‘Star Trek: Picard’— Berkeley’s Chabon will run the show
Berkeley author Michael Chabon is boldly going where he hasn’t gone before — taking the captain’s chair on an upcoming “Star Trek” series.
Chabon, a Pulitzer Prize winner, has been named the showrunner on “Star Trek: Picard,” a saga starring Patrick Stewart for the streaming site CBS All Access.
Chabon, who has been part of the show’s creative team since “Picard” was announced, now will be in charge of overseeing daily production of the series. In that position, he will continue working with fellow executive producers Akiva Goldsman and Alex Kurtzman.
“‘ Star Trek’ has been an important part of my way of thinking about the world, the future, human nature, storytelling and myself since I was 10 years old,” said Chabon, author of the novels “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay” (winner of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2001), “Moonglow,” “Wonder Boys” and more.
“I come to work every day in a state of joy and awe at having been entrusted with the character and the world of Jean-Luc Picard, with this vibrant strand of the rich, intricate and complex tapestry that is ‘ Trek,’ ” he said.
Although Chabon has not been a showrunner before, he has plenty of experience working in Hollywood as a screenwriter. Among his credits is an episode for “Star Trek: Short Treks” called “Calypso.” His screenplays and teleplays include “John Carter,” “Spider-Man 2” and the Netflix series “Unbelievable” — which hewrote with his writing partner and wife, Ayelet Waldman.
In the new series, Stewart reprises the iconic role of Capt. Jean-Luc Picard. Stewart played Picard for seven seasons on “Star Trek: The Next Generation” in addition to appearing in four “Star Trek” films.
According to CBS All Access, the series follows the character into the next chapter of his life.
“Daring, lyrical, humane, whimsical, celebrated: words that describe both Jean- Luc Picard and the literary genius of Michael Chabon,” said Kurtzman.