Patrick Stewart Reveals How a Chance Encounter Made Him Captain Picard in a Fun 1988 Interview
Before Patrick Stewart became one of the most recognizable captains in science fiction history, he was a British Shakespearean actor who had no idea just how crazy the Star Trek universe could get.
In a fun 1988 interview with BBC host Sir Terry Wogan, Stewart talked about his unlikely journey to becoming Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, including the unexpected encounter that landed him the role and his introduction to the franchise's fiercely devoted fans.
The story of his casting is pretty fun: “Stewart reveals how a chance encounter with producer Robert H. Justman at UCLA led to him taking command of the Starship Enterprise as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
Stewart also shared some amusing observations about working on an American science fiction series and quickly learning that Star Trek fans take their fandom very seriously. Apparently, even the terminology comes with rules.
“He discusses discovering the passionate fan community who prefer to be known as ‘Trekkers’ rather than ‘Trekkies.’”
One of the interview's funniest moments involves Stewart recalling his first Star Trek convention, where he walked into a Denver hotel ballroom packed with more than 3,000 fans. The experience made him feel like a rock star, which must have been a hell of a change from performing Shakespeare.
It's a great little piece of Star Trek history, capturing Stewart at a time when The Next Generation was still finding its footing and Captain Picard was just beginning his journey toward becoming a sci-fi legend.
Watching him talk about it all before he fully understood what he'd signed up for makes this vintage BBC interview especially entertaining.