Follow us on Google News
Get the latest updates directly in your Google News feed
Though he has helmed multiple other star-studded projects throughout his decades-long career, actor cum filmmaker Jonathan Frakes is, perhaps, best known for the works he has done on theStar Trekfranchise. Besides starring in it, he has also perfectly directed a lot of the series that fans have come to love. And in doing so, he has also changed some things.
One of the changes he made was from the fan-favorite series of the lore from 1987 to 1995,The Next Generation. As he himself admitted, back in the old golden days, there was just no room to improvise in theSTprojects and you had to strictly go by the book. That said, Frakes decided to change that and broke the role while directing the animatedStar Trek: Lower Decksseries.
Jonathan Frakes Broke One MajorTNGRule While Working OnLower Decks!
Back in the day, whenJonathan Frakesoriginally joined theStar Trekfranchise, it was as an actor before a director. He starred as Commander William T. Riker in the original star-studdedSTseries from the ’80s and ’90s,The Next Generation. That said, he had first-hand experience of how the actors had to act around while in character.
This first-hand experience was no gift, though. This was because the actors weren’t allowed tobring in their creativity and improvisein any waywhile working on the series. And this, needless to say, didn’t sit well with Frakes in any way, so he decided to take a different approach and invest more creativity while working on his own series for the saga.
“Given that he is such a fine actor”: The Marvel Star Chris Pine’s Star Trek Really Mishandled as a Villain According to the Director – It’s Not Benedict Cumberbatch
During an interview withVariety, the 71-year-old shared the same while talking about actors’ on-set improvisation, saying:
I mean, especially in our f—ing show [TNG], they were so strict. It was like we were doing Shakespeare or Chekhov.
Frakes finally got the chance to break this rule while working on the critically acclaimed animatedStar Trekseries from 2020,Lower Decks. This happened after executive producers Henry Alonso Myers andAkiva Goldsmanas well as writers Kathryn Lyn and Bill Wolkoff granted permission to actorsJack Quaidand Tawny Newsome to improvise.
That’s not all; these excellently creative improvisational chops also brilliantly influenced 2022’s live-action seriesStrange New Worlds!
Lower Decks‘ Improvisation InfluencedStrange New WorldsCast As Well
As it turns out, while Frakes’ animated series was one thing, this trait and energy further added up having“an infectious effect”on the fan-favorite live-actionSTseries,Strange New Worlds.
And Frakes? Well, he is beyond fired up because of this improvisational fever taking over everyone. As he admitted during the same interview:
It was just fantastic. Maybe this will open some eyes.
Well, we most certainly hope it will open some eyes because of the tremendous response both of these respective television series have managed to garner from audiences and critics alike.
“I was perfectly happy… Even though I know that a lot of fans weren’t”: Brent Spiner Has Made His Peace With a $67M Star Trek Bomb That Cast a Major Marvel Star as Villain – Almost Every Trekkie Hates it
Judging merely from the score onRotten Tomatoes,Lower Deckshas been rated true perfection at its peak with a stunning 92% rating from critics and a 73% approval rating from the average audience score.
Then there’s the approval score thatStrange New Worlds(which has not been helmed by Frakes but seemingly took inspiration fromLower Decksto allow improvisation as well) holds onRotten Tomatoes, which stands at an admirable 98% approval rating from critics coupled with a 79% audience score.
All of this being said, for what it’s worth, these two series’ tremendous success is only further proof that sometimes improvising adds more charm and creativity to the saga, rather than going by the book!
You can streamThe New Generationon Netflix andLower DecksandStrange New Worldson Prime Video.
Mahin Sultan
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2478
Mahin Sultan is a Senior Writer at FandomWire, where she brings a fresh perspective to entertainment news. Having been in the field for over 3 years now, she has already written more than 2,000 articles across a variety of niches, from entertainment to health and fashion. This diverse experience has allowed her to quickly build a solid foundation and a deep understanding of the industry.
