Patrick Stewart announces his return to 'Star Trek' and Jean-Luc Picard with new photo

Do you like TV shows about very large spaceships that can go extremely fast? What about shows about people that can teleport to other planets? What about stunning? What about wonky sets and people pretending to fall down and doing it entirely unconvincingly? Yes to all of them? You probably like Star Trek then.

And if that’s the case, then you know who Jean-Luc Picard is, and therefore you know who Patrick Stewart is. You will also probably lament the days when you were able to look forward to new stories starring Stewart as his most famous character - a period that has long since passed. To enjoy new episodes nowadays, you must belt yourself over the head with a mallet in order to forget your previous memories of said episodes, in order to enjoy them anew. It’s a bit unhealthy.

Thankfully though, you can give your creaking skull a rest, because Stewart is finally returning to the role that truly made his name. Yep, for the first time in over 15 years, he’s venturing back to the Star Trek universe, to star in a CBS All Access show that will explore “the next chapter of Picard’s life.”

And here’s your first tease:

That looks like a fun room, doesn’t it? Loads of sparkling mineral water and bags of almonds - a real rager!

Alongside Patrick, you’ve also got Oscar-winning writer Akiva Goldsman, Star Trek: Voyager’s Kirsten Beyer, Spider-Man 2’s Michael Chabon, and Star Trek: Enterprise’s James Duff.

Stewart said of his return:

“I will always be very proud to have been a part of the Star Trek: The Next Generation, but when we wrapped that final movie in the spring of 2002, I truly felt my time with Star Trek had run its natural course.

“It is, therefore, an unexpected but delightful surprise to find myself excited and invigorated to be returning to Jean-Luc Picard and to explore new dimensions within him. Seeking out new life for him, when I thought that life was over.”

(Image: Paramount)