He came to see and understand how ordinary people could do such a thing.
It was simply a remarkable and entertaining hour that all in attendance appreciated.
