WEBVTT

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This week, I've got the
man behind the Star Trek

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curtain himself, Alex Kurtzman, here

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to talk about Strange New Worlds

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and the future of the Star Trek Universe.

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We'll take a look at times Star Trek

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delivered some serious plot twists.

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And of course, I've got
an exclusive sneak peek

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of next week's episode of
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.

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The First Servant is ascending,
get thee to The Ready Room!

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Hey, nerds. I'm Wil Wheaton
and this is The Ready Room.

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Your official behind-the-scenes hub

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for all things Star Trek universe.

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Episode 6 of Strange New Worlds

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not only gave us a look
at Pike's early love life,

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but delivered an amazingly unexpected

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and very Trek-like ending,
which leads me to... red alert!

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This week's episode is called

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"Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach"

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and believe me, when I
say you will be suffering

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if you stick around for
all the spoilers coming up.

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I did not see where
this episode was headed

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and that is the best way to watch.

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Go stream it and then return here

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where we can properly geek out together.

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I last spoke to Alex Kurtzman,

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our Star Trek Executive
Producer extraordinaire,

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on Star Trek Day 2021.

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Since then we've finished
Season 2 of Lower Decks,

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Star Trek: Prodigy entered the universe,

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both Discovery and Picard gave
us incredible new seasons,

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and now we're in a fresh Trek experience

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with Strange New Worlds.

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Can someone say golden age of Star Trek?

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There's so much to discuss.

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It may take a space-time
anomaly to get to it all.

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It's cool, I know how to handle those.

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After I get a full rundown from Alex,

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like he's my own personal LCARS,

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we'll celebrate this week's
unexpected resolution

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to Episode 6.

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In a universe filled
with strange new worlds

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there's bound to be plenty
of shocking discoveries,

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but nothing beats a
Star Trek twist ending.

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So later we'll take a look at
other episodes of Star Trek

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whose endings we did not
see coming, but first

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Strange New World's debut season

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has given us a plethora of
freeze frame worthy Easter eggs.

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We're gonna make it real easy for you

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to get an even closer
look at the amazing props

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introduced in the series
with this behind the scenes

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featurette. Because it's
all about the details,

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am I right?

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Control room, engage.

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[Jim] It was a fine line
to keep the tradition

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of what Discovery did
and the tradition of TOS,

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but find our own path.

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We have this canon that's been
set up and people love that

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and there's this nostalgia
that everybody has

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for those props.

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And I think if we were to
drastically change them,

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that would be changing the whole canon

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and I don't think that would've
been right for the show.

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So we took the original
designs, looked at those

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and just tried to stay in that ballpark,

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but just make it a little bit more slick

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and I think we did that.

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I'm gonna start with the Deltas

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because they're fan favorites.

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Basically these were
designed from Discovery

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Discovery did the first design, Mario

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did the first design, and
we've picked up that design

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to stay within canon.

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We've modified it a bit by
putting little black detail

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along here, which doesn't
seem like a big deal.

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You can see it a little bit,

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but it's just a subtlety that
will just tip it to our show.

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They're magnetized in the back.

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So that's really how this works

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because we don't wanna do any
pins or holes in the costumes,

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'cause that would drive the
Costume Department crazy.

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It's great.

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The one problem is when you
get too many of these together,

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they all magnetize together.

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But yeah, it's a pretty simple
fix to get the Deltas on.

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It's not on stun.

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So this is our version of the TOS phaser.

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So there's stun and then we go to kill

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and then all the brains.

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So there's a brain that
we built inside the unit

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that's down in here, it's
driven by this battery here.

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And again, magnets are our best friend.

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So everything's magnetized

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and there's a really nice weight to these

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because they're made out of aluminum

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instead of 3D printing.

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So when the actors have
them in their hands,

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they feel like a real weapon.

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It's pretty much baked into
the aluminum, the colors.

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And we try to stay as true

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to the original colors as possible.

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We have different versions of these.

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We have foam versions for stunts

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and rubber versions for
just holster stuffers.

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But when you see anything
that's live on camera,

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that's close up, it would be the definite

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the aluminum ones that we have.

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We built six of these in Season 1.

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Each phaser costs about $8,000

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top to bottom to build, Canadian.

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Because it's almost like
a little piece of art

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and we only do short runs of stuff.

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So when you do short runs of stuff,

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they tend to cost more.

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So yeah, they're about $8,000 per phaser.

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The next thing I'd like to
talk about is the communicator.

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So this is like a toy
version of the communicator

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that was used in TOS.

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[communicator chirps]

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So we wanted to stay as true
to this shape as possible

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because it's what the fans know.

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So this is our version of that.

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It's a thinner profile

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and it's just a little bit more slick.

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It flips just like a regular one would

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and inside we've put an iPod Nano

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so that it's got animation driving it.

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So that VFX doesn't have to go in

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and lay over anything.

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And it's got a nice weight to it, as well,

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because it's aluminum.

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So it's got that feel that a phone has

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and it flips nicely in your hands.

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So yeah, it's a really beautiful piece.

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I think we built six of these for Season 1

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and we have rubber versions
just for background performers

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and such.

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So my favorite prop for this
season was in Episode 1,

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T'Pring is proposing
to Spock with a pendant

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and the script read that
we needed some kind of box.

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And everyone's like, it's
just a box, it's just a box,

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but it couldn't just be a box.

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It had to be something
slick and beautiful.

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So this was what we came up
with and we designed this.

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So we built one of these

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'cause this is probably
about an $8,000 build.

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So the actor was to grab
it here and just open it up

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and it would open like that.

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But we wanted to keep
it elegant and simple

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and just in the Vulcan shape.
So there's a lot of angles

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in the Vulcan architecture.
So we stayed with that.

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So yeah, this was one of my
favorite props in the season.

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So, we built two of these

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and they're almost identical
to the original design,

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but we just did our own spin on them a bit

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and we just cleaned it up a bit

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and just added some textures here

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but this was direct from Canada.

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So this was a really
fun episode to work on

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because we were rebuilding stuff

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that was from such an iconic episode.

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This was a fun prop to do.

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The next thing I'd like to
talk about is the tricorder.

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We did a whole bunch of design passes.

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We talked about it and we
wanted the functionality

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that the original tricoder had.

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It was a simple piece, had a flip down,

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it had a screen on the inside

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and it had one little
sensor that came out of it.

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So we basically designed it as such.

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It flips up and down.

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So when Spock uses it, for instance,

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he can flip it to reveal that screen

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and then the screens inside.

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None of the buttons move unfortunately

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it's almost like the
original, they're decorative,

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but he can interact with
the different screens.

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The strap for it is
pretty much as per canon.

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We tried to design it and keep
it exactly the way it was.

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And the little scanning device
that comes out is magnetized.

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So it pops in the bottom and
it's got a brain in it as well

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with different patterns that we can set

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for different scanning mechanisms.

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I just remember sitting back
with the builders thinking

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we're redesigning these iconic props.

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Like this is amazing,
like that's the best.

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In countless ways, my guest for today

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is the all-knowing overseer
of our Star Trek Universe.

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Executive producer, Alex
Kurtzman is here with me today.

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Alex, thank you.

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I cannot believe you are actually here.

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I'm so excited to be here.

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Thank you for having me.

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It's a real honor.

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Thank you.

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Let's start with the 55-year pickup.

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- Talk to me
- Yeah.

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about bringing something
that's been in development

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- forever.
- forever.

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To where we are now
halfway through Season 1.

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Well, it was interesting

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because when we decided
to bring Captain Pike

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into Season 2 of Discovery,

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Akiva Goldsman, my partner,
one of my partners on the show

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said, "Oh, you know, we have
to do a Captain Pike show.

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We have to do it."

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And I said, "You know what would be great

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is if we could actually
cast a Captain Pike

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and we could successfully
just get away with doing it

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for once on Discovery before
we even start thinking

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about giving him his own show.

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Because the character of Captain Pike,

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even though we had done a version
of it with Bruce Greenwood

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in the films, was just
gonna be very different.

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And it's a big deal to
bring that character,

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and the Enterprise, onto Discovery.

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And I just wanted to make
sure we were gonna do it right

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and that we were gonna honor both what

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Jeffrey Hunter had done

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but also that the way that
the character had lived on

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in people's memories about Trek.

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And when I met Anson--

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Well, first of all, when
I saw Anson audition,

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it takes a very long
time to cast these parts

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because people have such
deep ingrained memories

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and associations with the characters

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that you really have to find somebody

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who represents the
spirit of the character.

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And also something touches on something

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that the original actor had,

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but also is doing their own thing

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entirely their own thing.

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And the second I saw Anson's
audition, I said, "Oh my God,"

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they're like, "We have
to look no further."

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And the first day of shooting
Season 2 of Disco was

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And action.

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is Pike's speech on the bridge

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where he says, "I'm not Lorca."

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and he has to walk around
and give this like,

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incredibly commanding,
really like endearing speech.

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And I was watching him do it

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and I was like, that guy's
gonna get his own show.

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And he did.

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And he did.

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I'm so grateful to the
fans for being so vocal

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about how much they loved
the character, not just him,

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but Una.

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The world that we created
in Season 2 of Disco.

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The choice to make Pike
aware of his future is risky.

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[Alex] Yeah, sure.

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[Wil] And really powerfully
informs this character

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as I watch Anson's take on Pike,

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I see someone who's
compassionate, who's empathetic,

253
00:10:39.639 --> 00:10:41.515
who is inspiring.

254
00:10:41.515 --> 00:10:43.559
I see a guy like, "Tell
me what to do, man.

255
00:10:43.559 --> 00:10:46.437
I'll serve under you, absolutely."

256
00:10:46.437 --> 00:10:49.148
Yes, it is all the qualities
you just articulated.

257
00:10:50.816 --> 00:10:52.985
This sense of real connection.

258
00:10:52.985 --> 00:10:56.113
The sense that like, oh, I
wanna follow that guy anywhere.

259
00:10:56.113 --> 00:10:59.950
The sense that he was
equitable and fair and firm.

260
00:10:59.950 --> 00:11:00.785
Very clear.

261
00:11:00.785 --> 00:11:01.661
His boundaries were very clear.

262
00:11:01.661 --> 00:11:04.747
But the fact that he
remembered everybody's name

263
00:11:04.747 --> 00:11:06.666
after hearing it one time

264
00:11:06.666 --> 00:11:09.418
and could immediately
spit their names back,

265
00:11:09.418 --> 00:11:11.796
he was a captain focused on connection.

266
00:11:11.796 --> 00:11:16.759
As for the decision to
give him knowledge...

267
00:11:17.343 --> 00:11:21.263
Well, part of what I
think is really fun for us

268
00:11:21.263 --> 00:11:23.849
in the world of Trek is that,

269
00:11:23.849 --> 00:11:26.727
especially when it comes
to TOS, these really epic,

270
00:11:26.727 --> 00:11:29.730
beautiful stories were
told that have endured

271
00:11:29.730 --> 00:11:31.565
in so many people's minds.

272
00:11:31.565 --> 00:11:34.402
But if you go back and watch the details

273
00:11:34.402 --> 00:11:35.444
surrounding a lot of the stories,

274
00:11:35.444 --> 00:11:38.364
there's a tremendous
amount of white space,

275
00:11:38.364 --> 00:11:41.992
there's a lot of gray area to details.

276
00:11:41.992 --> 00:11:44.995
And looking back at "The Menagerie"

277
00:11:44.995 --> 00:11:46.539
and looking back at "The Cage,"

278
00:11:46.539 --> 00:11:47.915
we kind of asked this question,

279
00:11:47.915 --> 00:11:50.835
well, wouldn't it have been wildly heroic

280
00:11:50.835 --> 00:11:53.254
if he knew what his fate was gonna be

281
00:11:53.254 --> 00:11:56.132
and chose to do it anyway,
to serve a greater good,

282
00:11:56.132 --> 00:11:58.050
which makes him kind of,

283
00:11:58.050 --> 00:11:59.677
represent everything I think
we love about captain--

284
00:11:59.677 --> 00:12:01.887
The ultimate values of Starfleet right?

285
00:12:01.887 --> 00:12:03.180
Exactly, exactly.

286
00:12:03.180 --> 00:12:04.682
So that's really where that came from.

287
00:12:04.682 --> 00:12:06.225
Star Trek for the last few years

288
00:12:06.225 --> 00:12:08.185
has really done serialized narrative

289
00:12:08.185 --> 00:12:09.145
in a really beautiful way.

290
00:12:09.145 --> 00:12:10.438
When we were doing Next Generation,

291
00:12:10.438 --> 00:12:12.148
when we got to do a two-part episode,

292
00:12:12.148 --> 00:12:13.566
we just felt like it was Christmas.

293
00:12:13.566 --> 00:12:14.400
Totally.

294
00:12:14.400 --> 00:12:15.776
We just loved it, it was just, oh man,

295
00:12:15.776 --> 00:12:18.195
we get to persist beyond a single episode.

296
00:12:18.195 --> 00:12:20.156
We've really gotten used to that.

297
00:12:20.156 --> 00:12:22.450
I was very excited when I
heard that Strange New Worlds

298
00:12:22.450 --> 00:12:24.785
was going to focus on more serialized

299
00:12:24.785 --> 00:12:27.621
rather more self-contained episodes,

300
00:12:27.621 --> 00:12:29.331
kind of giving us those opportunities

301
00:12:29.331 --> 00:12:32.168
to really focus on a
particular moral message.

302
00:12:32.168 --> 00:12:34.920
A particular style of
episode over and over.

303
00:12:34.920 --> 00:12:36.589
I thought that was very cool.

304
00:12:36.589 --> 00:12:40.676
I imagine that the transition
from serialized storytelling

305
00:12:40.676 --> 00:12:43.679
to episodic storytelling
presented some challenges

306
00:12:43.679 --> 00:12:45.389
and I would love to hear
you talk about that.

307
00:12:45.389 --> 00:12:46.599
Well, what was interesting

308
00:12:46.599 --> 00:12:48.726
was that when we started Discovery,

309
00:12:48.726 --> 00:12:50.519
part of the thinking was that

310
00:12:50.519 --> 00:12:53.814
we wanted to do something
different and Trek had

311
00:12:53.814 --> 00:12:57.735
typically-- DS9 obviously
began to really toe-dip

312
00:12:57.735 --> 00:12:59.403
into more serialized storytelling,

313
00:12:59.403 --> 00:13:03.908
but we didn't want it to feel
like a Star Trek procedural.

314
00:13:03.908 --> 00:13:08.454
So we wanted to go
serialized. And in some ways--

315
00:13:08.454 --> 00:13:10.498
So, the pendulum went
all the way over here.

316
00:13:10.498 --> 00:13:14.585
And then-- Picard really
couldn't be a story.

317
00:13:14.585 --> 00:13:17.004
We couldn't tell that story
without it being serialized.

318
00:13:17.004 --> 00:13:21.217
And Patrick was incredibly clear
about not wanting to repeat

319
00:13:21.217 --> 00:13:24.303
what you guys had done on NextGen
for all the right reasons.

320
00:13:25.346 --> 00:13:28.682
And then when Strange New
Worlds came around, I think,

321
00:13:28.682 --> 00:13:30.601
and even our animated
shows are serialized.

322
00:13:30.601 --> 00:13:34.104
So I think we felt like in a way,

323
00:13:34.104 --> 00:13:38.818
going back to stand-alones
felt fresh again, in a way.

324
00:13:38.818 --> 00:13:41.737
That's how it very much feels
to me as an audience member.

325
00:13:41.737 --> 00:13:43.948
But I think the thing, and I would imagine

326
00:13:43.948 --> 00:13:48.953
it's part of why two-episode
arcs on TNG was so satisfying,

327
00:13:49.411 --> 00:13:51.956
is that there's emotional serialization.

328
00:13:51.956 --> 00:13:55.125
So in TOS, there really wasn't,

329
00:13:55.125 --> 00:13:57.253
the characters had their experiences,

330
00:13:57.253 --> 00:13:59.129
Edith Keeler could die,

331
00:13:59.129 --> 00:14:01.382
but Kirk wouldn't carry
that into the next episode.

332
00:14:01.382 --> 00:14:04.468
And in this story, we
have standalone stories,

333
00:14:04.468 --> 00:14:06.887
but our characters are learning
and growing and remembering

334
00:14:06.887 --> 00:14:08.180
and carrying those experiences

335
00:14:08.180 --> 00:14:10.057
into how they deal with the next story.

336
00:14:10.057 --> 00:14:12.309
So it's kind of a hybrid.

337
00:14:12.309 --> 00:14:17.314
The "Previously On Strange
New Worlds" segment

338
00:14:17.731 --> 00:14:21.443
that gives us that continuity
that we would take for granted

339
00:14:21.443 --> 00:14:24.029
in serialized show is brilliantly handled.

340
00:14:24.029 --> 00:14:26.740
It's very clever, it
makes us feel like right,

341
00:14:26.740 --> 00:14:28.325
oh, I remember.

342
00:14:28.325 --> 00:14:31.370
And now we're into the episode
that can completely stand...

343
00:14:31.370 --> 00:14:32.663
- On its own, yes.
- [Wil] On its own.

344
00:14:32.663 --> 00:14:33.873
I think that's great.

345
00:14:34.832 --> 00:14:36.584
In this week's episode,

346
00:14:36.584 --> 00:14:40.754
we meet a former flame
of Captain Pike's, Alora,

347
00:14:40.754 --> 00:14:45.301
and every time we get a
little more background

348
00:14:45.301 --> 00:14:49.138
on one of these known
TOS legacy characters,

349
00:14:49.138 --> 00:14:52.516
I get really excited because thus far,

350
00:14:52.516 --> 00:14:55.311
whether it alters canon
or it adds to canon

351
00:14:55.311 --> 00:14:58.147
it still respects canon,

352
00:14:58.147 --> 00:15:00.482
which means it respects the audience.

353
00:15:00.482 --> 00:15:03.235
There's nothing worse than loving a show

354
00:15:03.235 --> 00:15:04.945
and investing so much into it

355
00:15:04.945 --> 00:15:07.990
and then somebody does something
that just is just like,

356
00:15:07.990 --> 00:15:09.950
it's so insulting to the audience.

357
00:15:09.950 --> 00:15:12.244
So that's like not happening here at all

358
00:15:12.244 --> 00:15:14.788
and I love that and I'm grateful for it.

359
00:15:14.788 --> 00:15:16.332
Thank you.

360
00:15:16.332 --> 00:15:20.169
There's a lot of coordination
done by many people

361
00:15:20.169 --> 00:15:21.545
to get to what you're talking about.

362
00:15:21.545 --> 00:15:23.797
So I'm super interested to know anything

363
00:15:23.797 --> 00:15:26.467
you would care to share with
us about adding backstories

364
00:15:26.467 --> 00:15:28.594
to characters we really know.

365
00:15:28.594 --> 00:15:32.681
Spock, Uhura, Pike and
characters, we think we know,

366
00:15:32.681 --> 00:15:35.893
but don't, like Nurse Chapel.

367
00:15:35.893 --> 00:15:38.854
Tell me about the parameters you have.

368
00:15:38.854 --> 00:15:42.358
Is it, "Bring me every
idea and we'll see?"

369
00:15:42.358 --> 00:15:45.152
Is it, "There are no bad
ideas?" Or is it like,

370
00:15:45.152 --> 00:15:46.820
"These things are definitely off limits?"

371
00:15:46.820 --> 00:15:48.697
Like where does all that land?

372
00:15:48.697 --> 00:15:49.531
It's a little bit,

373
00:15:49.531 --> 00:15:51.575
it kind of starts a little bit
with like the number one rule

374
00:15:51.575 --> 00:15:53.494
of improv which is don't negate.

375
00:15:53.494 --> 00:15:54.787
Yes, and...

376
00:15:54.787 --> 00:15:55.621
Yes, and...

377
00:15:55.621 --> 00:15:58.540
So you really can't say,

378
00:15:58.540 --> 00:16:00.751
"Oh, the thing that happened
that was established in canon

379
00:16:00.751 --> 00:16:02.211
didn't happen."

380
00:16:02.211 --> 00:16:04.755
You can say, "Oh, there
are things you didn't know

381
00:16:04.755 --> 00:16:06.131
about how it happened,"

382
00:16:06.131 --> 00:16:08.258
but you can't say it didn't happen.

383
00:16:08.258 --> 00:16:10.886
And that really applies
to every character,

384
00:16:10.886 --> 00:16:12.346
as I said, in TOS

385
00:16:13.806 --> 00:16:16.850
you know really nothing about Number One.

386
00:16:16.850 --> 00:16:18.268
Nothing, including her name.

387
00:16:19.478 --> 00:16:23.440
And that gives us a
tremendous amount of freedom

388
00:16:23.440 --> 00:16:24.733
but in some ways that's easier

389
00:16:24.733 --> 00:16:28.028
because it's a blank slate
for all intents and purposes.

390
00:16:28.028 --> 00:16:29.989
It's characters like Uhura

391
00:16:29.989 --> 00:16:32.950
where you don't really know,
it wasn't really established

392
00:16:32.950 --> 00:16:34.827
in TOS what her full back story was.

393
00:16:34.827 --> 00:16:37.788
You get little pieces of
it, but really tangential.

394
00:16:37.788 --> 00:16:39.999
And there's so much
room for interpretation.

395
00:16:41.166 --> 00:16:45.546
So, as is the case with
really all the characters

396
00:16:45.546 --> 00:16:47.881
who are now making a
comeback, including Pike.

397
00:16:47.881 --> 00:16:51.260
Pike you probably knew the
most about. About his horses.

398
00:16:51.260 --> 00:16:52.344
You knew where he came from.

399
00:16:52.344 --> 00:16:53.804
Well, we also know Anson's
Pike because of Discovery.

400
00:16:53.804 --> 00:16:55.597
Because of Discovery but I'm saying

401
00:16:55.597 --> 00:16:57.766
even when we were thinking about

402
00:16:57.766 --> 00:17:00.019
how are we gonna
characterize him on Discovery

403
00:17:00.019 --> 00:17:02.229
there was so much to
interpret at that point.

404
00:17:02.229 --> 00:17:04.314
There was just so much
that we didn't know.

405
00:17:04.314 --> 00:17:06.275
I have not had the opportunity to sit down

406
00:17:06.275 --> 00:17:08.360
with my fellow nerds and really

407
00:17:08.360 --> 00:17:10.112
nerd out about Strange New Worlds.

408
00:17:10.112 --> 00:17:12.865
So I don't know if I'm the
only person who's feeling this.

409
00:17:12.865 --> 00:17:14.783
I feel like if The Original
Series were made today,

410
00:17:14.783 --> 00:17:16.201
it would be this.

411
00:17:16.201 --> 00:17:21.206
It feels like watching the
original Star Trek series to me.

412
00:17:21.665 --> 00:17:25.502
In terms of the messages that
I'm getting, the pacing of it,

413
00:17:25.502 --> 00:17:28.047
the familiarity of the characters.

414
00:17:28.047 --> 00:17:33.052
And I'm just like massively impressed

415
00:17:33.594 --> 00:17:35.596
by this tapestry

416
00:17:35.596 --> 00:17:39.099
you all have woven
together of things we know,

417
00:17:39.099 --> 00:17:42.644
things we expect, and let's
subvert the expectations.

418
00:17:42.644 --> 00:17:45.022
Did it really well in this week's episode.

419
00:17:45.022 --> 00:17:47.941
An absolute classic Star Trek episode

420
00:17:47.941 --> 00:17:50.861
where we're pretty sure
we're on the right side

421
00:17:50.861 --> 00:17:54.948
all the way through until
we find out we're not.

422
00:17:55.866 --> 00:17:57.326
Alora, you have to stop this.

423
00:17:57.326 --> 00:18:02.331
He chooses it freely and
we honor his sacrifice.

424
00:18:03.165 --> 00:18:04.124
What?

425
00:18:11.924 --> 00:18:14.009
Long live the First Servant.

426
00:18:14.009 --> 00:18:14.843
Alora.

427
00:18:17.012 --> 00:18:18.305
Let's just talk about that for a minute

428
00:18:18.305 --> 00:18:20.682
'cause I know that we've
just watched this episode.

429
00:18:20.682 --> 00:18:23.310
We're gonna get into the big
Star Trek Universe in a minute,

430
00:18:23.310 --> 00:18:24.686
but because we've all just watched this,

431
00:18:24.686 --> 00:18:25.813
I need to talk about it.

432
00:18:25.813 --> 00:18:27.856
Sure, of course, I totally understand.

433
00:18:27.856 --> 00:18:30.234
I think one of the things that we all

434
00:18:30.234 --> 00:18:31.443
certainly Henry and Akiva,

435
00:18:31.443 --> 00:18:35.322
and I talked a lot about
just foundationally

436
00:18:35.322 --> 00:18:38.826
in what TOS did, and then
certainly what you guys did in TNG

437
00:18:39.952 --> 00:18:41.245
every iteration of Trek has done this

438
00:18:41.245 --> 00:18:43.038
'cause it's part of what makes Trek.

439
00:18:44.832 --> 00:18:49.795
People come into situations
or they look at groups

440
00:18:49.795 --> 00:18:52.756
and they make assumptions
about who they are.

441
00:18:52.756 --> 00:18:55.134
And one of the great lessons of Star Trek

442
00:18:55.134 --> 00:18:58.095
is that you must always
look under the surface

443
00:18:58.095 --> 00:18:59.972
because what you think
is not always what it is

444
00:18:59.972 --> 00:19:01.306
and the assumptions
that you're bringing in

445
00:19:01.306 --> 00:19:03.016
about who somebody is or what they believe

446
00:19:03.016 --> 00:19:06.645
or why they believe it
isn't necessarily accurate.

447
00:19:06.645 --> 00:19:09.690
And because it forces you

448
00:19:09.690 --> 00:19:14.528
to step into the shoes
of the other person,

449
00:19:14.528 --> 00:19:16.238
you end up finding common ground

450
00:19:16.238 --> 00:19:18.240
and therefore resolve your differences.

451
00:19:18.240 --> 00:19:21.827
And to me, that is one of
the most important lessons

452
00:19:21.827 --> 00:19:22.995
of Trek.

453
00:19:22.995 --> 00:19:25.122
It's one of the most,
and I think it's a lesson

454
00:19:25.122 --> 00:19:26.874
that's so necessary now more than ever,

455
00:19:26.874 --> 00:19:29.585
because we live in a
world that's so divisive

456
00:19:29.585 --> 00:19:31.128
and so divided.

457
00:19:31.128 --> 00:19:36.133
And it is that truism that
if we could really understand

458
00:19:36.341 --> 00:19:38.177
what caused our enemy pain,

459
00:19:38.177 --> 00:19:40.429
they wouldn't be our enemy anymore.

460
00:19:40.429 --> 00:19:42.556
Gene Roddenberry always,

461
00:19:42.556 --> 00:19:46.435
always told us there's
no purely evil villains.

462
00:19:46.435 --> 00:19:48.770
There are misguided individuals

463
00:19:48.770 --> 00:19:53.775
and I was particularly
affected by these creatures,

464
00:19:56.695 --> 00:19:59.740
genuinely believing that
they're doing the right thing,

465
00:19:59.740 --> 00:20:03.076
and the enthusiastic
willingness of the child

466
00:20:03.076 --> 00:20:04.411
to sacrifice himself.

467
00:20:05.245 --> 00:20:08.665
This beat happens that
I have to talk about

468
00:20:08.665 --> 00:20:10.876
because it really hit me
the way good science fiction

469
00:20:10.876 --> 00:20:13.003
hits the audience, I think.

470
00:20:13.003 --> 00:20:16.173
The end of this episode, Alora says,

471
00:20:16.173 --> 00:20:17.883
Pike's like, you sacrificed the kid

472
00:20:17.883 --> 00:20:19.676
and Alora essentially goes,

473
00:20:19.676 --> 00:20:22.054
oh, like you didn't
build your entire society

474
00:20:22.054 --> 00:20:24.223
on the backs of suffering children

475
00:20:24.223 --> 00:20:28.435
21st century America.
And I was like, oh my God

476
00:20:28.435 --> 00:20:31.104
'cause Pike can go, we don't
do that because in Star Trek,

477
00:20:31.104 --> 00:20:31.980
we don't.

478
00:20:31.980 --> 00:20:33.857
And it's that moment where we go

479
00:20:33.857 --> 00:20:36.735
as people in the early 21st
century, we've got work to do.

480
00:20:36.735 --> 00:20:39.196
Well, to me,

481
00:20:39.196 --> 00:20:43.283
great science fiction, and Star
Trek is the paragon of this,

482
00:20:43.283 --> 00:20:46.245
great science fiction is
never about the future.

483
00:20:46.245 --> 00:20:47.454
It's always about what's happening now.

484
00:20:47.454 --> 00:20:50.707
And Star Trek takes, has always been,

485
00:20:50.707 --> 00:20:52.125
I've said this a million times

486
00:20:52.125 --> 00:20:54.169
Star Trek in every iteration

487
00:20:54.169 --> 00:20:56.588
has been a mirror to its moment in time.

488
00:20:56.588 --> 00:20:59.883
And right now, we are writing
about all of the things

489
00:20:59.883 --> 00:21:02.552
of the division, but what
I love about Star Trek,

490
00:21:02.552 --> 00:21:04.388
why I'm so inspired by Star Trek

491
00:21:04.388 --> 00:21:09.059
is because it's sort
of a roadmap that says,

492
00:21:09.059 --> 00:21:13.021
if you follow this, all of
these things that divide us

493
00:21:13.021 --> 00:21:14.273
are gonna be in the rearview mirror,

494
00:21:14.273 --> 00:21:16.149
but we have to get over them

495
00:21:16.149 --> 00:21:21.154
in order for our society to
actually work and I love that.

496
00:21:21.280 --> 00:21:24.199
I feel like it's that old
adage of, if you can't,

497
00:21:24.199 --> 00:21:26.159
if people can't see themselves,

498
00:21:26.159 --> 00:21:28.161
they don't know what to aspire to.

499
00:21:28.161 --> 00:21:31.206
If they can't see themselves
represented on screen

500
00:21:31.206 --> 00:21:32.958
in some way, or their
beliefs represented on screen

501
00:21:32.958 --> 00:21:34.918
it's very hard to know where to go.

502
00:21:34.918 --> 00:21:37.921
I don't think it is a
coincidence that in 1966,

503
00:21:37.921 --> 00:21:40.507
we had a deeply divided,
deeply unequal society

504
00:21:40.507 --> 00:21:45.387
and insanely unpopular war,
unspeakable corruption,

505
00:21:45.387 --> 00:21:46.805
and Star Trek came along

506
00:21:46.805 --> 00:21:50.142
and really addressed those experiences

507
00:21:50.142 --> 00:21:51.059
and we're doing it again.

508
00:21:51.059 --> 00:21:51.893
Yeah, for sure.

509
00:21:51.893 --> 00:21:54.688
Right now, I feel like
this is a moment in time

510
00:21:54.688 --> 00:21:56.440
where the world needs Star Trek.

511
00:21:56.440 --> 00:21:58.525
We need Pike to tell us,

512
00:21:58.525 --> 00:22:01.278
you're on your way to the second civil war

513
00:22:01.278 --> 00:22:02.362
if you don't grab the wheel and change it.

514
00:22:02.362 --> 00:22:05.657
I totally agree and it feels
like that's sort of our job.

515
00:22:05.657 --> 00:22:07.993
That's the job of anyone
who's doing Star Trek

516
00:22:07.993 --> 00:22:09.786
is to look at what's going on in the world

517
00:22:09.786 --> 00:22:13.123
and figure out a way to
allegorically or metaphorically

518
00:22:13.123 --> 00:22:15.625
tell stories that make you
think a little bit more

519
00:22:15.625 --> 00:22:17.085
about how you live your life.

520
00:22:18.337 --> 00:22:21.298
One of the great similarities
to the Original Star Trek

521
00:22:21.298 --> 00:22:23.842
in this comes, surprisingly,
in the theme song.

522
00:22:27.012 --> 00:22:31.016
The gorgeous nod to The
Original Series theme song

523
00:22:31.933 --> 00:22:33.060
with that theremin.

524
00:22:33.060 --> 00:22:34.353
We've talked about it on The Ready Room

525
00:22:34.353 --> 00:22:35.562
'cause like I am obsessed.

526
00:22:35.562 --> 00:22:37.105
[Alex] It's amazing.

527
00:22:37.105 --> 00:22:38.190
- And I think it's great.
- I'm obsessed with them too.

528
00:22:38.190 --> 00:22:39.024
I love them.

529
00:22:39.024 --> 00:22:41.276
Did you give Jeff Russo direction on that?

530
00:22:41.276 --> 00:22:42.110
Yeah.

531
00:22:43.195 --> 00:22:47.115
In all of the different theme
songs that Jeff has written

532
00:22:47.115 --> 00:22:49.242
for the shows and in this case,

533
00:22:49.242 --> 00:22:51.411
it's Jeff and Nami Melumad who is--

534
00:22:53.455 --> 00:22:55.665
I met Nami because Nami,

535
00:22:56.958 --> 00:22:59.044
she composed one of our Short Treks.

536
00:22:59.044 --> 00:23:02.964
She composed Michael Chabon's Short Treck.

537
00:23:02.964 --> 00:23:06.134
And it was the Spock-Number
One elevator Short Trek.

538
00:23:06.134 --> 00:23:08.553
And I heard her score.

539
00:23:08.553 --> 00:23:12.933
I'm a-- I'm just gonna say
it, an unbelievable nerd.

540
00:23:12.933 --> 00:23:16.395
And all I do is listen to
soundtracks like my whole life

541
00:23:16.395 --> 00:23:18.897
that's all day long, that's all I do.

542
00:23:20.148 --> 00:23:21.858
I can relate to this.

543
00:23:21.858 --> 00:23:23.610
I feel like you can.

544
00:23:23.610 --> 00:23:27.739
So I know what sounds different.

545
00:23:27.739 --> 00:23:29.616
When I hear a sound I'm
like, oh, that's different.

546
00:23:29.616 --> 00:23:33.370
Or when I hear a particular
thing, I go that person--

547
00:23:33.370 --> 00:23:34.704
I see all the influences,

548
00:23:34.704 --> 00:23:36.123
but they're taking those influences

549
00:23:36.123 --> 00:23:37.791
they're making it their own.

550
00:23:37.791 --> 00:23:39.709
There's something very special here.

551
00:23:39.709 --> 00:23:44.423
And when I heard Nami's
score for that episode,

552
00:23:44.423 --> 00:23:46.842
I instantly knew that she
was gonna be a composer

553
00:23:46.842 --> 00:23:49.302
on one, if not more of our shows,

554
00:23:49.302 --> 00:23:53.306
because she had been mentored
by Michael Giacchino,

555
00:23:54.474 --> 00:23:58.562
who himself interpreted,
reinterpreted the original themes,

556
00:24:00.063 --> 00:24:02.983
but then made them his own
thing, for our 2009 movie.

557
00:24:02.983 --> 00:24:06.778
And I loved--

558
00:24:07.737 --> 00:24:09.406
I think the challenge with each show

559
00:24:09.406 --> 00:24:13.910
is how do you touch on
either the Courage theme

560
00:24:13.910 --> 00:24:18.915
or the Goldsmith theme
but make it its own thing.

561
00:24:19.332 --> 00:24:22.419
And that's I think what Jeff
and Nami did beautifully.

562
00:24:22.419 --> 00:24:23.795
At Star Trek Day,

563
00:24:23.795 --> 00:24:27.090
Jeff and I had maybe 10 minutes
backstage and I was like,

564
00:24:27.090 --> 00:24:29.468
"Jeff, I wanna know everything
about composing all of this."

565
00:24:29.468 --> 00:24:31.887
And he could not have been
more excited to talk about it

566
00:24:31.887 --> 00:24:34.639
and talk about the inspirations.

567
00:24:34.639 --> 00:24:38.101
Well, he's like same
thing, same like constant,

568
00:24:38.101 --> 00:24:42.355
like a sponge, every score,
everything, all of that.

569
00:24:42.355 --> 00:24:44.399
Let's talk about the Gorn for a second--

570
00:24:44.399 --> 00:24:45.984
and then we're gonna get into the broader

571
00:24:45.984 --> 00:24:48.778
Star Trek universe. So
talk about evoking things.

572
00:24:48.778 --> 00:24:51.239
The Gorn are terrifying
in Strange New Worlds.

573
00:24:51.239 --> 00:24:54.618
I mean, terrifying in
ways that they are not

574
00:24:54.618 --> 00:24:56.995
ever in any other Star Trek series.

575
00:24:56.995 --> 00:25:00.832
And I'm going to spend a
great deal of time on the Gorn

576
00:25:00.832 --> 00:25:02.125
in other episodes of The Ready Room

577
00:25:02.125 --> 00:25:03.126
'cause I'm blown away by them.

578
00:25:03.126 --> 00:25:04.586
Yeah, they're pretty, they're amazing.

579
00:25:04.586 --> 00:25:07.839
I have always felt that
the ratio of popularity

580
00:25:07.839 --> 00:25:11.551
to on-screen of the
Gorn has been wildly...

581
00:25:11.551 --> 00:25:12.802
Wildly disproportionate, yeah.

582
00:25:12.802 --> 00:25:14.346
Just incredibly unbalanced.

583
00:25:14.346 --> 00:25:17.224
Why is that blip so much bigger?

584
00:25:27.609 --> 00:25:29.110
You have this opportunity,

585
00:25:29.110 --> 00:25:31.696
I am realizing as I'm watching this,

586
00:25:31.696 --> 00:25:33.365
oh, we don't know anything about them.

587
00:25:33.365 --> 00:25:35.575
You can do whatever you want

588
00:25:35.575 --> 00:25:38.954
and they are so effing scary.

589
00:25:38.954 --> 00:25:39.788
Just tell me about it.

590
00:25:39.788 --> 00:25:40.872
Sure. So, I mean,

591
00:25:40.872 --> 00:25:43.833
really Akiva gets the
credit for that because

592
00:25:43.833 --> 00:25:46.086
one of the first things he
said when we started the show

593
00:25:46.086 --> 00:25:48.088
was like the Gorn have to be,

594
00:25:48.088 --> 00:25:50.173
they have to be kind of
the key in some ways,

595
00:25:50.173 --> 00:25:51.258
the key bad guy of the season.

596
00:25:51.258 --> 00:25:56.263
And what instantly got me
excited was that in the age

597
00:25:57.264 --> 00:26:00.267
of Game of Thrones, post-Jurassic park,

598
00:26:00.267 --> 00:26:02.477
the technology is there now

599
00:26:02.477 --> 00:26:05.939
to make the Gorn really scary.

600
00:26:05.939 --> 00:26:08.483
Vivid and scary, not just guys that...

601
00:26:08.483 --> 00:26:10.026
- A guy in a rubber suit.
- A guy in a rubber suit

602
00:26:10.026 --> 00:26:11.903
in front of the rocks.

603
00:26:11.903 --> 00:26:16.866
And so the trick was, your
first instinct is like,

604
00:26:17.450 --> 00:26:19.202
let's do it as a full CG character.

605
00:26:20.203 --> 00:26:22.998
It's funny, the purist in me

606
00:26:22.998 --> 00:26:26.710
always wants to go back
to the kinds of movies

607
00:26:26.710 --> 00:26:28.086
that I was raised on,

608
00:26:28.086 --> 00:26:32.716
which were these master
filmmakers creating incredible,

609
00:26:32.716 --> 00:26:35.885
like both puppetry and it's funny.

610
00:26:37.971 --> 00:26:39.514
I watched Aliens again recently

611
00:26:39.514 --> 00:26:44.019
and it's still pretty
flawless, but part of why--

612
00:26:44.019 --> 00:26:46.688
and Cameron understands this
and Spielberg understands this,

613
00:26:46.688 --> 00:26:49.733
is that the way you light
those things is everything.

614
00:26:49.733 --> 00:26:52.902
And the duration of the
shots is everything.

615
00:26:52.902 --> 00:26:55.697
If you over-light and you
stick-- then your eye--

616
00:26:55.697 --> 00:26:58.950
Nothing's more scary than what
we build in our imagination

617
00:26:58.950 --> 00:27:00.285
- based on a hint.
- Exactly, right.

618
00:27:00.285 --> 00:27:01.911
And you have to tease it
and you have to build it

619
00:27:01.911 --> 00:27:03.747
and obviously that precedent was set.

620
00:27:04.623 --> 00:27:06.416
In some ways by Hitchcock, but then Jaws

621
00:27:06.416 --> 00:27:08.001
took it to a whole other level

622
00:27:08.001 --> 00:27:09.544
'cause you're just seeing
this rubber fin in the water,

623
00:27:09.544 --> 00:27:12.005
but your brain is inventing
what's underneath the surface.

624
00:27:12.005 --> 00:27:14.758
So when you see the shark,
even though you might go,

625
00:27:14.758 --> 00:27:16.301
well, that doesn't
exactly look a real shark,

626
00:27:16.301 --> 00:27:18.470
you have utterly accepted
it at that point.

627
00:27:18.470 --> 00:27:21.681
And so the same game you play
with the Gorn, which is okay.

628
00:27:21.681 --> 00:27:24.142
We can't actually afford
to do full CG characters

629
00:27:24.142 --> 00:27:26.561
because that's a wildly
expensive proposition.

630
00:27:26.561 --> 00:27:28.521
So on a television budget.

631
00:27:28.521 --> 00:27:31.399
So how do you merge the two, right?

632
00:27:31.399 --> 00:27:33.818
How do you use puppetry
and how do you use CG?

633
00:27:33.818 --> 00:27:36.529
And in what way? And how do you light it?

634
00:27:36.529 --> 00:27:39.157
And all of those things play into

635
00:27:39.157 --> 00:27:41.117
hopefully creating an experience

636
00:27:41.117 --> 00:27:42.911
where A, you can't tell the
difference between them,

637
00:27:42.911 --> 00:27:46.289
and B, it feels vivid and real and scary.

638
00:27:47.916 --> 00:27:50.502
We haven't seen very much of the Gorn

639
00:27:50.502 --> 00:27:52.629
thus far this season, we're
about halfway through.

640
00:27:52.629 --> 00:27:54.964
We have heard a lot about them.

641
00:27:54.964 --> 00:27:58.468
We are scared to death
of them. So, no spoilers.

642
00:27:59.427 --> 00:28:01.763
I think the appropriate answers
to this will be yes, no,

643
00:28:01.763 --> 00:28:02.764
or pass.
- Okay.

644
00:28:03.765 --> 00:28:06.518
More Gorn this year?
- Yes.

645
00:28:06.518 --> 00:28:07.477
Okay, excellent.

646
00:28:08.478 --> 00:28:13.024
Let's move on to the
entire Star Trek Universe.

647
00:28:13.024 --> 00:28:17.153
I am required by the agreements

648
00:28:17.153 --> 00:28:20.323
to ask you a number of questions

649
00:28:20.323 --> 00:28:22.283
about the broader Star Trek Universe

650
00:28:22.283 --> 00:28:25.245
and I really wanna start
with the animated series.

651
00:28:25.245 --> 00:28:27.539
I'm a massive fan of
Star Trek: Lower Decks.

652
00:28:27.539 --> 00:28:32.127
My nephew, who is 10, is a
massive fan of Star Trek: Prodigy

653
00:28:32.127 --> 00:28:34.838
which thrills me because
I feel like Prodigy

654
00:28:34.838 --> 00:28:38.967
is this incredible way to
bring kids to Star Trek

655
00:28:38.967 --> 00:28:41.094
and I think that's incredibly exciting.

656
00:28:41.094 --> 00:28:44.055
As a visual storyteller yourself,

657
00:28:44.055 --> 00:28:46.349
how fun has it been for you

658
00:28:46.349 --> 00:28:48.351
to do Star Trek through animation?

659
00:28:48.351 --> 00:28:49.602
I mean, it's unbelievable.

660
00:28:49.602 --> 00:28:52.021
I think that one of the things I love most

661
00:28:52.021 --> 00:28:53.940
about both the live
action and the animation

662
00:28:53.940 --> 00:28:55.692
is that we live in this moment now

663
00:28:55.692 --> 00:28:57.444
where the line between
movies and television

664
00:28:57.444 --> 00:28:58.820
is totally gone.

665
00:28:58.820 --> 00:29:02.407
And so it's incumbent on us as filmmakers

666
00:29:02.407 --> 00:29:05.368
to give you an experience
that has all the scope

667
00:29:05.368 --> 00:29:08.037
and scale of a movie, but has
all the intimacy of a story

668
00:29:08.037 --> 00:29:10.248
you can tell over a long period of time.

669
00:29:10.248 --> 00:29:12.292
And for me,

670
00:29:12.292 --> 00:29:15.962
in thinking about the
architecture of the universe

671
00:29:15.962 --> 00:29:19.382
in general, my whole thing has been,

672
00:29:19.382 --> 00:29:22.218
these shows we need to think
of as different color crayons

673
00:29:22.218 --> 00:29:23.470
in the same box.

674
00:29:23.470 --> 00:29:25.764
Okay, how many crayons are in the box?

675
00:29:25.764 --> 00:29:28.099
Is it a 64-pack?
- I suppose.

676
00:29:28.099 --> 00:29:30.477
Sure, let's say it's a 64-pack.

677
00:29:30.477 --> 00:29:31.811
But I think the idea is that

678
00:29:31.811 --> 00:29:33.980
you want everything to be individual.

679
00:29:33.980 --> 00:29:35.774
You want it to have
its own unique identity

680
00:29:35.774 --> 00:29:38.777
and yet you want to understand
that it's part of the same

681
00:29:38.777 --> 00:29:41.362
kind of storytelling, so
that things aren't off-key

682
00:29:41.362 --> 00:29:43.072
and you're like, wait, I don't know, like,

683
00:29:43.072 --> 00:29:44.449
is that Star Trek? I don't know.

684
00:29:44.449 --> 00:29:46.659
I feel like for the brand
identity of Star Trek,

685
00:29:46.659 --> 00:29:48.286
there have to be certain fundamentals

686
00:29:48.286 --> 00:29:49.954
that apply to all of them.

687
00:29:49.954 --> 00:29:51.956
But once those fundamentals are applied

688
00:29:53.416 --> 00:29:55.668
sort of a universal vision of optimism.

689
00:29:55.668 --> 00:29:58.505
A sense that science is really
the way to solve problems.

690
00:29:58.505 --> 00:30:02.425
The bridge crew is a family,
the things that are the keys,

691
00:30:02.425 --> 00:30:04.886
I think, to why Star Trek
has endured for so long.

692
00:30:06.054 --> 00:30:07.639
Once you've done that,

693
00:30:07.639 --> 00:30:09.891
you can then start playing
in really interesting,

694
00:30:09.891 --> 00:30:11.309
weird ways.

695
00:30:11.309 --> 00:30:13.645
Do you get to have these meetings

696
00:30:13.645 --> 00:30:15.355
where you sit down with showrunners

697
00:30:15.355 --> 00:30:18.858
and you have a discussion
about the values of Star Trek,

698
00:30:18.858 --> 00:30:22.195
the philosophy of Star
Trek, and these are--

699
00:30:22.195 --> 00:30:26.115
So I presume that the showrunners
come to you and say, Alex,

700
00:30:26.115 --> 00:30:28.660
this is my pitch for
this season of Star Trek,

701
00:30:28.660 --> 00:30:29.494
blah, blah, blah.

702
00:30:29.494 --> 00:30:30.870
And then somebody else comes and says,

703
00:30:30.870 --> 00:30:32.205
this is my pitch for blah, blah, blah.

704
00:30:32.205 --> 00:30:36.376
And then you kind of have to
run it through the filter.

705
00:30:36.376 --> 00:30:39.337
You gotta do AB testing to
get all the way through it.

706
00:30:41.673 --> 00:30:45.218
As someone who just
genuinely enjoys Star Trek,

707
00:30:45.218 --> 00:30:48.388
I imagine that getting to
have those kind of like

708
00:30:48.388 --> 00:30:51.808
philosophical, Algonquin
Round Table discussions

709
00:30:51.808 --> 00:30:54.644
about Star Trek, that must be super cool.

710
00:30:54.644 --> 00:30:56.062
It is. It is, it's funny.

711
00:30:56.062 --> 00:30:58.982
Every time it happens, I'm
always like, this is really like,

712
00:30:58.982 --> 00:31:00.817
it's so cool that this is our job.

713
00:31:00.817 --> 00:31:03.695
It's what we did as fans,
before we did it for work right?

714
00:31:03.695 --> 00:31:06.155
Absolutely, like you'd sit
around and you'd be like, okay,

715
00:31:06.155 --> 00:31:08.783
could you imagine if this
and you play with your toys.

716
00:31:08.783 --> 00:31:11.661
So we all get to play with our
toys together once a month,

717
00:31:12.996 --> 00:31:14.664
it's an essential part of the process

718
00:31:14.664 --> 00:31:17.584
in terms of the world-build
because we wanna make sure

719
00:31:17.584 --> 00:31:19.085
we're not smashing into each other.

720
00:31:19.085 --> 00:31:20.962
We wanna make sure we're
building on each other.

721
00:31:20.962 --> 00:31:23.172
So there are things in
Picard that are set up

722
00:31:23.172 --> 00:31:24.132
to payoff in Discovery.

723
00:31:24.132 --> 00:31:25.550
There are things that
we set up in Discovery

724
00:31:25.550 --> 00:31:27.427
that we can then go back and retrofit

725
00:31:27.427 --> 00:31:30.513
in seasons that haven't been
written yet of other shows.

726
00:31:30.513 --> 00:31:32.390
So yeah, I love that.

727
00:31:32.390 --> 00:31:36.853
And it's very important
that each showrunner

728
00:31:36.853 --> 00:31:39.272
has their own individual
take on what they love

729
00:31:39.272 --> 00:31:41.107
about Star Trek while, of course,

730
00:31:41.107 --> 00:31:42.942
embracing the fundamentals.

731
00:31:42.942 --> 00:31:45.361
But I feel like you want
everybody to be different.

732
00:31:45.361 --> 00:31:47.196
You don't want the same
thing in every show.

733
00:31:47.196 --> 00:31:49.657
Have you ever had to
adjudicate two different shows

734
00:31:49.657 --> 00:31:52.035
coming to you with like very similar arcs

735
00:31:52.035 --> 00:31:53.119
or character beats or whatever?

736
00:31:53.119 --> 00:31:53.953
Yes.

737
00:31:55.038 --> 00:31:56.414
I would feel terrible about that.

738
00:31:56.414 --> 00:31:57.916
[Alex] It's weird.

739
00:31:57.916 --> 00:32:01.252
But I don't see myself ultimately
as the ultimate arbiter

740
00:32:01.252 --> 00:32:02.378
of those things.

741
00:32:02.378 --> 00:32:06.174
If two shows want to use
different iterations for example,

742
00:32:06.174 --> 00:32:09.218
of the same ship but what
does that mean canonically

743
00:32:09.218 --> 00:32:12.055
and will that violate something?

744
00:32:12.055 --> 00:32:14.682
I then go to certain people and say,

745
00:32:14.682 --> 00:32:16.893
okay, I need your opinion on
this and your opinion on this.

746
00:32:16.893 --> 00:32:19.312
And like, what is it,
what are the consequences?

747
00:32:19.312 --> 00:32:21.773
What are fans gonna think, what
does it potentially negate,

748
00:32:21.773 --> 00:32:23.149
which we don't want to do.

749
00:32:23.149 --> 00:32:24.275
It's a whole conversation.

750
00:32:24.275 --> 00:32:25.777
So it's a bunch of people

751
00:32:25.777 --> 00:32:27.111
who contribute to making that decision

752
00:32:27.111 --> 00:32:28.071
at the end of the day.

753
00:32:28.071 --> 00:32:29.948
I just wanna billboard
this for the audience,

754
00:32:29.948 --> 00:32:32.867
the level of care that
is going into ensuring

755
00:32:32.867 --> 00:32:37.330
that this all works, that it
all holds up, is remarkable.

756
00:32:38.206 --> 00:32:39.832
And it's extremely laudable.

757
00:32:41.751 --> 00:32:43.294
As someone who loves
this, the way that I do,

758
00:32:43.294 --> 00:32:44.796
I'm just really grateful
that you're doing that.

759
00:32:44.796 --> 00:32:45.713
Well, thank you.

760
00:32:47.173 --> 00:32:48.299
I wish I could take all the credit,

761
00:32:48.299 --> 00:32:49.384
but that would be totally wrong.

762
00:32:49.384 --> 00:32:54.138
There's so many people who
love it as much as you do.

763
00:32:54.138 --> 00:32:57.100
And really, really want it to
synchronize in the right way.

764
00:32:57.100 --> 00:32:59.769
And it's hard, 55 years
of stuff, it's hard.

765
00:32:59.769 --> 00:33:02.397
There's kind of no way not
to hit up against something

766
00:33:02.397 --> 00:33:03.314
at some point.

767
00:33:03.314 --> 00:33:08.027
Like something isn't
gonna work at some point

768
00:33:08.027 --> 00:33:10.238
and so all you can do is your best

769
00:33:10.238 --> 00:33:13.533
to try and make sure that
everything is aligned.

770
00:33:13.533 --> 00:33:14.450
Throughout 55 years

771
00:33:14.450 --> 00:33:16.661
there have been moments
that contradict each other,

772
00:33:16.661 --> 00:33:18.162
sometimes even in the same episode.

773
00:33:18.162 --> 00:33:20.873
And the thing I'm thinking
of is Lower Decks,

774
00:33:20.873 --> 00:33:22.500
doing an incredible extended riff,

775
00:33:22.500 --> 00:33:26.045
on all the ways they mangled
the pronunciation of Mugato

776
00:33:26.045 --> 00:33:26.879
and just changing that like crazy.

777
00:33:28.214 --> 00:33:29.257
So I was reading up on the Mugatos.

778
00:33:29.257 --> 00:33:31.718
Did you know they have
alternative pronunciations

779
00:33:31.718 --> 00:33:34.053
Mugato, Mogotu and Gumado?

780
00:33:34.053 --> 00:33:35.930
Isn't that neat and inconsistent?

781
00:33:35.930 --> 00:33:38.099
I really love Lower Decks.

782
00:33:38.099 --> 00:33:42.061
I think it is a genuinely
wonderful Star Trek story.

783
00:33:42.061 --> 00:33:42.895
I do too, I love it.

784
00:33:42.895 --> 00:33:45.148
It tells genuinely
wonderful Star Trek stories

785
00:33:45.148 --> 00:33:48.359
with a real unique and
special point of view.

786
00:33:49.485 --> 00:33:51.154
And inside of all of that,

787
00:33:51.154 --> 00:33:54.615
it is also a love letter
to The Next Generation.

788
00:33:54.615 --> 00:33:55.450
100%.

789
00:33:55.450 --> 00:33:57.994
It is just, just every episode

790
00:33:57.994 --> 00:34:00.496
is just some expression of aberration.

791
00:34:00.496 --> 00:34:02.081
It's John Cusak with a boombox.

792
00:34:02.081 --> 00:34:05.043
Totally, it is, that's exactly what it is.

793
00:34:05.043 --> 00:34:07.211
And like a lot of us that love it

794
00:34:07.211 --> 00:34:09.756
we've got our moments
that we think are great

795
00:34:09.756 --> 00:34:11.007
that we're crazy about.

796
00:34:12.133 --> 00:34:14.469
For me, it's like the
offhand passing reference

797
00:34:14.469 --> 00:34:17.722
to Parrises Squares that
never comes up again.

798
00:34:17.722 --> 00:34:19.307
It's like, ah, I know what that is.

799
00:34:19.307 --> 00:34:20.266
I played that.

800
00:34:20.266 --> 00:34:23.186
So I'm wondering, is there a reference

801
00:34:23.186 --> 00:34:24.979
or something that you really like?

802
00:34:24.979 --> 00:34:28.775
If you had just like,
oh man, I would love it

803
00:34:28.775 --> 00:34:31.611
if they did, do you get
to do that sort of thing?

804
00:34:31.611 --> 00:34:34.822
I don't think I could
identify one specific one.

805
00:34:34.822 --> 00:34:37.742
Because every episode is
filled with 10 million of them.

806
00:34:37.742 --> 00:34:38.951
Yeah, of course.

807
00:34:38.951 --> 00:34:42.705
And it was very clear
to me from the beginning

808
00:34:42.705 --> 00:34:47.085
that Mike was everything
you just articulated.

809
00:34:47.085 --> 00:34:48.252
He wrote the unwritten.

810
00:34:49.462 --> 00:34:51.589
TNG Season 8 is one of my favorite things.

811
00:34:51.589 --> 00:34:53.966
It's unbelievable and
just based on that alone,

812
00:34:53.966 --> 00:34:56.135
I knew when he was walking in,
I was like, whatever he has,

813
00:34:56.135 --> 00:34:57.470
it's gonna be something special.

814
00:34:57.470 --> 00:34:58.763
That's incredible.

815
00:34:58.763 --> 00:35:03.768
But the thing that
really struck me the most

816
00:35:04.227 --> 00:35:08.773
about his approach and it
is actually really the thing

817
00:35:08.773 --> 00:35:11.192
that would make or break
a show like Lower Decks

818
00:35:11.192 --> 00:35:13.903
is that he never wanted to
punch down on Star Trek.

819
00:35:14.779 --> 00:35:16.572
You can laugh with, you can't laugh at.

820
00:35:16.572 --> 00:35:17.406
[Wil] Yeah, absolutely.

821
00:35:17.406 --> 00:35:21.369
And earlier on, we talked about

822
00:35:21.369 --> 00:35:23.121
how, in some ways I think Galaxy Quest

823
00:35:23.121 --> 00:35:24.205
is the best Star Trek movie.

824
00:35:24.205 --> 00:35:25.206
It is hands down the best Star Trek movie.

825
00:35:25.206 --> 00:35:27.625
Because it is reverent,

826
00:35:27.625 --> 00:35:29.460
it laughs with, never laughs at,

827
00:35:29.460 --> 00:35:30.503
and at the end of the day,

828
00:35:30.503 --> 00:35:31.712
the structure of the storytelling

829
00:35:31.712 --> 00:35:33.089
is a great Star Trek story.

830
00:35:34.090 --> 00:35:36.592
And I saw that Mike was
really wanting to do

831
00:35:36.592 --> 00:35:38.302
his version of that kind of thing.

832
00:35:40.012 --> 00:35:42.223
Let's move over to Picard.

833
00:35:42.223 --> 00:35:47.186
Picard Season 2 told this
classic Star Trek story

834
00:35:48.020 --> 00:35:49.689
about redemption and forgiveness.

835
00:35:50.773 --> 00:35:55.403
It was so moving to me
to watch Picard evolve

836
00:35:55.403 --> 00:35:59.615
in this deeply personal way.
To see the childhood trauma

837
00:35:59.615 --> 00:36:01.450
he survived and how it shaped him

838
00:36:01.450 --> 00:36:05.204
and made him into the man
that we all absolutely love.

839
00:36:06.455 --> 00:36:09.834
I cannot tell you how much it means to me

840
00:36:09.834 --> 00:36:12.628
that I was given the gift

841
00:36:12.628 --> 00:36:16.174
of being a very small part of Picard

842
00:36:16.174 --> 00:36:18.843
and that I was given the opportunity

843
00:36:18.843 --> 00:36:21.596
to return to the Universe canonically

844
00:36:21.596 --> 00:36:24.140
in that particular way.

845
00:36:26.058 --> 00:36:30.313
I know that at least some of my TNG family

846
00:36:30.313 --> 00:36:32.940
is returning to Picard for Season 3.

847
00:36:32.940 --> 00:36:34.609
Do you wanna talk about that at all?

848
00:36:34.609 --> 00:36:36.736
Sure, well, let me start.

849
00:36:36.736 --> 00:36:38.779
I wanna ask you a question, which is

850
00:36:40.656 --> 00:36:42.408
what was it like to come back?

851
00:36:44.285 --> 00:36:45.870
It was amazing.

852
00:36:45.870 --> 00:36:47.580
It was more emotionally overwhelming

853
00:36:47.580 --> 00:36:49.040
than I was prepared for.

854
00:36:50.750 --> 00:36:54.253
I worked with Issa, who I like and respect

855
00:36:54.253 --> 00:36:56.130
and admire so very, very much.

856
00:36:56.130 --> 00:36:58.674
And that was an interesting
experience for me

857
00:36:58.674 --> 00:37:02.011
having a scene with her gave
me a very different experience

858
00:37:02.011 --> 00:37:04.430
than having a scene with Patrick or Gates

859
00:37:04.430 --> 00:37:07.099
or Frakes would.

860
00:37:09.435 --> 00:37:13.231
I am coming to terms with the reality

861
00:37:13.231 --> 00:37:16.567
that I am a member of Legacy Star Trek

862
00:37:16.567 --> 00:37:18.402
and that all of your shows,

863
00:37:18.402 --> 00:37:19.987
the current Star Trek Universe,

864
00:37:19.987 --> 00:37:22.907
is sort of standing on
the shoulders of a thing

865
00:37:22.907 --> 00:37:25.076
we started building about 35 years ago.

866
00:37:25.076 --> 00:37:27.870
Like we crawled so y'all
can walk, it's amazing

867
00:37:27.870 --> 00:37:29.747
and I absolutely love it.

868
00:37:29.747 --> 00:37:33.793
For me, it was incredibly
symbolic and very special

869
00:37:33.793 --> 00:37:37.421
and incredibly meaningful
to come to Star Trek

870
00:37:37.421 --> 00:37:42.426
as a different version of
Wesley Crusher who says to Kore,

871
00:37:44.845 --> 00:37:46.806
do you wanna come do this thing with me?

872
00:37:47.723 --> 00:37:50.726
That really mirrors a way I said to Issa

873
00:37:50.726 --> 00:37:54.313
on the very first Ready
Room when she came in,

874
00:37:54.313 --> 00:37:57.984
I know what it is like to be
a young person on Star Trek

875
00:37:57.984 --> 00:38:01.153
and I know what it is
like to live with that.

876
00:38:01.153 --> 00:38:06.158
And if I can ever be anything
to you at all in that regard,

877
00:38:07.952 --> 00:38:10.246
I am always here.

878
00:38:10.246 --> 00:38:12.415
And I've shared that with some of the

879
00:38:12.415 --> 00:38:14.750
other young cast members,

880
00:38:14.750 --> 00:38:17.169
George and Jimmy and Walter and Michelle

881
00:38:17.169 --> 00:38:22.174
all did that for us and
it meant so much to me.

882
00:38:22.341 --> 00:38:27.263
I want to carry on that tradition
and like pay that forward.

883
00:38:27.263 --> 00:38:30.308
That's amazing Wil,
that's just incredible.

884
00:38:30.308 --> 00:38:35.313
I think, yes to what you
said, and we were so aware

885
00:38:35.813 --> 00:38:39.442
that we were standing on your
shoulders. It's a big deal

886
00:38:39.442 --> 00:38:40.401
what you did.

887
00:38:40.401 --> 00:38:44.071
Not just for the people who
watched the show at the time,

888
00:38:44.071 --> 00:38:47.158
but for many generations that
came afterwards, the legacy,

889
00:38:47.158 --> 00:38:50.953
the endurance of that
show and what it built on

890
00:38:50.953 --> 00:38:53.998
from TOS in many ways, it's
just such a different show

891
00:38:55.875 --> 00:38:57.084
is extraordinary.

892
00:38:57.084 --> 00:39:00.796
And it's an emotional thing
for people to deal with.

893
00:39:00.796 --> 00:39:02.673
I can't even imagine
what it was like for you

894
00:39:02.673 --> 00:39:04.342
to go back to doing it.

895
00:39:04.342 --> 00:39:09.305
A thing that-- I say "I love"
on this show all the time,

896
00:39:09.847 --> 00:39:11.349
because I genuinely love Star Trek

897
00:39:11.349 --> 00:39:13.184
and if there were other
words to use, I would.

898
00:39:13.184 --> 00:39:14.602
I feel like a bad writer

899
00:39:14.602 --> 00:39:16.771
in that I am using the same
words over and over again,

900
00:39:16.771 --> 00:39:19.148
but there's not, I'm sure
there's a German word

901
00:39:19.148 --> 00:39:21.692
that expresses the incredible
complex range of emotions

902
00:39:21.692 --> 00:39:23.652
I feel when I think about this.

903
00:39:25.529 --> 00:39:30.493
I absolutely love that

904
00:39:30.493 --> 00:39:35.456
the version of Wesley that now exists

905
00:39:35.456 --> 00:39:39.835
canonically matches up 100%,
one-to-one with my head canon.

906
00:39:39.835 --> 00:39:41.962
Because I've written
fan-fiction about Wesley

907
00:39:41.962 --> 00:39:45.132
as a Traveler because I love
thinking of him as a Traveler.

908
00:39:45.132 --> 00:39:48.636
Because in many ways, my
journey and Wesley's journey

909
00:39:48.636 --> 00:39:52.223
are incredibly similar
just by coincidence.

910
00:39:52.223 --> 00:39:56.310
And it was very meaningful
for me as an actor,

911
00:39:56.310 --> 00:39:59.730
as a person, as a member
of the Star Trek family,

912
00:39:59.730 --> 00:40:03.192
to have the opportunity
to express all of that

913
00:40:03.192 --> 00:40:06.612
in a way that gave me
closure as a human being

914
00:40:07.696 --> 00:40:11.784
and allowed me to experience

915
00:40:13.202 --> 00:40:15.246
what Wesley always deserved from me,

916
00:40:15.246 --> 00:40:17.665
that I was incapable of
giving him when I was a kid

917
00:40:17.665 --> 00:40:18.624
'cause I didn't know any better.

918
00:40:18.624 --> 00:40:20.960
It took 30 years, but it is realized.

919
00:40:20.960 --> 00:40:22.753
Yeah, no, I think that's beautiful.

920
00:40:22.753 --> 00:40:25.756
And it's beautiful for me on two levels

921
00:40:25.756 --> 00:40:28.843
A, because you feel that we
did justice to the character,

922
00:40:28.843 --> 00:40:32.012
but for you personally to have
come to the place of feeling

923
00:40:32.012 --> 00:40:34.306
like I got to put a period
on the end of that sentence

924
00:40:34.306 --> 00:40:36.308
and it was very satisfying.

925
00:40:36.308 --> 00:40:40.146
Honestly, if the show had worked,

926
00:40:40.146 --> 00:40:41.647
but you didn't feel the way you feel

927
00:40:41.647 --> 00:40:43.816
to me, it would've been a failure.

928
00:40:43.816 --> 00:40:45.734
You know, a way that I could describe it

929
00:40:45.734 --> 00:40:49.405
is that it's like for the longest time

930
00:40:49.405 --> 00:40:52.199
I felt like this was a
book I wanted to close

931
00:40:52.199 --> 00:40:54.827
and coming to be Wesley as the Traveler,

932
00:40:54.827 --> 00:40:56.537
instead of wanting to close the book,

933
00:40:56.537 --> 00:40:59.832
what I want to do more than
anything else in my life

934
00:40:59.832 --> 00:41:02.960
is turn the page and see what comes next.

935
00:41:02.960 --> 00:41:03.794
Wow.

936
00:41:03.794 --> 00:41:05.004
And I never thought I would feel that way.

937
00:41:05.004 --> 00:41:05.921
That's amazing.

938
00:41:05.921 --> 00:41:08.048
Well, maybe that'll happen.

939
00:41:08.048 --> 00:41:11.886
Listen, I know a guy.
Let's talk about Discovery.

940
00:41:11.886 --> 00:41:14.054
Season 4 Discovery took "boldly

941
00:41:14.054 --> 00:41:16.348
going where no one has gone
before" quite literally

942
00:41:16.348 --> 00:41:18.893
as they left the galaxy

943
00:41:18.893 --> 00:41:21.687
and we met an extra-galactic species.

944
00:41:21.687 --> 00:41:23.481
That was incredible.

945
00:41:25.941 --> 00:41:30.946
Season 4, just the DMA as
metaphor was incredible.

946
00:41:31.572 --> 00:41:34.074
I talked to Michelle about
that and it was amazing

947
00:41:34.074 --> 00:41:37.536
and I think risky, I think very risky

948
00:41:37.536 --> 00:41:40.998
because we didn't know how
the pandemic was gonna go.

949
00:41:40.998 --> 00:41:43.167
It could have been real tone deaf.

950
00:41:43.167 --> 00:41:46.462
As it turned out and it
ended up being, for me,

951
00:41:47.338 --> 00:41:49.840
celebratory and inspirational

952
00:41:49.840 --> 00:41:53.719
and what we want from Star Trek.

953
00:41:53.719 --> 00:41:56.639
Do you have thoughts about
Season 4's development?

954
00:41:56.639 --> 00:42:01.644
Yeah, Michelle has been such
an incredible partner to me

955
00:42:02.061 --> 00:42:07.066
and I really trust her
leadership skills and her sense

956
00:42:08.609 --> 00:42:10.778
and understanding of Star Trek.

957
00:42:10.778 --> 00:42:13.864
And it kind of goes back to
what you were talking about

958
00:42:13.864 --> 00:42:15.199
about this week's episode.

959
00:42:16.617 --> 00:42:20.162
You think one thing at the
beginning for lots of reasons,

960
00:42:20.162 --> 00:42:22.206
but as you begin to unpack the
story, you realize actually,

961
00:42:22.206 --> 00:42:24.333
no, it's this totally other thing.

962
00:42:24.333 --> 00:42:27.753
And that was really where
we started with Season 4.

963
00:42:27.753 --> 00:42:30.214
Was this horrendous, horrendous thing

964
00:42:31.715 --> 00:42:32.883
and then the more you unpack it,

965
00:42:32.883 --> 00:42:34.677
the more it seems like there
was intention behind it

966
00:42:34.677 --> 00:42:37.471
and the more you think that
there's villains out there

967
00:42:37.471 --> 00:42:38.973
who are doing something incredible.

968
00:42:38.973 --> 00:42:40.599
And then you begin to understand,

969
00:42:40.599 --> 00:42:42.851
no, there's a lot more
to the story than that,

970
00:42:42.851 --> 00:42:44.645
which then calls in the question.

971
00:42:44.645 --> 00:42:48.607
How do we react before we
have the full knowledge

972
00:42:48.607 --> 00:42:50.025
of something.

973
00:42:50.025 --> 00:42:52.528
It made me think about how are we wrecking

974
00:42:52.528 --> 00:42:57.533
some other species,
fundamental right to exist

975
00:42:57.616 --> 00:43:00.911
in ways that we are completely unaware of.

976
00:43:00.911 --> 00:43:03.622
And I like it when Star
Trek makes me think.

977
00:43:03.622 --> 00:43:06.417
Totally, I mean, that's one
of the, I think key tenants.

978
00:43:06.417 --> 00:43:11.046
Can we look forward to any crossovers?

979
00:43:14.466 --> 00:43:15.301
Yes.

980
00:43:16.302 --> 00:43:17.386
I'm not following that up

981
00:43:17.386 --> 00:43:19.763
because the way you answered
that was incredible.

982
00:43:19.763 --> 00:43:21.890
Oh, I wanna follow that up so much,

983
00:43:21.890 --> 00:43:23.559
but the way you answered
that tells me that the answer

984
00:43:23.559 --> 00:43:25.185
to any follow up is,
"I'm not telling you."

985
00:43:25.185 --> 00:43:27.021
That's exactly right.

986
00:43:27.021 --> 00:43:31.984
I'm just gonna go ahead and
bathe in this incredible

987
00:43:32.735 --> 00:43:34.737
excitement that I'm currently feeling.

988
00:43:36.322 --> 00:43:38.574
I have this written down
as a follow-up question

989
00:43:38.574 --> 00:43:39.992
and I'm just gonna read it to you

990
00:43:39.992 --> 00:43:42.119
although we have already discussed this.

991
00:43:42.119 --> 00:43:44.913
If there were a Star Trek
character who could exist

992
00:43:44.913 --> 00:43:47.666
independent of space, time, and thought,

993
00:43:47.666 --> 00:43:49.710
you would absolutely send that character

994
00:43:49.710 --> 00:43:52.004
to every series, right?

995
00:43:52.004 --> 00:43:54.131
Absolutely.

996
00:43:54.131 --> 00:43:55.633
- Okay, great!
- No question!

997
00:43:55.633 --> 00:43:57.051
That is the correct answer, yes.

998
00:43:57.051 --> 00:43:58.010
10 points for Alex.

999
00:43:58.010 --> 00:43:59.261
All right, next question.

1000
00:44:00.387 --> 00:44:04.433
We are thrilled that a second
season of Strange New Worlds

1001
00:44:04.433 --> 00:44:07.394
has already been greenlit, that's amazing.

1002
00:44:07.394 --> 00:44:08.604
It is unsurprising to me,

1003
00:44:08.604 --> 00:44:11.190
but I know that we always go...

1004
00:44:13.567 --> 00:44:14.526
Yeah.

1005
00:44:14.526 --> 00:44:18.447
Is there anything you want to tease at all

1006
00:44:18.447 --> 00:44:21.033
about the continued
adventures of the Enterprise?

1007
00:44:25.663 --> 00:44:27.915
I guess the best tease
that I could give you

1008
00:44:27.915 --> 00:44:30.292
is that there are obviously characters

1009
00:44:30.292 --> 00:44:33.671
who exist on TOS who
are not yet on the show.

1010
00:44:33.671 --> 00:44:34.505
Yeah?

1011
00:44:34.505 --> 00:44:38.425
So, given that there's a
kind of five-year window

1012
00:44:38.425 --> 00:44:41.845
before Kirk would have
taken over the Enterprise.

1013
00:44:41.845 --> 00:44:44.723
Five or seven, I've lost track.

1014
00:44:47.351 --> 00:44:48.310
Others may show up.

1015
00:44:49.937 --> 00:44:50.813
Okay.

1016
00:44:51.939 --> 00:44:55.693
All right, things are turning in my head.

1017
00:44:55.693 --> 00:44:56.527
Okay.

1018
00:44:57.861 --> 00:45:00.239
You have given us so much of your time

1019
00:45:00.239 --> 00:45:01.865
and I'm so very grateful to you.

1020
00:45:01.865 --> 00:45:03.492
I'm so grateful to you, honestly.

1021
00:45:03.492 --> 00:45:05.285
I could take another hour of it.

1022
00:45:05.285 --> 00:45:06.704
Me, too.

1023
00:45:06.704 --> 00:45:07.996
I wanna give you an opportunity

1024
00:45:07.996 --> 00:45:11.083
and you can absolutely
just say no, I'm good.

1025
00:45:11.083 --> 00:45:13.377
We are talking to people
who love Star Trek.

1026
00:45:13.377 --> 00:45:15.337
Like the people who
make it possible for us

1027
00:45:15.337 --> 00:45:17.089
to have these amazing lives.

1028
00:45:18.549 --> 00:45:20.300
Is there anything you
wanna say to 'em directly

1029
00:45:20.300 --> 00:45:25.305
as the guy who sits at the
top of everything we love?

1030
00:45:25.305 --> 00:45:29.518
I think that one of the
things I love so much

1031
00:45:29.518 --> 00:45:34.440
about Star Trek's endurance
is that it has endured,

1032
00:45:34.440 --> 00:45:39.278
it literally survived
cancellation because of the fans.

1033
00:45:39.278 --> 00:45:43.157
And so it's easy to pay
lip service and to say,

1034
00:45:43.157 --> 00:45:45.117
well, the fans, the fans, right?

1035
00:45:45.117 --> 00:45:47.244
Of which we, both you and I,

1036
00:45:47.244 --> 00:45:48.579
even before we were involved in Star Trek,

1037
00:45:48.579 --> 00:45:50.038
considers ourselves to be.

1038
00:45:53.375 --> 00:45:55.544
Everyone is really being listened to

1039
00:45:55.544 --> 00:45:59.757
having been in all the writers'
rooms, I can promise you,

1040
00:45:59.757 --> 00:46:03.719
I can promise everybody that
the articles that are written,

1041
00:46:03.719 --> 00:46:06.972
the things that people are
saying are always being discussed

1042
00:46:06.972 --> 00:46:07.806
in those rooms.

1043
00:46:09.975 --> 00:46:14.021
From the "I hated it" to "I loved it."

1044
00:46:14.021 --> 00:46:15.647
They're all being discussed.

1045
00:46:15.647 --> 00:46:17.649
We are well known for our opinions.

1046
00:46:17.649 --> 00:46:19.234
Oh, for sure. And, by the way,

1047
00:46:19.234 --> 00:46:22.738
I think that I have come
to learn in my experience

1048
00:46:22.738 --> 00:46:24.531
and other people may say differently,

1049
00:46:24.531 --> 00:46:28.494
but I feel like if you're
at 50%, you're doing well.

1050
00:46:29.495 --> 00:46:34.333
Because I think the points of
being a Trekker, or a Trekkie,

1051
00:46:34.333 --> 00:46:36.043
or however you self-identify,

1052
00:46:36.043 --> 00:46:38.045
is that you want to engage in that debate.

1053
00:46:38.045 --> 00:46:40.672
I loved this, I hated that, I loved this.

1054
00:46:40.672 --> 00:46:43.759
And that connection between people

1055
00:46:43.759 --> 00:46:46.637
is part of what the fandom is about.

1056
00:46:46.637 --> 00:46:49.431
If 90 percent of the people
hate it and 10 love it,

1057
00:46:49.431 --> 00:46:50.974
then I think you're in trouble.

1058
00:46:53.227 --> 00:46:56.104
But I think our ability to
try and avoid those odds

1059
00:46:56.939 --> 00:47:01.944
is to listen, to always
listen. Because I can tell you,

1060
00:47:02.152 --> 00:47:04.238
and I speak for every showrunner,

1061
00:47:04.238 --> 00:47:07.866
we see ourselves as
temporary carriers of this.

1062
00:47:07.866 --> 00:47:09.535
We are not the owners of Star Trek.

1063
00:47:09.535 --> 00:47:11.620
We did not create Star Trek.

1064
00:47:11.620 --> 00:47:14.706
We are the people who are
holding the precious egg

1065
00:47:14.706 --> 00:47:16.583
and trying not to drop it

1066
00:47:16.583 --> 00:47:19.545
until we can hand it onto the
next person who will take it.

1067
00:47:19.545 --> 00:47:22.881
And because every generation--

1068
00:47:25.217 --> 00:47:27.469
I look at the way my son
sees the world or the way--

1069
00:47:28.929 --> 00:47:31.723
One day someone from his
generation is gonna take Star Trek

1070
00:47:31.723 --> 00:47:33.350
and that will be appropriate.

1071
00:47:33.350 --> 00:47:37.187
Because I will have aged away from it.

1072
00:47:37.187 --> 00:47:39.523
And now it's time for
somebody else to do it.

1073
00:47:39.523 --> 00:47:42.985
And my hope is that in my tenure here,

1074
00:47:42.985 --> 00:47:45.153
I can find the right
people to put in place

1075
00:47:45.153 --> 00:47:48.365
so that there's a nice stable transition

1076
00:47:48.365 --> 00:47:49.241
when the time comes.

1077
00:47:49.241 --> 00:47:52.911
But none of us are under any
illusions about it being ours.

1078
00:47:52.911 --> 00:47:56.665
It actually belongs to two:
Gene Roddenberry and the fans.

1079
00:47:56.665 --> 00:47:58.208
And that's just the truth.

1080
00:47:58.208 --> 00:48:01.378
I'm going to very presumptively
speak for all the fandom

1081
00:48:01.378 --> 00:48:03.881
and I am going to say,

1082
00:48:03.881 --> 00:48:05.966
thank you for being such a wonderful,

1083
00:48:05.966 --> 00:48:10.971
mindful caretaker of something
that means so much to so many

1084
00:48:11.388 --> 00:48:12.306
that is bigger than all of us.

1085
00:48:12.306 --> 00:48:14.016
It is, it's much bigger than all of us

1086
00:48:14.016 --> 00:48:16.018
I really appreciate that,
especially from you.

1087
00:48:16.018 --> 00:48:17.227
Thank you, Alex.

1088
00:48:17.227 --> 00:48:18.353
Thank you so much.

1089
00:48:40.125 --> 00:48:44.296
Y'all, getting to talk
to Alex Kurtzman in 2022

1090
00:48:44.296 --> 00:48:47.549
is like getting to talk
to George Lucas in 1982.

1091
00:48:47.549 --> 00:48:49.259
It is a very big deal

1092
00:48:49.259 --> 00:48:52.804
and we are very lucky that he
gave us so much of his time

1093
00:48:52.804 --> 00:48:55.223
and so much insight into
the Star Trek Universe,

1094
00:48:55.223 --> 00:48:57.225
including this week's fantastic episode

1095
00:48:57.225 --> 00:48:58.518
of Strange New Worlds,

1096
00:48:58.518 --> 00:49:01.104
"Lift Us Up Where Suffering Cannot Reach."

1097
00:49:01.104 --> 00:49:03.190
What a great Star Trek title that is.

1098
00:49:03.190 --> 00:49:06.610
It presents an excellent
example of Starfleet

1099
00:49:06.610 --> 00:49:10.322
encountering a situation where
all is not what it seems.

1100
00:49:10.322 --> 00:49:14.034
We have a utopian society
with advanced medicine,

1101
00:49:14.034 --> 00:49:19.039
no disease, and a gorgeous
floating cloud garden world,

1102
00:49:20.207 --> 00:49:25.212
all maintained at a very disturbing cost.

1103
00:49:25.504 --> 00:49:28.799
Some of the best Star Trek episodes

1104
00:49:28.799 --> 00:49:30.968
leave us dizzy with their final moments

1105
00:49:30.968 --> 00:49:33.637
and keep us thinking
long after they've ended.

1106
00:49:33.637 --> 00:49:36.098
So here are a few other
episodes to check out

1107
00:49:36.098 --> 00:49:37.391
if you're craving a good twist.

1108
00:49:40.852 --> 00:49:41.687
It's okay.

1109
00:49:43.397 --> 00:49:44.231
He can see.

1110
00:49:46.024 --> 00:49:49.236
[Narrator] In Episode 6 of
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

1111
00:49:49.236 --> 00:49:51.071
Captain Pike is thunderstruck

1112
00:49:51.071 --> 00:49:53.198
to discover the Majalan society

1113
00:49:53.198 --> 00:49:55.450
is keeping an astonishing secret.

1114
00:49:56.994 --> 00:49:57.828
Stop it.

1115
00:49:58.954 --> 00:50:00.747
[Narrator] Full of shocking revelations,

1116
00:50:00.747 --> 00:50:04.126
surprising reversals,
and sneaky red herrings,

1117
00:50:04.126 --> 00:50:07.254
Star Trek has never been
afraid to leave audiences

1118
00:50:07.254 --> 00:50:08.922
open-mouthed.

1119
00:50:08.922 --> 00:50:11.758
If you're looking to be
stunned, phasers aside,

1120
00:50:11.758 --> 00:50:14.678
here are a few Star Trek
episodes with twists

1121
00:50:14.678 --> 00:50:16.430
you won't see coming.

1122
00:50:16.430 --> 00:50:17.681
That changes everything.

1123
00:50:24.896 --> 00:50:26.606
[Officer] How something like
that can sense us coming,

1124
00:50:26.606 --> 00:50:29.359
block us, move when we move, it beats me.

1125
00:50:29.359 --> 00:50:31.236
[Narrator] The Original Series episode

1126
00:50:31.236 --> 00:50:33.822
"The Corbomite Maneuver" sees Captain Kirk

1127
00:50:33.822 --> 00:50:36.992
and the Enterprise crew
facing down a menacing cube

1128
00:50:36.992 --> 00:50:41.496
called the Fesarius. Led by
its unnerving leader, Balok.

1129
00:50:41.496 --> 00:50:43.165
There is no escape.

1130
00:50:43.165 --> 00:50:45.709
[Narrator] Threatened
with imminent destruction

1131
00:50:45.709 --> 00:50:48.628
Kirk risks the lives
of his crew on a bluff,

1132
00:50:49.546 --> 00:50:53.216
as it turns out, he isn't the
only one keeping a secret.

1133
00:50:54.801 --> 00:50:57.262
I'm Balok, welcome aboard.

1134
00:50:59.306 --> 00:51:02.392
We will have to move quickly
if we are to be successful.

1135
00:51:02.392 --> 00:51:03.602
Successful?

1136
00:51:03.602 --> 00:51:04.895
Yes.

1137
00:51:04.895 --> 00:51:07.397
In preventing a Klingon civil war.

1138
00:51:08.565 --> 00:51:09.858
[Narrator] A cliffhanger episode

1139
00:51:09.858 --> 00:51:11.526
is naturally suspenseful,

1140
00:51:12.611 --> 00:51:15.572
but the final moments of Star
Trek: The Next Generation

1141
00:51:15.572 --> 00:51:18.575
Season 4 finale are especially shocking.

1142
00:51:20.118 --> 00:51:23.663
In Redemption, the new leader
of the Klingon High Council

1143
00:51:23.663 --> 00:51:26.750
faces opposition from the Duras sisters.

1144
00:51:26.750 --> 00:51:29.920
What no one knows is
that an unexpected foe,

1145
00:51:29.920 --> 00:51:33.757
several seasons in the making,
is the real mastermind.

1146
00:51:36.176 --> 00:51:38.386
Computer, did it just get colder in here?

1147
00:51:38.386 --> 00:51:39.513
[Computer] Negative.

1148
00:51:40.764 --> 00:51:42.891
[Narrator] The Star Trek: Voyager episode

1149
00:51:42.891 --> 00:51:47.020
"Course: Oblivion" could be
described as one long twist.

1150
00:51:47.979 --> 00:51:50.732
The Voyager crew first
appear to be the officers

1151
00:51:50.732 --> 00:51:53.985
we know and love, but as
crew members start dying

1152
00:51:53.985 --> 00:51:57.989
and alarming truth around
their identities becomes clear.

1153
00:51:57.989 --> 00:52:02.077
It all culminates in a somber,
but provocative ending.

1154
00:52:02.077 --> 00:52:05.580
Computer, prepare to eject the warp core.

1155
00:52:06.164 --> 00:52:07.457
To do what you're asking

1156
00:52:07.457 --> 00:52:11.419
would use up every resource
I have left on Cardassia

1157
00:52:13.547 --> 00:52:18.552
and it may be a very messy,
very bloody business.

1158
00:52:19.678 --> 00:52:21.680
Are you prepared for that?

1159
00:52:21.680 --> 00:52:24.474
[Narrator] As one of Starfleet's
most honorable officers,

1160
00:52:24.474 --> 00:52:27.477
Captain Sisko of Star
Trek: Deep Space Nine

1161
00:52:27.477 --> 00:52:30.480
is the last person one
would expect to fall prey

1162
00:52:30.480 --> 00:52:32.899
to the misdeeds of war.

1163
00:52:32.899 --> 00:52:36.069
But in the Season 6 episode
"In The Pale Moonlight,"

1164
00:52:36.069 --> 00:52:40.657
Sisko himself relays just how
far into a moral gray area

1165
00:52:40.657 --> 00:52:43.451
he is willing to go for the Dominion War.

1166
00:52:45.203 --> 00:52:47.706
And it's further than
anyone could imagine.

1167
00:52:51.251 --> 00:52:54.171
Tell me the truth, all of it.

1168
00:52:54.171 --> 00:52:58.592
Even better, I can show you.

1169
00:52:58.592 --> 00:53:00.802
[Narrator] While the adventures
of Dal and the makeshift

1170
00:53:00.802 --> 00:53:03.430
crew of the Protostar
in Star Trek: Prodigy

1171
00:53:03.430 --> 00:53:05.765
provide plenty of fun and surprises,

1172
00:53:05.765 --> 00:53:08.852
the two-part mid-season
finale keeps the audience

1173
00:53:08.852 --> 00:53:11.396
guessing as to whether
the crew will succeed

1174
00:53:11.396 --> 00:53:12.731
in their rescue mission.

1175
00:53:12.731 --> 00:53:14.107
In the end however,

1176
00:53:14.107 --> 00:53:17.402
the Diviner's shocking
reveal to his progeny Gwyn

1177
00:53:17.402 --> 00:53:20.155
steals the show and changes everything

1178
00:53:20.155 --> 00:53:21.364
she thought she knew.

1179
00:53:25.493 --> 00:53:27.829
Star Trek provides curveballs aplenty

1180
00:53:27.829 --> 00:53:31.416
in its vast universe, and who
knows what other revelations

1181
00:53:31.416 --> 00:53:34.753
the future holds for
Captain Pike and his crew.

1182
00:54:10.914 --> 00:54:13.500
It's just impossible to not get worked up

1183
00:54:13.500 --> 00:54:15.961
for a new episode of Star
Trek: Strange New Worlds

1184
00:54:15.961 --> 00:54:19.381
with each and every Ready
Room discussion I have.

1185
00:54:19.381 --> 00:54:21.800
I am very confident you
all feel the same way.

1186
00:54:21.800 --> 00:54:25.887
So I am as excited as you are
each week for a sneak peak.

1187
00:54:25.887 --> 00:54:28.807
Here it is, take a look at Episode 7.

1188
00:54:32.269 --> 00:54:33.311
We've picked up a distress signal

1189
00:54:33.311 --> 00:54:34.771
in a nearby asteroid field.

1190
00:54:34.771 --> 00:54:36.940
Could the colonists have
the capacity to send one,

1191
00:54:36.940 --> 00:54:38.733
even without their ships?

1192
00:54:38.733 --> 00:54:40.443
It's possible,

1193
00:54:41.444 --> 00:54:43.238
but I've also heard of
pirates setting ambushes

1194
00:54:43.238 --> 00:54:45.031
by cloning ship signals.

1195
00:54:45.031 --> 00:54:46.533
Exactly what I told the captain.

1196
00:54:46.533 --> 00:54:47.826
And I reminded Mr. Spock,

1197
00:54:47.826 --> 00:54:49.452
that regulation still strongly suggests

1198
00:54:49.452 --> 00:54:52.205
that we investigate any distress signal.

1199
00:54:52.205 --> 00:54:53.415
Yellow alert.

1200
00:54:53.415 --> 00:54:55.375
Erica, take us closer, please.

1201
00:54:55.375 --> 00:54:56.876
How close do you wanna get?

1202
00:54:56.876 --> 00:54:59.796
First date or third date?

1203
00:54:59.796 --> 00:55:01.339
Blind date.

1204
00:55:01.339 --> 00:55:02.173
Copy.

1205
00:55:02.173 --> 00:55:04.092
Proceeding with caution, sir.

1206
00:55:17.230 --> 00:55:18.440
The signal is growing stronger,

1207
00:55:18.440 --> 00:55:20.567
but I have yet to detect
a vessel of any kind.

1208
00:55:28.533 --> 00:55:29.701
Red alert, full stop.

1209
00:55:31.494 --> 00:55:35.957
Looks like a net except,
you know, made of lasers.

1210
00:55:35.957 --> 00:55:37.500
It's formed by multiple asteroids

1211
00:55:37.500 --> 00:55:39.669
equipped with high energy
electromagnetic reflectors.

1212
00:55:39.669 --> 00:55:41.629
I recommend we do not
cross one of the beams.

1213
00:55:41.629 --> 00:55:42.464
What happens when we do?

1214
00:55:42.464 --> 00:55:45.008
At best, it will shut down the ship.

1215
00:55:45.008 --> 00:55:46.301
And at worst?

1216
00:55:46.301 --> 00:55:47.594
Kaboom?

1217
00:55:47.594 --> 00:55:48.928
Indeed.

1218
00:55:48.928 --> 00:55:50.638
We should avoid the laser net.

1219
00:55:50.638 --> 00:55:52.849
Space pirates!

1220
00:55:52.849 --> 00:55:55.143
Okay, I'm into space pirates.

1221
00:55:55.143 --> 00:55:56.186
Count me in.

1222
00:55:56.186 --> 00:55:57.979
I look forward to next week's episode

1223
00:55:57.979 --> 00:56:00.231
and getting to discuss it together.

1224
00:56:00.231 --> 00:56:02.901
Thank you so much for joining
me today in The Ready Room.

1225
00:56:02.901 --> 00:56:06.863
Next week Jess Bush, Nurse
Chapel, will trade sickbay

1226
00:56:06.863 --> 00:56:08.490
for The Ready Room to talk with me

1227
00:56:08.490 --> 00:56:11.326
about next week's episode,
"The Serene Squall."

1228
00:56:11.326 --> 00:56:13.578
Until then, I'm Wil Wheaton.

1229
00:56:13.578 --> 00:56:15.538
Live long and prosper.