star trek q actors

• TNG performers
• DS9 performers
• VOY performers
• Star Trek novel authors
• LD performers
• PIC performers

John de Lancie

John de Lancie ( born 20 March 1948 ; age 76) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, educator, sailor, voice artist, and comedian, best known for his portrayal of Q on Star Trek: The Next Generation , Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , Star Trek: Voyager , Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Picard . He also portrayed the character in Star Trek: The Game Show and Star Trek: Borg . In addition, he co-wrote the novel I, Q with Peter David and has narrated audio adaptations of several novels, including Q-in-Law (with Majel Barrett Roddenberry ) and Dark Mirror . His Borg costume from his latter video game appearance was sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay and was also worn by Michael Reilly Burke , Gary Hunter , and Tom Morga . [1] (X) On My Little Pony Friendship is Magic , he voiced Discord , a character inspired by Q.

For "Qpid", he filmed his scenes between Wednesday 6 February 1991 and Thursday 7 February 1991 and Tuesday 12 February 1991 and Friday 15 February 1991 on Paramount Stage 8 , 9 , and 16 and on the location shooting at the Descanso Gardens .

In 1996 , de Lancie co-founded Alien Voices with Leonard Nimoy and writer-producer Nat Segaloff. The audio production company/troupe produced several sci-fi audio productions (including the two Spock Vs. Q audios), as well as a few televised specials for the Sci-Fi Channel , which co-starred Nimoy, de Lancie, and several other Star Trek alumni.

In 2008 and 2010 , de Lancie and Robert Picardo co-hosted " Star Trek: The Music ," a concert covering the music of all the Star Trek eras.

• 1.1 Appearances as Q
• 2 Personal information
• 3.6 InAlienable (aka Illegal Alien )
• 4 Weakest Link
• 5 Other Trek connections
• 6 Bibliography
• 7 Star Trek interviews
• 8 External links

Star Trek appearances [ ]

As First of Four in the video game Star Trek: Borg

Appearances as Q [ ]

• " Encounter at Farpoint " ( Season 1 )
• " Hide And Q "
• " Q Who " ( Season 2 )
• " Deja Q " ( Season 3 )
• " Qpid " ( Season 4 )
• " True Q " ( Season 6 )
• " Tapestry "
• " All Good Things... " ( Season 7 )
• DS9 : " Q-Less " ( Season 1 )
• " Death Wish " ( Season 2 )
• " The Q and the Grey " ( Season 3 )
• " Q2 " ( Season 7 )
• LD : " Veritas " (voice) ( Season 1 )
• " The Star Gazer " ( Season 2 )
• " Penance "
• " Assimilation "
• " Watcher "
• " Fly Me to the Moon "
• " Two of One " (archive footage; uncredited)
• " Farewell "
• " The Last Generation " (uncredited) ( Season 3 )

Personal information [ ]

de Lancie and Marnie Mosiman in 1991

Born John Sherwood de Lancie, Jr. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 20 March 1948 , he was diagnosed with dyslexia as a child and, as such, did not learn to read until he was 12. [2] Despite this affliction, he began to act at the age of 14, performing in a high school production of William Shakespeare's Henry V .

He went on to study acting at Kent State University (he was in attendance during the Kent State shootings on 4 May 1970) and won a scholarship at Julliard. He has performed in numerous stage productions, participating at such engagements as the American Shakespeare Festival and the Mark Taper Forum, as well as establishing a successful career in film and television.

On 20 March 1984 (on de Lancie's birthday), de Lancie married to Marnie Mosiman , who appeared in the Next Generation episode "" Loud As A Whisper "." They have two sons: Keegan de Lancie , the oldest, portrayed Q's son Q Junior in the Voyager episode " Q2 "; Owen de Lancie, their youngest, portrayed Q's son in Star Trek World Tour .

Coincidentally, de Lancie is a long-time friend of Kate Mulgrew , who portrayed Kathryn Janeway in Voyager .

Acting career [ ]

de Lancie got off to a busy start following his television debut in Captains and the Kings , which also featured Cliff DeYoung , Kermit Murdock , Bill Quinn , and Richard Herd . The following year, he was seen in SST: Death Flight with Barbara Anderson , Brock Peters , Robert Ito , and Richard Derr and The Man with the Power with Persis Khambatta , Noél De Souza , James Ingersoll , Tim O'Connor , Roger Perry , and Jason Wingreen . That same year, he had a role in Testimony of Two Men with Theodore Bikel , Jeff Corey , Logan Ramsey , and Star Trek: The Original Series star William Shatner . de Lancie later co-starred with Shatner in The Bastard (also starring Kim Cattrall , John Colicos , William Daniels , Ike Eisenmann , James Gregory , and Alex Henteloff ) and Little Women (with William Schallert and Logan Ramsey). Also in 1978, de Lancie and Marc Alaimo appeared as divers in the Six Million Dollar Man television special Sharks , produced by Fred Freiberger and Harve Bennett and co-written by Freiberger.

Besides a number of other television films and miniseries, de Lancie also made appearances in various television series, including an episode of Battlestar Galactica (with Ken Lynch , Nehemiah Persoff , and Logan Ramsey) and various episodes of Emergency (with Kevin Tighe ). This ultimately culminated in his major motion picture debut, appearing as a police lieutenant in The Onion Field (co-starring fellow Star Trek alumni Phillip Richard Allen , K Callan , Ronny Cox , Richard Herd, Christopher Lloyd , Michael Pataki , and John Savage ).

de Lancie's next film appearance occurred the following year in Loving Couples , starring Stephen Collins and Sally Kellerman . He also found himself working on Scruples , co-starring fellow Trek performers Kim Cattrall, Paul Carr , Walker Edmiston , Gary Graham , John Hancock , and Bill Quinn.

He starred in a series pilot entitled Nightside , but the pilot was not sold; this project co-starred Larry Cedar and Vincent Schiavelli . de Lancie later took a role in The Thorn Birds ; his many co-stars in this program included Philip Anglim , Antoinette Bower (portraying a relative of de Lancie's character), Brett Cullen , Richard Kiley , Christopher Plummer , Jean Simmons , and Meg Wyllie .

From 1982 through 1986 and again in 1989, de Lancie starred as Eugene Bradford in Days of Our Lives . For his work on this series, he won two Soap Opera Digest Awards, one in 1984 and another in 1985, and was nominated for a third in 1986. Afterward, de Lancie was cast as a regular on CBS ' Trial and Error , but this series was cancelled after only eight episodes, premiering in March 1988. Between these projects, he returned to guest-starring on other TV shows, including a 1986 episode of The Twilight Zone , in a segment co-starring Jimmie F. Skaggs , James Lashly , and Brent Spiner . de Lancie and Spiner would work with each other again on Star Trek: The Next Generation , beginning the following year.

de Lancie continued expanding his resume throughout the 1990s, including roles in several popular films. He and his Next Generation co-star Gates McFadden appeared together in Taking Care of Business . The following year, de Lancie appeared briefly as a television executive near the end of The Fisher King . In 1992, he appeared as a doctor in The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (starring Matt McCoy and Charles Lucia ) and in 1993, he appeared in Fearless (also featuring Steven Culp , Stephanie Erb , Eric Menyuk , and John Towey ). He then starred in Evolver , portraying the creator of the title robotic menace.

On television, he made guest appearances in such television series as L.A. Law (working with Corbin Bernsen , Larry Drake , Diana Muldaur , and Charles Napier ), The Young Riders (with his TNG / DS9 co-star Jennifer Hetrick and Anthony Zerbe ), and Matlock (in a 1993 episode with Daniel Roebuck ). He also voiced Eagleton in two episodes of Batman: The Animated Series , one which also featured the voices of Loren Lester and Paul Winfield and another with the voice of L.A. Law co-star Diana Muldaur.

After TNG ended in 1994 , de Lancie was cast as a regular in Legend , created by Michael Piller and Bill Dial and co-starring Richard Dean Anderson of MacGyver and Stargate SG-1 fame (de Lancie had previously appeared on an episode of MacGyver and went on to appear on Stargate SG-1 ). Katherine Moffat , Stephanie Beacham , Douglas Rowe , and Terry Jackson also appeared in the pilot episode with de Lancie. However, the series lasted only 12 episodes, airing from April through August 1995.

Aside from a supporting role in Multiplicity (co-starring Ann Cusack , George D. Wallace, and Harris Yulin ) and an uncredited voice-over role in Saving Private Ryan , the remainder of de Lancie's screen acting credits throughout the 1990s were in television. He made guest appearances on Murder One (with Daniel Benzali , Barbara Bosson , Roy Brocksmith , Juliana Donald , John Fleck , and John Carroll Lynch ), Picket Fences (with Louise Fletcher and Ray Walston ), Dave's World (with Bruce McGill ), and appeared in two episodes of Fired Up , which was executive produced by Kelsey Grammer . He also starred in a number of made-for-television films, including 1997's Final Descent (with Gwynyth Walsh ) and its 1999 sequel Final Run .

Off-screen, de Lancie lent his voice to Interstate '76 , voicing Antonio Malochio.

In the year 2000, de Lancie starred in an episode of The Outer Limits with series regular Kevin Conway , who portrayed the infamous Control Voice, and was further featured in an episode of UPN 's Secret Agent Man starring Dina Meyer and Paul Guilfoyle . In 2001, he portrayed Colonel Frank Simmons in several episodes of Stargate SG-1 during the series' fifth season; he also appeared in an episode of the sixth season the following year. He appeared in two episodes of Gene Roddenberry 's Andromeda and later portrayed Odin in several episodes of Charmed (working with Elizabeth Dennehy , Maury Sterling , and Joel Swetow ).

He made guest appearances on such shows as The West Wing , Special Unit 2 , The Guardian (starring Raphael Sbarge , in an episode with Vaughn Armstrong ), NYPD Blue (starring Gordon Clapp ), Without a Trace (starring Enrique Murciano , in an episode with Tracy Middendorf ), and Shark (starring Jeri Ryan , in an episode with Ivar Brogger and Michael Buchman Silver ). His recent television credits have included recurring roles on The Unit (which starred Abby Brammell and on which de Lancie and Ann Cusack played a married couple), Breaking Bad which also guest-starred Mark Margolis (including an episode with Jonathan Banks ), and Greek .

On film, de Lancie had supporting roles in Woman on Top (2000, with Anne Elizabeth Ramsay ) and Good Advice (2001). In 2004, he worked with George Takei and Tucker Smallwood in The Eavesdropper . He was also seen in Reign Over Me , which also featured Jonathan Banks . In 2008, de Lancie was seen in such films as Pathology (with Larry Drake and Sam Witwer ), Quality Time (with Gail Strickland , Rif Hutton , Mary Elizabeth McGlynn , and Jeanette Miller ), and the independent film You (with Jerry Hardin , Amy Pietz , and Brenda Strong ).

In 2009, he appeared as a sardonic, atypical newscaster in Crank: High Voltage , which co-starred Clifton Collins, Jr. , Keone Young , Menina Fortunato , Nicole Randall , Jimmy Ortega , Henry Hayashi , and Spice Williams . He later had a role in Gamer . He also voiced Santa Claus in Elf Sparkle Meets Christmas the Horse , which also featured the voices of Pamelyn Ferdin and Richard Chaves . He had also filmed a role in the science fiction thriller Recreator .

In 2011, de Lancie appeared in Torchwood: Miracle Day , the fourth season of the Doctor Who spin-off series, Torchwood as Allen Shapiro . Nana Visitor also appeared in the series, and Jane Espenson and John Shiban wrote some of the episodes; de Lancie appeared in the last three. [3] In 2011, de Lancie also appeared in the drama-comedy television series Franklin and Bash , along with Clayton Landey , Robert Pine , Jason Alexander , Geoffrey Blake , Patrick Fischler , David Gautreaux , J. Patrick McCormack , Mark L. Taylor , Ivar Brogger , Gates McFadden , and Malcolm McDowell . From 2011 to 2019, he played the Q-inspired near-omnipotent trickster Discord , a recurring antihero in My Little Pony Friendship is Magic . He later tweeted , comparing the My Little Pony fanbase (known as Bronies) to that of Star Trek .

de Lancie lent his voice to several video games during this decade; in 2012, he portrayed Professor Fitz Quadwrangle in Quantum Conundrum . He also provided the voice of Assassin leader William Miles, father of protagonist Desmond Miles - voiced by Nolan North - in the fourth and fifth Assassin's Creed games, Assassin's Creed: Revelations , and Assassin's Creed III ( Roger Aaron Brown and Robin Atkin Downes also appeared in the games, but de Lancie did not share any scenes with them).

In 2015, he portrayed a demon in the episode "And the Infernal Contract" from The Librarians , directed by Jonathan Frakes , and starred in the film Visions alongside Anson Mount and Gillian Jacobs .

InAlienable (aka Illegal Alien ) [ ]

In 2003, de Lancie was attached to star in a science fiction film called Illegal Alien , executive produced and written by Original Series star Walter Koenig . The film would have co-starred Koenig and Robert Picardo . [4] (X) [5] As time went on, however, de Lancie became unhappy with the changes being made to the film and dropped out. (Picardo also had to drop out due to another commitment.) The film was re-named InAlienable and was released in 2008 with such Trek performers as Marina Sirtis , J.G. Hertzler , Patricia Tallman , Courtney Peldon and Gary Graham . [6]

Weakest Link [ ]

In 2001, de Lancie participated in the Star Trek edition of the game show Weakest Link along with LeVar Burton , Denise Crosby , Roxann Dawson , Robert Picardo , William Shatner , Armin Shimerman , and Wil Wheaton . De Lancie was the first contestant eliminated with Anne Robinson saying to him " John, I am afraid that's your Q to leave ".

Other Trek connections [ ]

• McMillan & Wife episode "Affair of the Heart" (1977) with Barbara Babcock, John Schuck, and Jason Wingreen
• Emergency: Survival on Charter #220 (1978 TV movie) with Jason Evers, Vince Howard, and Kevin Tighe
• The Six Million Dollar Man episode "Just A Matter of Time" (1978) with Paul Carr
• Black Beauty (1978 mini-series) with Edward Laurence Albert, Ike Eisenmann, Diana Muldaur, and Brock Peters
• Barnaby Jones episode "Terror on a Quiet Afternoon" (1978) with Lee Meriwether
• Nero Wolfe episode "Might as Well Be Dead" (1981) with Bruce Gray and Allan Miller
• It's a Living episode "The Wedding" (1981) with Bert Remsen and Wendy Schaal
• Murder, She Wrote episode "If The Frame Fits" (1986) with Norman Lloyd and directed by Paul Lynch
• On Fire (1987 TV movie) with Bill Erwin
• Hooperman episode "High Noon" (1988) with Barbara Bosson
• Christine Cromwell: Things That Go Bump in the Night (1989 TV movie) with James Cromwell and Ellen Albertini Dow
• Get Smart, Again! (1989 TV movie) with Cecily Adams , Stanley Adams , and Kenneth Mars
• Angel of Death (1990 TV movie) with Brian Bonsall and Ray Walston
• Missing Pieces (1991 film) with Bob Gunton
• Arcade (1993 direct-to-video movie) with Don Stark
• Schemes (1994 direct-to-video movie) with John Glover and George D. Wallace
• Without Warning (1994 TV movie) with Ron Canada and Marnie McPhail
• Raven Hawk (1996 TV movie) with John Fleck and Ed Lauter
• Spy Game episode "And That Concludes Our Session" (1997) with Keith Szarabajka
• You Lucky Dog (1998 TV movie) with James Avery
• Border Line (1999 TV movie) with Michelle C. Bonilla , Len Cariou , Josh Cruze , Christopher Michael , and Mikael Salazar
• The Practice episode "Payback" (2001) with Diane DiLascio and Jeremy Roberts
• Crossing Jordan episode "Payback" (2002) with Susan Gibney
• Judging Amy episode "Picture of Perfect" (2003) with Miriam Flynn
• The Closer episode "Flashpoint" (2005) with Ellen Bry and Raymond Cruz
• Breaking Bad 4 episodes (2009-2010) with Raymond Cruz , Mark Margolis , and Jonathan Banks

Bibliography [ ]

• " The Gift ", 1990
• I, Q , 2000 – Co-author with Peter David
• Star Trek: The Visual Dictionary , 2013 – Foreword

Star Trek interviews [ ]

• TNG Season 1 DVD special feature "The Beginning"
• TNG Season 1 DVD special feature "Selected Crew Analysis" ("Character Notes")
• TNG Season 2 DVD special feature "Departmental Briefing Year Two: Memorable Missions" (" Loud As A Whisper "), interviewed on 27 August 1991
• TNG Season 3 DVD special feature "Departmental Briefing Year Three" ("Visual Effects " Deja Q ""), interviewed on 21 August 1991
• TNG Season 4 DVD special feature "Mission Overview Year Four", interviewed on 21 August 1991
• TNG Season 5 DVD special feature "A Tribute to Gene Roddenberry " ("Gene Roddenberry Building Dedicated to Star Trek's Creator"), interviewed on 19 March 2002
• TNG Season 7 DVD special feature "Special Profiles Year Seven" ("Q"), interviewed on 19 March 2002
• The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 2 , pp. 4-7, "John de Lancie - Q", interviewed by Edward Gross
• The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine , Vol. 3, p. 48, "The Encore of Q", interviewed by Edward Gross
• All Good Things Blu-ray special feature The Unknown Possibilities of Existence: Making "All Good Things" ( 2014 )
• " To Boldly Ask... John de Lancie " video interview with Ian Spelling (20 October 2022)

External links [ ]

• John de Lancie at Wikipedia
• John de Lancie at X (formerly Twitter)
• John de Lancie at the Internet Movie Database
• John de Lancie at Battlestar Wiki
• 2009 interview with John de Lancie at AMCtv.com
• 2012 interview with John de Lancie at TrekCore
• John de Lancie at SF-Encyclopedia.com
• John de Lancie at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• 2 Daniels (Crewman)
• 3 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-G)

Screen Rant

Star trek's john de lancie says "it was not difficult" to play q in picard.

Your changes have been saved

Email is sent

Email has already been sent

Please verify your email address.

You’ve reached your account maximum for followed topics.

Star Trek Picard Season 3 Ending Explained (In Detail)

Star trek: picard would’ve been a borg show if patrick stewart didn’t return, star trek: picard's tng reunion is why season 1's cast didn't return.

• John de Lancie found it easy to reprise his role as Q in Star Trek: Picard after almost two decades as he often practices his omnipotence at home.
• He did not find it difficult to slip back into playing the character and credits his ability to focus on the other actors, such as Patrick Stewart's Picard.
• Q has become one of the most beloved characters in the Star Trek franchise, despite only appearing in a total of 22 episodes across various series.

Iconic Star Trek actor John de Lancie, best known as Q on Star Trek: The Next Generation , discusses how easily he was able to reprise the omnipotent trickster in Star Trek: Picard . Along with the actors who played the main crew of the USS Enterprise-D, John de Lancie's Q was part of Star Trek: The Next Generatio n from its premiere episode. Remarkably, Q has only appeared in 22 episodes of Star Trek , across TNG, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Lower Decks, and Star Trek: Picard , but de Lance's unpredictable space god has endured as one of the franchise's most beloved characters.

In an upcoming exclusive interview with Screen Rant to promote FanFair Signatures , the virtual autograph business co-founded by his son, Owen de Lancie, we asked John de Lancie if he found it difficult to reprise Q in Star Trek: Picard season 2 after not playing the character in almost two decades . Read de Lance's response below:

Well, as Owen knows, I practice my omnipotence at home all the time... People used to ask me, when they would see me in that judge's outfit, they would say, "Oh, my gosh, where did you get that outfit? That's such a great outfit." I said, Oh, it's just something I brought from home. It's how are with the kids. It was not difficult to slip back into [playing Q]. I play the character pretty close to the vest. And, and it's really about putting my attention, in the case of Picard, putting my attention on Patrick or on Picard. And off we go.

Star Trek: Picard season 3's finale concludes the story of TNG in grand style and sets up the next generation's legacy, along with a big surprise.

Q's 22 Appearances & Star Trek Future Explained

"the trial never ends...".

Before Star Trek on Paramount+'s series brought John de Lance back as Q, the omnipotent being only appeared in 12 episodes of Star Trek. Q's 8 appearances in Star Trek: The Next Generation include the series premiere, "Encounter at Farpoint," and the TNG series finale, "All Good Things..." Q made only one appearance in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , but he popped in to pester Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) in three episodes of Star Trek: Voyager. Q never appeared in any Star Trek feature film, but regardless, his legend was already assured.

It was a Q episode that introduced the Borg to Star Trek: The Next Generation in season 2's "Q Who?"

Q's surprising return to Star Trek was a brief cameo in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1. This opened the door to Q's full-fledged comeback as the main villain of Star Trek: Picard season 2, although the finale revealed Q manipulated the timeline to force Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) to face his lifelong trauma. Q seemingly died at the end of Picard season 2 , but a once again omnipotent Q made a shocking return in the end-credits scene of Picard season 3 . As for Q's future, Star Trek: Picard season 3's finale sets up Q as an antagonist to Jean-Luc Picard's son, Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers), who has a cosmic destiny of his own that would be explored if Paramount+ decides to make Picard's proposed spinoff, Star Trek: Legacy.

Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Picard are available to stream on Paramount+.

• Exclusive Stories

• Cast & crew
• User reviews
• Episode aired May 6, 1989

Q tries to prove that Picard needs him as part of their crew by hurling the Enterprise 7,000 light years away where they encounter the Borg for the first time. Q tries to prove that Picard needs him as part of their crew by hurling the Enterprise 7,000 light years away where they encounter the Borg for the first time. Q tries to prove that Picard needs him as part of their crew by hurling the Enterprise 7,000 light years away where they encounter the Borg for the first time.

• Gene Roddenberry
• Maurice Hurley
• Melinda M. Snodgrass
• Patrick Stewart
• Jonathan Frakes
• LeVar Burton
• 23 User reviews
• 11 Critic reviews

Top cast 17

• Captain Jean-Luc Picard

• Commander William Thomas 'Will' Riker

• Lieutenant Geordi La Forge

• Lieutenant Worf

• Counselor Deanna Troi

• Lieutenant Commander Data

• Wesley Crusher

• (as John deLancie)

• Ensign Sonya Gomez

• Chief Miles O'Brien

• Enterprise Computer
• (uncredited)

• Crewman Martinez
• Command Division Officer

• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia The Borg were originally conceived as being a race of insects (as featured in the previous season's Conspiracy (1988) ). Budget restrictions meant that the decision was made to go with cyborgs instead. Nevertheless, Q Who still went $50,000 over budget. Insectoid races would appear as enemies in the subsequent series Star Trek: Voyager (1995) and Star Trek: Enterprise (2001) .
• Goofs As Guinan warns Picard to protect the Enterprise from the Borg, Picard orders the shields raised. Moments later, even though the shields are active, the Borg beam over. Considering that they are technologically much more advanced, it is conceivable that they may have found a way to transport through shields.

Capt. Picard : I understand what you've done here, Q. But I think the lesson could have been learned without the loss of 18 members of my crew.

Q : If you can't take a little bloody nose, maybe you ought to go back home and crawl under your bed. It's not safe out here. It's wondrous, with treasures to satiate desires both subtle and gross. But it's not for the timid.

• Crazy credits The episode's credits begin a full minute after the theme music.
• Alternate versions To fit more commercial time, BBC America cuts bits and scenes from episodes. In their edit for this episode, the final conversation between Guinan and Picard while played chess is completely excised.
• Connections Featured in The Borg (2004)
• Soundtracks Star Trek: The Next Generation Main Title Composed by Jerry Goldsmith and Alexander Courage

User reviews 23

• Benjamin_Cox
• Jun 17, 2024
• May 6, 1989 (United States)
• United States
• Official site
• Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA (Studio)
• Paramount Television
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

Technical specs

• Runtime 46 minutes
• Dolby Digital

Related news

Contribute to this page.

• IMDb Answers: Help fill gaps in our data
• Learn more about contributing

More to explore

Recently viewed.

John de Lancie Talks Reprising Q on ‘Star Trek: Picard’: ‘You Can Never Go Back’ (EXCLUSIVE)

By Adam B. Vary

Adam B. Vary

Senior Entertainment Writer

• ‘Agatha All Along’ Team on Reprising ‘The Witches Road’ as a Rock Ballad and Singing With Patti LuPone: ‘It Was So Intimidating’ 52 mins ago
• Animated Robin Origin Story ‘Dynamic Duo’ Set at DC Studios, Featuring Dick Grayson and Jason Todd 1 day ago
• DC Studios Developing Film Involving Batman Villains Bane and Deathstroke 5 days ago

When John de Lancie was first cast as Q on the pilot of “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” his expectation was that he was only supposed to play the wily omnipotent being — who challenges Capt. Jean-Luc Picard ( Patrick Stewart ) with proving humanity’s worthiness — for that single, two-part episode. But three days into shooting, “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry took de Lancie aside.

“He said to me, ‘You have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into,'” de Lancie says. “And oh my god, was he right.”

De Lancie reprised his performance as Q on seven more episodes of “TNG,” including the series finale, when Q promised he would visit Picard again “from time to time.” Despite appearances as Q on “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” and “Star Trek: Voyager” (as well as a brief cameo on the animated series “Star Trek: Lower Decks”), however, Q never did drop in on Picard for another verbal tête-à-tête.

Related Stories

Generative AI & Licensing: A Special Report

'Shawshank Redemption' Director Ended Retirement After 11 Years for 'Stranger Things 5' Because 'It Has So Much Heart' When Most 'Content Now Is Filled With Horrible People'

That is, until Monday’s announcement that de Lancie would return as Q in Season 2 of the Paramount Plus series “ Star Trek: Picard ,” which will premiere in 2022.

Popular on Variety

A prolific character actor in TV, film and theater, de Lancie’s played everything from “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic” as the voice of the villain Discord to “Breaking Bad” as Donald Margolis, the distraught father of the heroin-addicted Jane (Krysten Ritter).

But for many, Q is de Lancie’s signature role. His episodes of “TNG” remain some of the most beloved in the series’ seven-season run from 1987 to 1994, and the news that he would be playing the role again lit up Trekkie Twitter in celebration. In this exclusive conversation with Variety , de Lancie explains his reaction to the news that he was being invited to return to “the dinner party,” as he puts it — and his reservations about reprising a character he hasn’t played since 2001.

When “Star Trek: Picard” was first announced, did that cause you to wonder, “Oh, what if Q could come back?”

Well, it’s interesting. Terry [Matalas], one of the executive producers, when I met with him, he said, “Oh, of course, you knew you were going to be coming back.” And I said, “You know what, Terry, ‘Star Trek’ has done a lot of movies and other shows without me. So I did not assume that that was going to be the case.” I just sort of discipline myself as a professional over the years to go, “look, it’s somebody else’s dinner party. You cannot spend your time worrying about whether you’re getting invited. Just take it off the radar. You get invited or you don’t get invited, that’s all.”

So when were you first invited back to this dinner party?

Well, I want to say, six months ago. This whole COVID year has been disjointed, but it was after their first season.

How did that feel to know that they were interested in bringing Q back?

You know, it was, and is, a little bit of a mixed bag. One of the issues that I have is you don’t want to fall into the trap of re -creating. I was obviously a little concerned — very concerned — about the issues having to do with, well, excuse me, this is 20 years later. I’m supposed to be immortal and I certainly look very mortal. There were issues about all of that. I was flattered. Of course, I said yes. I didn’t have to think about that part. And then I wondered, where are they going to go with this?

Did the producers talk with you at that point about what was planned for Q, or was this more of a mystery to you?

There was generalized talk, which intrigued me. One of the things that’s sort of unusual, having played a character that has had such a long history — I’ve only done, I think, nine episodes [of “Star Trek”], between the three shows. [ Editor’s note: It’s been 12. ] I’ve always thought of it as being kind of a diamond in the rough, and having new facets of that stone that’s going to be cut. So here it is, many years later, we’re still cutting that stone. There will be elements of that stone which have already been cut, and they will simply need to be burnished up. And then there will be elements of this stone that will be newly cut, for which there will be people who go, “Oh I always thought you would go in that direction,” and then others, “Oh, I like him the way he was before!”

It solved one major problem for me, and that is I feel very strongly about the whole thing of, you can never go back. Dare I say, how often have we gone back to meet with old girlfriends or boyfriends or what have you and you go, “Oh, I think it would have been better just keeping this in my imagination!” Here, we are not, in fact, going back. We are taking what we have and we are moving forward. And to me, that’s exciting.

Have you shot anything yet?

How did it feel to act against patrick stewart again.

It was fun. My own issues have always been the same. I have to put in a lot of homework because I’m very dyslexic and I just have to work really hard to get all of that into RAM, as it were. And then once that’s done, I’m there to play . And so it was just fun. That type of preparation has paid off and you’re just ready to rock and roll.

Did you pay any attention to the way that the announcement of your return was received?

I saw the little trailer, which I thought was really well done, where there’s a playing card that disappears and then you just see the Q. I felt that that was very befitting this character. This is thin ice for all of us: There are expectations . In the case of that little announcement, I thought they exceeded expectations on that. It was a really nice little morsel of, “Here he comes!”

“Star Trek” fans are notoriously picky, but I have not seen negative reactions to Q’s return — it’s been quite enthusiastically received. How does it feel to have people be so interested in seeing you continue to play this role?

Well, as you were saying that just now, what I felt was mostly was, Oh shit . [ Laughs ] The pressure is on! That’s how I feel about it. I find that to be a challenge. I hope that I can match it. I hope that we all can match it, and more to the point, exceed it. [ Laughs ] This is one of the reasons I stay away from all this stuff. I kind of just have to stay in the world of what can be done, and what cannot be done, and not to get too pressurized in all this.

One common reaction I’ve seen is people saying, “oh, thank god, I can feel good about the letter Q again.” Obviously, in the last few years, the letter Q has taken on a much different connotation with the rise of the QAnon conspiracy cult. How strange has that been for you, given how identified you’ve been with the role?

[ Sighs ] I’m really grateful for that character that I played — and I have become protective of that, of what Q means and all that. Certainly with this other thing, I’ve chosen not to dumpster dive into it. I don’t want to bring those two elements together in any way whatsoever. There’s a part of Q that I’m playing that is frankly more real and more positive and more life-affirming than the [ pause ] ridiculousness that I hear about this other stuff.

Since we’re talking about reprising one of your most memorable roles, I did want to ask — given that “Better Call Saul” is a prequel series for “Breaking Bad,” have you ever wondered if Donald Margolis would pop up on that show?

I would have loved for that character to have continued. Through my career, I was always hired to play the very aggressive, wordsmith-y sort of character, which ironically is difficult for me because I just tend to work seemingly twice as hard as anybody else. That character allowed me to just relax a little bit, and to just feel , as opposed to trying to dominate or bulldoze. But again, you brought it up and I appreciate it and I take it as a compliment, but I just don’t think about it ever. I just can’t.

Let me just tell you, it’s very interesting what different characters can do for somebody. In this case, just imagine a 22-year-old, shy, kind of strung out kid who comes up to me and says, “Hey, are you Jane’s father?” And I go, “Uh yeah.” And he’s looking at me kind of askance, and he goes, “Yeah, well, now I guess I know what my parents went through.”

I’m sure his parents did everything to try to keep him from, you know — “Please, you can’t keep on doing this, you’re going to ruin your life.” And he couldn’t hear any of it, but he could be affected when he saw it in a story. So I’m really happy to have played that role.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

More from Variety

‘Challengers’ Sets Streaming Release Date on Prime Video

Sony’s ‘Concord’ Shutdown an Indictment of Live-Service Gaming

Venu Legal Fight Is About More Than FuboTV: What’s at Stake for the Entire Industry

More from our brands, dyson vacuums rarely go on sale — here’s how you can get a discount right now.

Wild Turkey Just Dropped a New Russell’s Reserve That Shows Where a Bourbon Ages Can Affect Flavor

Dolphins Consider Private Equity Splash With Ares, Joe Tsai

The Best Loofahs and Body Scrubbers, According to Dermatologists

Ron Hale, General Hospital and Ryan’s Hope Veteran, Dead at 78