Actor James McAvoy has revealed that he pitched a Star Trek television series centered on an origin story for Jean-Luc Picard.
Pitching ‘Mutiny On the Stargazer’
Speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, McAvoy stated that he proposed a standalone limited series titled Mutiny On the Stargazer. According to the actor, the concept focused on the period when Picard assumed command of the USS Stargazer and involved a secret held throughout his career.
“That was a whole idea I had I pitched to the Star Trek people as well, and we nearly did it,” McAvoy said on the podcast, adding that representatives for the franchise were receptive to the concept before logistical challenges prevented the project from moving forward.
Following Patrick Stewart’s roles
The pitch follows McAvoy’s prior involvement in taking over a character previously originated by Patrick Stewart. McAvoy portrayed a younger version of Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men prequel films First Class, Days of Future Past, Apocalypse, and Dark Phoenix, succeeding Stewart in the live-action role.
Stewart originally played Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation from 1987 to 1994, and later reprised the role in the series Star Trek: Picard from 2020 to 2023. Picard’s early command history was previously detailed in author Michael Jan Friedman’s six-part Stargazer book series published between 2002 and 2004.