After months of waiting and speculation, the roll out ahead of Star Trek: Discovery‘s premiere on CBS All Access is finally underway. The broadcaster’s digital arm released a first trailer for the new series in May, while a release date and plot details were announced in June. Yet with just under three months to go before the September 24th premiere on CBS, Discovery has plenty more to reveal before fans get the chance to see what the latest addition to Gene Roddenberry’s creation is all about — like the return of a Star Trek: The Next Generation luminary.
Jonathan Frakes, who played Commander William T. Riker in the second Star Trek iteration and several films, will join Discovery‘s production to direct an episode. “He’s a fantastic guy and great director,” show writer and producer Gretchen J. Berg told Entertainment Weekly. Fellow Discovery showrunner Aaron Harberts added, “Our cast is dying to work with him.” Frakes, who cut his teeth directing the Next Generation third season episode “The Offspring,” has directed episodes of subsequent Star Trek television shows and films. Episodes of Leverage, Burn Notice and other programs also bear his mark.
Interestingly enough, Frakes also directed an episode of Seth MacFarlane’s upcoming Star Trek parody series The Orville. Whether or not one gig will affect the other remains to be seen, but the demand for Frakes’ behind-the-camera skills is undoubtedly a sign of Riker’s endless appeal.
(Via Entertainment Weekly)
