Prodigy Season 2 Showrunners Reveal Why Wesley Crusher’s Return a ‘Perfect Fit’

Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 thrilled fans with the brief return of Wesley Crusher, portrayed by Will Wheaton. Recently, the series showrunners Kevin and Dan Hageman revealed why they chose to bring back Crusher and how they plan to use his character in the show.

The inclusion of Wesley Crusher in Prodigy provided delight to long-time fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Furthermore, the showrunners have incorporated special elements for Star Trek: Picard viewers. Crusher will be playing a crucial role in a major crisis that threatens every Star Trek timeline.

During the interview with Screen Rant, Kevin Hageman remarked on the character’s legacy, stating,

“He’s the original Prodigy! It felt like such a perfect fit. Seeing how he just walked off the screen in ‘Next Generation,’ we wondered why no one had utilized him since. Everyone seemed hesitant to touch the character, but we wanted to bring him back and do something great with him. Make him a wonderful mentor, but also a little scatterbrained and untrustworthy.”

Dan Hageman added, “A little Doctor Who, a little Willy Wonka…”

Star Trek: Prodigy

4/5

Star Trek: Prodigy is the first TV series in the Star Trek franchise marketed toward children, and one of the few animated series in the franchise. The story follows a group of young aliens who find a stolen Starfleet ship and use it to escape from the Tars Lamora prison colony where they are all held captive. Working together with the help of a holographic Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), the new crew of the USS Protostar must find their way back to the Alpha Quadrant to warn the Federation of the deadly threat that is pursuing them.

Release Date

October 28, 2021

Seasons

2

Writers

Dan Hageman

Network

Paramount

Streaming Service(s)

Paramount+

Directors

Dan Hageman

Showrunner

Dan Hageman

Expand

The Hageman brothers revealed the collaboration with Star Trek: Picard showrunner Terry Matalas played a role in Crusher’s return. Matalas reached out to the Hagemans, knowing they were incorporating Wesley into “Prodigy,” and coordinated Wesley’s cameo in the “Picard” season 2 finale to align with the character’s deeper involvement in “Prodigy.”

“We had talked to Terry Matalas about what they were doing with Picard.,” Dan Hageman explained. “He had contacted us because he knew we were playing with Wesley, and they were going to have Wesley in Picard. And so, we just kind of lined it up. He’s got a brother and that’s something that we can put into the show. So it was all Kismet.”

Kevin Hageman further noted,

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The Protostar cadets join Admiral Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) on a dangerous mission to rescue Chakotay (Robert Beltran) in the future.

Star Trek: Prodigy Aspires to be Like the 90s Star Trek Series

Star Trek: Prodigy has charted a course for an ambitious future, aiming to mirror the longevity and impact of the Star Trek shows from the 90s. The revival of Star Trek: Prodigy was a triumph for fans, who rallied to save the series from being shelved by Paramount. In an interview with Collider, Dan Hageman voiced his hopes for the series’ extended lifespan, saying,

“There’s threads of what’s next. If we’re lucky enough to go to Season 3, I’m really excited about where the show can go. We wrote this thing to go seven seasons at least.”

Kevin Hageman sees Prodigy’s fate similar to Star Trek: The Original Series, which also faced cancellation before being revived and eventually spawning a successful film franchise. The showrunner aspires the same future for Star Trek: Prodigy, hoping it will follow the same path.

“I hope people will look back at our show and be like, ‘Oh my god, they followed the footsteps of The Original Series. It got canceled, they got brought back to life. Oh, here comes Star Trek the motion picture.’ Why not?” Kevin remarked.