Follow us on Google News
Get the latest updates directly in your Google News feed
Sir Patrick Stewart was reportedly not interested in joiningStar Trek: The Next Generationbefore he was persuaded by his manager to take the well-paying job. Though the actor seemed like a fish out of water initially, he never phoned it in with his performances and gave the character of Jean-Luc Picard a whole new dimension.
Despite his wonderful performance in the show, the actor never received an Emmy nomination, let alone an award for his role inStar Trek: TNG. In fact, many of the cast members have been denied the prestigious award despite giving amazing performances. One episode that proved the Emmys’ hate for sci-fi is the season 3 episode, ‘Sarek’.
Sir Patrick Stewart’s Performance InStar Trek: TNG’s ‘Sarek’ Deserved An Emmy
The Emmys have always been biased against sci-fi and fantasy shows as opposed to true dramas. Even after so many decades, the prestigious awards ceremony rarely honors the genre that has millions of fans around the world. Even at its peak,Star Trek: TNGwas only nominated for technical awards and rarely for writing and acting.
“She just seems like a better fit”: Gene Roddenberry Fans Will Never Forget an Underrated Character in Star Trek: TNG That Only Appeared for 1 Season
While there have been many memorable performances bySir Patrick Stewart, one of his best was in the season 3 episode ‘Sarek’. The actor encounters Mark Lenard’s Sarek fromThe Original Seriesin the episode and finds him to be suffering from Bendii Syndrome, an Alzheimer’s-like degenerative disease, which telepathically affects the rest of the crew.
The episode sees the two mind-meld in order to make it easier for Sarek to attend a diplomatic conference, and Picard takes on centuries worth of trauma from Sarek. One scene in which he expresses his regrets is particularly regarded by fans as one of his best performances. Fans said (viaReddit),
Unfortunately, the Emmys and Academy Awards seem to despise science fiction for some reason. That’s why I think we have the Saturn Awards.
I think about this episode daily as I work with elders with dementia, many of whom were as accomplished and vital as Sarek. It’s a reminder not to assume the mental capacity you have now will be with you until the end.
-LizardBoyfriend
Stewart is a phenomenal actor and his ability to switch between emotions in that scene is amazing
-Hour_Amphibian_6613
The episode is widely regarded among the best ofStar Trek: TNGand Stewart’s performance in particular has been praised by critics and fans alike.
While He Won No Emmys, Patrick Stewart Wanted Brent Spiner To Win For An Episode
Sir Patrick Stewart is one of the most accomplished actors and has been nominated for multiple Emmys and Golden Globes, though none of them were forStar Trek: TNG. The actor’s performance inepisodes like ‘Inner Light’and ‘Sarek’ has impressed fans enough to campaign for a nomination, but they went in vain.
Wil Wheaton Thanks Star Trek: TNG Co-Star Who “Was more of a dad to me than my dad ever was”
However, the legendary actor believed that his co-star and Data actor Brent Spiner deserved to win the award for his performance in the episode ‘The Offspring’. The episode sees Data building his own android Lal and trying to raise her as a human but fails as she dies by the end of the episode. Stewart wrote in his memoir ‘Making it So’(viaSlash Film),
Brent Spiner’s performance is staggeringly good — he found new depths to his character’s Pinocchio-like predicament of being a human invention who wishes to become human. It’s a major injustice to me that Brent has never won an Emmy for playing Data, not to mention the androids Lore and B-4 and the bizarre Soong family of mad scientists.
Spiner too was never nominated for an Emmy and only received the Saturn Award for Lifetime Achievement along with the rest of the ensemble cast.
Star Trek: TNGis available to stream on Paramount+.
Nishanth A
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2417
Nishanth A is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on TV shows with over 2,000 articles published. He has been an entertainment journalist for the past two years and a scriptwriter at various corporations before that, working on educational content. With a Communications, English Literature, and Psychology triple major, Nishanth usually covers news and analyses on Star Trek, particularly Strange New Worlds and The Next Generation; Doctor Who, the DCU, and more.A Nolan fan, Nishanth spends his time exploring the filmographies of various directors with an auteurial style or can be found making short movies of his own. He has also contributed as a feature writer for Film Companion, focusing on the South division.
