Patrick Stewart's Refusal to Wear Tights and the Rejected First Contact Time Travel Ideas

The Rejected First Contact Time Travel Ideas

The writers of Star Trek: First Contact considered setting the film in several different time periods before deciding on the mid-21st century, and Patrick Stewart himself nixed one idea by refusing to 'wear tights on the big screen.'

First Contact Leftover Borg Tech

After the conclusion of Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1994, the crew of the USS Enterprise-D made the jump from television to feature films. While their first big-screen adventure, Star Trek Generations, received mixed reviews, Star Trek: First Contact is often considered to be the best of the TNG films.

Star Trek First Contact Captain Picard

Star Trek: First Contact finds the crew of the USS Enterprise-E traveling back in time to stop the Borg from changing the past. In the final version of the film, the Borg visit Earth in 2063, just before Zefram Cochrane's (James Cromwell) historic warp flight that ushers in a new era for humanity.

Star Trek First Contact Captain Picard Borg Queen

Before choosing Earth's First Contact with the Vulcans, writers Ronald D. Moore and Brannon Braga considered other time periods, from the Renaissance to the Civil War. In the Star Trek oral history, The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years by Mark A. Altman and Edward Gross, Star Trek: First Contact's writers discuss the 'lame' ideas they threw around when conceptualizing the film.

Captain Picard Qpid Star Trek

Patrick Stewart's Refusal to Wear Tights

The rejected idea of the Borg traveling back to medieval times, the 1500s, was nixed by Patrick Stewart himself, who refused to 'wear tights on the big screen.' This decision led the writers to reconsider their approach and ultimately choose Earth's First Contact with the Vulcans as the setting for the film.

Star Trek TNG Starship Mine Captain Picard

Patrick Stewart, known for his role as Captain Picard, has a long history of wearing tights on stage and screen. Membership in the Royal Shakespearean Company means wearing tights. Stewart's portrayal of King Richard in Robin Hood: Men in Tights and his appearances in numerous Shakespeare plays have required him to wear tights. Additionally, Captain Picard also donned tights in the Robin Hood-themed TNG episode, 'Qpid,' which sees the TNG crew cast as Robin Hood characters by the god-like Q (John de Lancie).

However, the actor's reluctance to wear tights on the big screen for Star Trek: First Contact indicates his desire for a different and more action-oriented portrayal of Captain Picard, as seen in the TNG season 6 episode, 'Starship Mine.' This decision ultimately contributed to the evolution of Captain Jean-Luc Picard into a true action movie hero in Star Trek: First Contact.

Availability and Source

Star Trek: The Next Generation & Star Trek: First Contact are available to stream on Paramount+.

Source: The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years: From The Next Generation to J. J. Abrams: The Complete, Uncensored, and Unauthorized Oral History of Star Trek by Mark A. Altman and Edward Gross