Patrick Stewart...Season 7

[JeffinOakland]

Forgive me if this has already been covered but I've noticed something throughout Season 7. Patrick Stewart is little more than a cameo in several of the episodes. A little bit at the beginning and/or end. Was the reduced screentime in his contract? Also, I've noticed he's almost always sitting during his cameos. Was he hurt or sick when the filming was taking place?

 

[M'rk son of Mogh]

I know around the time of "Thine Own Self" he was doing the one-man version of "A Christmas Carol" on stage which required time off.

He also directed 2 episodes, which may have required time dedicated to prepping and filming.

 

[JeffinOakland]

Thanks. I wondered if it was something like that. He knew the series was ending and attention and resources were being diverted to DS9. Thus, it was time to segue into other projects.

 

[Melakon]

Most actor-directors did seem to get shows where their own character has few scenes. One exception was DS9: Far Beyond the Stars, but Avery Brooks jumped at it because it was personally important for him, despite being in nearly every scene.

 

[LMFAOschwarz]

Most actor-directors did seem to get shows where their own character has few scenes. One exception was DS9: Far Beyond the Stars, but Avery Brooks jumped at it because it was personally important for him, despite being in nearly every scene.

Yeah, I always watched for that when I saw an actor's name as director. In Genesis, for example: with Gates M. directing, Doctor Bev was taken out of the action pretty early on.

 

[Melakon]

"Fistful of Datas" is another one too. Picard's hardly in it, since Patrick Stewart was directing, and watching old westerns for inspiration during the shoot. They could tell what he watched the night before when he'd come in the next day with an idea for a camera angle.

 

[Hober Mallow]

Thanks. I wondered if it was something like that. He knew the series was ending and attention and resources were being diverted to DS9. Thus, it was time to segue into other projects.

More like resources were being diverted to "Generations" and VOY.

 

[WillsBabe]

I hadn't noticed it about TNG, but I'm watching Voyager at the moment and the same thing seems to have happened to Janeway in a few season 6 or 7 eps, too. (Probably not really relevant to the TNG forum, though! ) There does seem to be a bit of a phenomena in tv of the main cast of a show taking a break as the show wears on.

 

[Kronos]

Season 7 phoning it in, a Star Trek tradition.

 

[M'rk son of Mogh]

Season 7 phoning it in, a Star Trek tradition.

This is the first I've heard of a tradition.

And is it really phoning it in if the writers are doing the limitations, ultimately?