Interview: STAR TREK: PICARD showrunner Terry Matalas on season three, the series finale, what we didn't see, and whether he wants to continue the voyages of the starship Enterprise

The first time I crossed paths with Terry Matalas was this past January: he was in attendance for the Star Trek: Picard panel at the Television Critics Association press tour, and we ended up having a few minutes to chat during the post-panel cocktail party, which in turn led to us following each other on Twitter. I knew he was pressed for time during the TCA tour, but he said he was happy to hop on the phone for an interview once I was back in Virginia.

Mind you, that was before season three of Picard kicked off and, in turn, it was before everyone began losing their minds about how amazing it was. As such, Terry’s schedule suddenly got reeeeeeeally busy, with everyone and their brother wanting to talk to him, and understandably so. Fortunately, with the help of the kind folks within the Paramount+ publicity team, we were able to make it happen just in time for us to talk about the finale, which—all things considered—is arguably the best time for an interview, since it provides the opportunity to talk about everything from start to finish.

First of all, it's good to finally see you again.

Terry Matalas: Good to see you! How are you, man?

I'm doing well, and I absolutely loved the finale, as you probably saw on Twitter...

Aw, thanks, Will!

...and I absolutely refuse to tell anyone anything about it, lest they miss out on the enjoyment of watching it for themselves.

So I was wondering: I know you were part of Picard starting with season two, but were you always gearing up in the back of your mind to do this grand finale for the Next Generation crew?

Not at the start of season two, no. At the start, we didn't have this plan, no. This sort of grew at the halfway point, when I was pealing off to do it. When I came in, Alex and Akiva had always had in their minds that the show was almost like an anthology: each season would be its own story, and the way they wanted to construct it was that they would think about each season the closer we got to it. The only thing we knew was that we would definitely want to be in space for it, and that was certainly something that I wanted to do as well. 

In the process of constructing it, did you ask yourself, "How many aspects of Star Trek can I incorporate into this one season?"

No, but it definitely felt like if this was the final bite of the apple for Picard and Star Trek: The Next Generation, then we wanted it to be a love letter to it. And that was when we sat down with all the creatives, and we all unanimously felt like that was the right tone for it.

One of the greatest accomplishments of the season, I think, was that it made a lot of people go back and reevaluate Star Trek: Nemesis. Were you a fan of the film yourself?

Nemesis? Um... There's a lot of Nemesis that's really fascinating. I love the deep character dive that it does into Picard and the question that it asks to who he might've been. I also think it strikes a really interesting tone. One wonders what that film might've been if maybe John Logan had a little bit more freedom for it to breathe a little bit more. His script was a little bit longer and had some different pivots. But, yeah, I think it's certainly... [Hesitates.] It might not always be as successful as I think it set out to be, but I think it's definitely an interesting film. 

Amanda Plummer was a great villain. I think she managed to bring back the coolness of smoking. 

[Laughs.] Yeah, she's pretty cool.

And while it was a shame that her character had to go, what a way to go...and what a parting line.

Yeah, one of our writers, Cindy Appel, came up with that line, and it was undeniably the right last line.

It's just a shame that Captain Shaw also had to meet his end. I think virtually every viewer was rooting for him to get his own series.

There are ways. We always had a way to include Todd Stashwick in a potential continuing story from the get-go. So maybe one day...

One thing I know you enjoyed doing was putting in the various Easter eggs into the season - I still wish you could've gotten Captain Bateson in there somewhere - but is a personal favorite that you managed to include?

Sound design was always important to us. Listening to seasons one and two... We have a brilliant sound design team, but it didn't always sound to me quite like the Star Trek we knew growing up. So we went back in season three and mined Star Trek: The Next Generation and the original films to bring back some of those sounds, and it definitely sets a mood.

I think you and I discussed at TCA how much I really enjoyed the music cues. If there's any film or TV series that you didn't manage to include, it clearly wasn't for lack of trying.

Yeah, those felt like important touchstones to Star Trek that we set out to make this feel like a giant Star Trek film, and to do what Jerry Goldsmith or James Horner would've done if they were still around.

Did you ever find it a struggle when putting together the series? I'm sure you could've offered more fan service, but for the most part, I think the material that might've conceivably been viewed as fan service also served to move the plot or action forward.

Well, it was always a balance. We knew that, with the fan service, the Member Berry daggers were always going to come at us. But we also felt like it was earned, that it was also part of the story. And that also feels like a lazy criticism from a certain kind of bitter critic. If you go into somebody's house and they've lived there 56 years, it's pretty hard to point to the pictures on their wall or their furniture that they've lived in and yell, "Member Berry!" You're kind of just a jerk. [Laughs.] It's part of the world that people live in. It's impossible for human beings not to reference the experiences that they've had with each other 35 years ago. I'm 46. I sit down with my friends, all we talk about are the things that we've experienced. So we feel okay about it. 

Was there any point where you weren't sure exactly where to go with the plot in order to make it to the finish line?

The only time we were challenged was by the constraints of time and money. We always knew the story. The challenge was whether we could afford to do it. That, and actors' schedules. The budget, the shooting schedule, COVID, all those things make putting a show together tremendously different. But aside from that, we knew the story. We always knew that this was it.

I was thrilled that you were able to work Walter Koenig into the proceedings.

Thank you. I wanted to honor the original series with an actual original-series actor at least once. 

And it was nice that you were able to work the body of James T. Kirk into the series, even if Shatner himself wasn't there.

Yeah, y'know, it's funny how that blew up. It was supposed to be just a little wink, and it became almost controversial. The way we looked at it was, he was just under a pile of rocks. It wasn't, like, the most amazing burial. And Starfleet immediately showed up to Veridian III. That was the body of one of their most beloved heroes who's been part of how many classified adventures, who's just been inside something called the Nexus... It made a lot of sense that they'd want to study and understand what the heck that was. So we decided he shouldn't be under a pile of rocks.

I'd love it if someone would figure out the scientific workings of the Nexus. I think that's still the great mystery of Star Trek.

I think that is worthy of study, yes. [Laughs.]

Was there any character you wanted to incorporate into the story but just couldn't figure out a way to do it?

It's mostly about the fact that the ensemble was so big. We wished there was more of everybody. We wished there was more Raffi and Seven, we wished there was more Picard and Beverly, we wished there was more of Worf's back story. We had a lot more of that, with Alexander. There was a scene with Data and Soji in the end that we really wished we could've scene. But, y'know, these are things that maybe one day we'll hopefully get a chance to see, so...we'll see! 

You're definitely one of those writers who isn't afraid to put plot threads out there that can be picked up by other writers, whether it's for a novel, a comic book, or whatever.

Exactly. There's always those chances. 

In particular, I think everyone wants to know the story behind Worf and the end of the Enterprise-E.

Oh, yes. Exactly. That's a chance for someone to tell that story properly. [Laughs.]

As far as the various iterations of Star Trek, do you have a personal favorite? 

Hm. It's tough. [Long pause.] I would say my favorite storyline... As a series, I love Next Gen the most. But I love the original series movies probably the most of all the things. They're at the top of everything, with the original series right next to it. So all of those things are probably equal on that pedestal. [Laughs.] 

If given the chance to revisit a planet or concept from the original series, what would you pick?

I mean, don't you want to go back and see the Guardian of Forever? That's where I would go!

It felt like that last shot on the bridge of the newly-christened Enterprise was borrowing spiritually from the end of Star Trek IV, with Kirk getting his new Enterprise, and Star Trek VI, with Kirk passing the torch to a new generation.

It's impossible not to draw those parallels. It's definitely in that spirit. But you want to know that your heroes go on. You want to know that Star Trek continues, that Seven of Nine is out there exploring strange new worlds herself and with Jack and Raffi, so that they live on in your imagination...or, one day, on the screen, hopefully!

When that day comes, will we find out more of the secrets of the M'Talas system?

Well, that is... [Laughs.] I think that was improvised by Ed [Westwick] in the moment, but that's a reference to that horrible place we've been all season, the organized-crime planet where Raffi was, and that was actually first referenced on Enterprise. When I worked as an assistant on the show, the writers put that in several scripts as a reference to the most horrible, wretched place in the galaxy as a way to troll the young writers assistant, Terry Matalas. 

You certainly added a nice tag to the end of the episode, with Jack Crusher being visited by Q. I mean, it felt like you were almost daring them not to move forward.

Well, you know, I think the story was always about the passing of one generation to the next, so it felt organic in its storytelling.

Did you at least ask John de Lancie if he'd be willing to return if they decide to go forward with another series?

John is a dear friend of mine, and I wouldn't do it without him.

So at this point, are you basically just sitting around with your fingers crossed, waiting to for Paramount+ to greenlight Star Trek: Legacy?

I'm not waiting. You know, look, it would be amazing, but they have lots of great Star Trek they're doing, with Strange New Worlds and Starfleet Academy. So they've got their hands full right now. But should they decide one day that this is something that they'd like to do, that'd be amazing.