Star Trek executive producer Alex Kurtzman explains why he hasn’t greenlit the much-demanded potential Star Trek: Picard spinoff, Star Trek: Legacy.
Summary
- Alex Kurtzman expresses desire for Star Trek: Legacy but says greenlighting is beyond his paygrade.
- Picard season 3 sets stage for potential series starring Jeri Ryan as Captain Seven of Nine.
- Despite fan demand and interest from showrunners, Star Trek: Legacy’s development remains uncertain.
Star Trek executive producer Alex Kurtzman says that he would greenlight Star Trek: Legacy, the potential Star Trek: Picard follow-up series, if he could. Picard season 3’s epilogue set up a possible future Star Trek series starring Jeri Ryan as Captain Seven of Nine commanding the crew of the USS Enterprise-G, dubbed Star Trek: Legacy. There’s been no indication that Legacy is actually happening, despite Star Trek fans’ demand for the series, and previous statements from Picard showrunner Terry Matalas indicating his interest in doing the show (and indeed, coining the Star Trek: Legacy name).
In an interview with Den of Geek, Alex Kurtzman expresses his own desire to move forward with Star Trek: Legacy, and he offers an explanation for the radio silence of the Star Trek: Picard season 3 spinoff’s development. Read his quote below:
If I had a magic button, a magic ‘greenlight button,’ for Star Trek: Legacy , and it was all on me, I’d push that button today…. Right now, it’s beyond my paygrade.
Why Greenlighting Star Trek: Legacy is Beyond Alex Kurtzman’s Paygrade
Star Trek: Legacy may be a streaming movie before it’s a series.
By saying he would greenlight Star Trek: Legacy “today,” Alex Kurtzman shows his support for the Star Trek: Picard spinoff, but the wrinkle is that it isn’t up to Kurtzman alone to determine whether Legacy moves forward. Star Trek is an expensive franchise, with estimates suggesting each episode of Picard costs between $7-10 million to produce. Commitments to the upcoming Star Trek shows have been made, like the new Star Trek: Starfleet Academy series, as well as the ongoing Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and animated Star Trek: Lower Decks. Even with high demand, it makes sense to take a wait-and-see approach to determine if Star Trek: Legacy is in Paramount+’s budget.
With cost-cutting on the horizon for bigger franchises like the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it’s not surprising that Star Trek is going into its own future a little less boldly. Star Trek: Legacy may take the form of a made-for-streaming Star Trek movie, like the upcoming Star Trek: Section 31, once designed as an ongoing series starring Michelle Yeoh as Emperor Philippa Georgiou. The Paramount+ executives above Kurtzman may want to see if Section 31 is successful enough to warrant more Star Trek stories in a similar format before giving Star Trek: Legacy the go-ahead, and even then, base a potential series greenlight off of Star Trek: Legacy‘s numbers as a movie.
