Star Trek: Picard is now the third live-action Trek series to wrap up production on a season this summer, but that doesn’t mean they’re taking a break.
Picard season two
Production on the second season of Star Trek: Picard started in February in Los Angeles, after the pandemic put a halt to the plans of starting last summer, and it looks like things wrapped up just this week. The confirmation came on Thursday via social media posts from members of the crew, including one showing off a clapperboard for the 10th and final episode of season two. The message read, in part, “That’s a wrap on season 2.”
UPDATE: The post has been removed from Instagram
Picard’s menu
We also got a fun glimpse into the production today when co-showrunner Terry Matalas shared a look at Picard’s replicator, with the message “who’s hungry?”
Picard’s replicator… who’s hungry?🙋🏻♂️#StarTrek #StarTrekPicard pic.twitter.com/un5AhfgtOf
— Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) September 3, 2021
Season two of Picard features the return of star Sir Patrick Stewart in the title role, along with his co-stars Alison Pill (Agnes Jurati), Isa Briones (Soji Asha), Evan Evagora (Elnor), Michelle Hurd (Raffi Musiker), and Santiago Cabrera (Chris Rios). Also returning are Jeri Ryan (Seven of Nine) and Brent Spiner (presumably as Altan Soong). Season two will feature John de Lancie (Q), and it was just that announced Annie Wersching will be playing the Borg Queen.
Patrick Stewart in preview trailer for season two
On to Season 3
While filming on season two is done, previous reports indicate that the plan is to transition to production on season three immediately. During the pandemic, in addition to fine-tuning season two, the writers’ room moved forward to develop the third season. Some of the Picard crew posting about wrapping up season two noted they were “halfway done” with others referring to work starting on season 3.
Three Trek shows filmed in 2021
Picard is the third Trek show to finish up live-action filming in recent weeks. The Toronto-based Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, which had also started production in February of this year, wrapped up its 10-episode first season shoot in late July. Also filmed in Toronto, Star Trek: Discovery finished shooting its fourth season in late August. having begun on season four last November.
Discovery season four is set to debut on Paramount+ later this year. Both Picard season two and Strange New Worlds season one are set to debut in 2022.
In addition to the three live-action shows, production continues on the two animated Trek series. Work started earlier this year on season three of Lower Decks, and the kids’ animated series Star Trek: Prodigy is set to debut its first season this fall. That show has a two-season commitment.
We should learn more about the release dates for the five Star Trek series during the Star Trek Day streaming event on September 8th.
Find more news and analysis on Star Trek: Picard.
All very good news. Can’t wait for Picard season 2!
Also, there’s definitely some other interesting pics from some of the PIC crew on Instagram. Simply clicking on the handles in the post above led to more :)
I’m very curious about the sequencing and scheduling of the Trek series over the next 15 months.
There’s a lot to put through postproduction and get out streaming, but it still only adds up to 43 live-action episodes even with two seasons of Picard.
(And yes Tiger2, it’s a lot but still less per year than we saw when both DS9 and TNG were in production.)
I can’t imagine that won’t see something in production in Toronto or Mississauga over the winter. Letting that capacity, including the AR wall, sit idle seems financially untenable.
So, I’m going to speculate on some Short Treks, Strange New Worlds being greenlit for season two before season one premieres or perhaps the long postponed S31 show being made.
All the more so since there has been a change in management of Paramount+ since we were told that no new live action series would go into production until one of the current ones wrapped.
I’m really hoping for some announcements this Star Trek Day.
LOL I guess people really know my thought patterns when I’m referenced in posts without posting first.
And I don’t disagree with any of your points. I think all of that can happen. Most of these shows are getting multiple renewals before their next seasons air (like Picard clearly did) so I don’t see a big difference for SNW or possible more Short Treks. I really want those to continue too. But I do think Short Treks seem to have a bigger hill to climb. I read somewhere second season hasn’t even been shown outside of North America yet and it’s been well over a year. I think they just have a bigger problem trying to sell those for obvious reasons and why there isn’t a drive to make more. But I would love to be proven wrong and they announce a new season of it on Star Trek day.
I’m really excited for Star Trek day now. Once we got something big as the Borg Queen coming back, who knows what else they are holding back on.
Yeah Netflix has passed on buying Short Treks S2, atleast for quite sometime anyway. Lots of rumours that ViacomCBS wanted ridiculous money for them.
That’s correct on Short Treks. I had to purchase the Blu-ray to watch the second season and that still didn’t include the episode tied into Picard. For that I had to buy season 1 of Picard! So your argument make sense although I would point out that CBS Viacom have been accelerating their plans to roll out Paramount+ internationally so selling series to international broadcasters may well become a secondary consideration to building their content libraries in the territories that they’re launching their streaming platform. In the UK Paramount+ is scheduled to launch in the new year as part of Sky TV but presumably CBS Viacom will have to honour the existing contracts with Amazon and Netflix for Discovery, Picard and LDS making it probable that the unreleased episodes of Short Treks will be joining Prodigy (and hopefully SNW) on that platform. So there is still a viable scenario in which Short Treks or a similar rebranded project could still be used to fill gaps between each series.
Wow that’s crazy! You had to buy multiple sets JUST to watch all the Short Treks?
Sure I agree, if and when Paramount+ expands in more markets that will be easier to produce more Short Treks, but I still don’t see it as a huge priority. And I don’t think its just the international audience alone, I don’t think a lot of people signed back up just to watch them in general in America, which was the original point. I think everyone watched them who watch the new shows, most just probably waited to sign back up when Discovery or Picard came back on. Speaking more for the casual audience and not the hardcore like people on this board. Sure most here did it, but I feel it was probably just a small fraction of DIS or PIC audience that did.
But still maybe they are planning for more. I guess we’ll know soon.
To be fair I’ve always tended to buy physical copies of Trek going back to the old vhs days but yeah, if you want to watch them all legally in the UK that’s the only way!
I love it that part of Ryan Kunkleman is a 12-year-old who’s squeeing over the fact that he gets to work with Stewart and Frakes. It’s heart-warming, how very many people now in the business adored Star Trek of one form or another when they were kids.
I did not think this was possible after my (negative) feelings for season one of Picard but now I’m just as excited for season 2 as I originally was for season 1. Time travel, altered timelines, Q, Borg Queen, etc it’s stacking up to be a very crazy story line!
It’s also funny because I remember telling myself the Picard show would be the ‘grounded’ show going forward when compared to the others. No trippy sci fi anomaly, time travel shenanigan, two Picards in a room, jumping to a parallel universe or any of that usual Trek craziness. More straight forward story lines like season one or ‘intimate’ Picard character development stuff like what you see in episodes like ‘Family’. Season 2 sounds like its going to prove me wrong big time. This may be ‘All Good Things’ on speed!
Goddess forbid.
Family is great, but to a general audience its boring af
LOL, agreed!
No, I definitely don’t want ten episodes of ‘Family’. ;)
I just meant stories that delves directly into Picard’s life, but something more than fighting with your brother.
Of course thinking about it, the irony of Picard season one is that he finally did what his brother wanted and that was to go back to France and run the Vineyard. Thankfully that only lasted for a few episodes before he warped back into space again.
this will be the TNG movie everyone was screaming for back in the 90s (albeit 10 hours long)
I’m not complaining! Bring it on!
Yep it’s pretty interesting so far, although I think plenty of us have learned to manage our expectations by now. We’ve had more than a decade of experience with “exciting/interesting” trailers and (except for DSC) films/shows starting off well, only for things to take a sharp downturn later on. But I do agree that the glimpses of PIC Season 2 sound intriguing, and I’m enjoying the gradual drip-feed of information.
Just to add my 5 cents to the speculation, I think the main themes will involve Q giving Picard the chance to change various major events in the past — eg. WW3, premature contact with the Borg, the destruction of Romulus — with the dilemma being whether Picard could then live with radically altered future outcomes in each scenario. For example, would Picard stop WW3 and save millions of lives, knowing it could wipe out the existence of the future Federation, or would Picard let the nuclear holocaust happen (or even *ensure* it happens) ? Would Picard prevent the disastrous contact with the Borg (including his own assimilation along with the massacre at Wolf 359), if Q tells him that doing so would enable the Dominion to conquer a weaker and complacent Federation? Would Picard save the billions of people on Romulus (and, as a result, his own Starfleet career), if Q tells him there’s later a major conflict involving the Romulan Empire destroying Earth?
A mixture of “City on the Edge of Forever”, “Yesterday’s Enterprise”, “Timeless” etc. Plus a bigger-scale version of that TNG episode where Picard is in an alternative timeline living a miserable life as a lab technician (in a way, Picard is currently living out another crappy existence).
I’m just throwing ideas out there, but this sort of stuff involves exactly the kind of dilemmas Q would impose on Picard, force him to make a “no-win” moral decision, and then make him personally experience the consequences of those decisions. It would make great television if this really is what Season 2 is all about — assuming it’s done well and the showrunners/writers pull it off.
Jai!!!!
How are you? It’s so good to hear from you! I can’t remember the last time I seen a post from yours here but it’s been awhile for sure (but I don’t click on EVERY thread here).
Anyway, yes, I think we all have learned to manage expectations at this point. I been pretty excited about all the new stuff from the 2009 movie through the present and sadly let down more times than not. But hope springs eternal! And I generally liked the Kelvin films and the new shows, just not in love with any of them yet, including Lower Decks (but easily my favorite out of the new bunch so far. So much fun!).
With Picard season 2, it is a little odd because they seem to be throwing in the same elements that made us excited about season 1, a mix of old iconic and popular favorites. In season one case: Data, Seven, the Rikers and the Borg. This season it’s Q and the Borg Queen so far (which obviously includes the Borg again, but this time probably back to traditional assimilating Borg) and even Guinan. Season one the story dealt with Picard’s past in a way bringing in his relationship and guilt over the death of Data as the jumping off point to the season, but mixing it in with the Mars attack story line. This season ALSO looks to involve Picard’s past in some way with probably another new story, we’re just not sure what either of those are exactly yet. They are just going a much trippier way this time which I LOVE!
As far as your theories, ALL of those could be valid. I seen similar theories here and other places and I don’t think it really matters which one gets picked because it can all lead to the same tragic outcome. That’s the thing about time travel and alternate timelines, especially in Star Trek, something as simple as saving a person’s life can completely disrupt centuries of the future or past. That’s why it’s fun, to see how it plays out. We know by the end, everything will be right again and the Federation will continue to flourish (until mid-31st century anyway ;)) but the fun is to see how it unravels and put back together again.
And we never gotten an entire season of that. It’s usually been a one episode thing, especially in TNG and VOY, but an entire season can be amazing IF done right. So I’m onboard for sure and whatever craziness happens. And having Q along just makes it a lot more fun.
So if this is what most of us are thinking, it can be a REALLY fun season with a lot of interesting turns and surprises. As someone said, this could be the TNG movie a lot of us wanted back in the day and we may now get ten hours out of it! Just PLEASE don’t suck this time! But unlike season one, they actually claim to have finished writing all the scripts before shooting started so *fingers crossed*. ;D
Man, don’t be a stranger, I love hearing your theories, hope you stick around in the future (no pun intended ;)).
I’m hoping by the cast list we can safely assume ‘Narek’ WILL NOT be back
Yet they’re bringing back the Romulan Elf?Why?
Doesn’t appear to be any new regular cast additions for the season.
Tezna, I’d rather have Elnor (the Romulan Elf lol) than Narek (the actor who thought as long as he did his British accent he would be a Romulan)
Well atleast Harry Treadaway was some nice eye candy, Star Trek rarely has attractive men on it.
Well, Elnor was still on the La Sirena when last seen. The show does still need to address some of the plot points of Season 1, such as Picard being the Un-Dead and Jurati getting away with murder. So starting off the season on the La Sirena to tidy up things does make sense. I just hope they don’t wait until Episode 4 to start telling the real story of the season the way they did Season 1.
They confirmed that months ago.
They didn’t MENTION him months ago, so he could have still popped up. I’m thinking that this is now a confirmation.
Patrick Stewart did an interview sometime mid last year where he said everyone except Narek was coming back. I think it just slipped through the cracks in regards to details
Because Discovery got delayed, it didnt finish shooting until after SNW was done. I wonder if the release schedule will get moved around and SNW now becomes the first live action series to premiere later this year?
As for Picard, I agree with Tiger2, so much potential. I hope the writers learned from their S1 mistakes (Chabon acknowledged he completely underestimated the impact Ichab’s death had on the fans) so let’s hope the writers room delivers a great S2 and S3.
Icheb, or Hugh? Icheb I really didn’t care one way or another.
Icheb had fans? (The OG actor is an ass too)
He was alright when I met him. Seemed like he had his demons but he was happy to chat with fans in the bar.
We’re getting ready for some new Star Trek between late this year and 2022.
I wonder how they can warrant high quality special/cgi effects when they have to work on so many shows simultaneously. Do they hire new effect artists?
The VFX aren’t done in-house. All the current Trek shows have contracted various VFX studios. These VFX studios work on multiple shows (not just Trek). With more Trek shows in (post-)production they can either spread the work across more VFX companies or try to book more artists at the companies they are already working with.
Ah ok, thank you!
I’m sure they are working together with the best of the best of the vfx business. What I don’t get its why they were not able to get the hair line of data right. It can’t be to hard to do that properly these days for those (actually) talented vfx people..?
… But I think that should be done properly from the make up designers. They got the wig wrong. Should not be part of the vfx team anyway in my opinion. I can’t believe they’re getting awards over awards for their really out of this world awesome make up work on trek generally but they are not able to get a proper wig for data/brent spiner, such an iconic character..
“New trek” lol
This will be interesting.
I’m really really hoping to see Beverly Crusher in at least Season 3.