\nStar Trek: The Next Generation wasn\u2019t just a TV show\u2014it was a cultural phenomenon that redefined science fiction on screen.\n
Premiering in 1987, it boldly went where no series had gone before, blending the intellect of Shakespearean drama with the wonder of interstellar exploration.\n
With its finale in 1994 drawing over 30 million viewers, TNG cemented itself as the gold standard for sci-fi storytelling. But beyond its gripping plots and unforgettable characters, the series holds secrets and surprises even die-hard fans might not know.\n
For those unfamiliar, Star Trek: The Next Generation followed the adventures of the starship Enterprise-D as its diverse crew explored uncharted worlds, solved intergalactic mysteries, and tackled moral dilemmas. Set 100 years after the original Star Trek, it introduced new characters, advanced technology, and thought-provoking stories.\n
But did you know that many of the Star Trek: The Next Generation cast members became lifelong friends after the series wrapped. Patrick Stewart (Captain Picard) and Jonathan Frakes (Riker) are known for their hilarious camaraderie, often sharing laughs at conventions. They stay in close touch, frequently meet up for dinners, and their incredible chemistry is always evident whenever they\u2019re together.\n
When LeVar Burton tied the knot in 1992, Brent Spiner stood by his side as best man, while Sir Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, and Michael Dorn took on the roles of ushers.\n
Among the many friendships that grew from the cast of The Next Generation, one of the most heartwarming is the connection between Michael Dorn, known for his portrayal of the stoic Lt. Worf, and Marina Sirtis, who brought the empathetic Counselor Troi to life.\n
\u201dI\u2019ve always been attracted to very strong women,\u201d Dorn shared with Buzzfeed.\n
\u201dI don\u2019t know why. I was just very attracted to our sort of chemistry. We\u2019re just crazy about each other.\u201d\n
But even though their friendship has endured for over three decades, it didn\u2019t start off smoothly. In fact, as Sirtis openly admits, the two couldn\u2019t stand each other during the show\u2019s first season. Over time, however, their undeniable chemistry brought them closer, sparking rumors that they might secretly be dating.\n
Despite the speculation, Sirtis and Dorn have always been clear \u2014 they weren\u2019t romantically involved then, and they aren\u2019t now.\n
The Star Trek cast often gets bombarded with questions about their makeup, costumes, and those iconic masks \u2014 it\u2019s clearly what fascinates fans the most.\n
Did you know that the original Starfleet uniform was so uncomfortable that Sir Patrick Stewart\u2019s agent had to step in? He even threatened to sue Paramount if Stewart ended up with muscle or joint damage from wearing the one-piece spandex suit.\n
That little scare was enough to prompt a wardrobe upgrade, and by season three, the crew traded the stretchy spandex for a much comfier two-piece polyester design.\n
\n
Believe it or not, Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, wasn\u2019t exactly thrilled about casting Sir Patrick Stewart as Captain Picard. He had his heart set on a younger captain with a full head of hair. But producer Robert H. Justman was so blown away by Stewart\u2019s talent that he campaigned hard to get him the role.\n
After auditioning plenty of other actors and finding none of them came close, Roddenberry finally gave in.\n
Here\u2019s where it gets hilarious: for his first meeting with Paramount execs, Stewart wore a hairpiece \u2014 on the producers\u2019 suggestion. They were worried the studio might reject him for being bald. The twist? After the meeting, the execs agreed to cast him, but only on one condition: he had to lose the \u201cridiculous toupee.\u201d\n
When the cast of the show was first revealed, some media outlets referred to Sir Patrick Stewart as an \u201dunknown British Shakespearean actor.\u201d To have a little fun with it, Brent Spiner created a poster for Stewart\u2019s dressing room that read, \u201dBeware: Unknown British Shakespearean actor!\u201d\n
Michael Dorn, who brought the fierce Klingon Worf to life, endured a grueling two-hour makeup process each time he suited up for the role. But things weren\u2019t always smooth sailing for Worf\u2019s iconic look. In Season 2, disaster struck when the original prosthetic forehead was stolen!\n
This unexpected setback left the crew in a panic, racing against the clock to create a replacement. The result? A subtly different forehead piece that gave Dorn\u2019s character a slightly altered appearance.\n
When the cast decided to push for a salary increase, Wil Wheaton was initially offered a promotion for his character, Wesley Crusher, instead of a pay raise.\n
The producers suggested that Wesley be made a Lieutenant. Wheaton\u2019s response was priceless: \u201dSo what should I tell my landlord when I can\u2019t pay my rent? \u2018Don\u2019t worry, I just made Lieutenant\u2019?\u201d\n
By the way, Wil Wheaton holds a fun distinction: he is the first Star Trek actor \u2014 and the only cast member of Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) \u2014 to have been born after the franchise had begun.\n
Geordi\u2019s iconic VISOR was actually thrown together on the first day of shooting using a car air filter and a hair band, showcasing some quick improvisation.\n
While it was key to Geordi\u2019s look, the VISOR wasn\u2019t exactly a walk in the park for actor LeVar Burton. In an interview with the BBC, he revealed that wearing the prop gave him daily headaches and that it had to literally be screwed into the sides of his head. Despite the discomfort, Burton powered through, keeping the iconic device as a core part of Geordi\u2019s identity.\n
After season two, producers had initially planned to have Geordi undergo an experimental procedure to restore his natural eyesight and eliminate the need for his iconic VISOR eyepiece.\n
However, realizing how important the VISOR had become as a symbol for the disabled community, they decided to scrap the idea. Geordi La Forge\u2019s VISOR remained an integral part of his character throughout all seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation.\n
Here\u2019s another great little story about LeVar Burton that I just have to share.\n
During the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, there were long stretches where he would be sitting on the bridge set, often with little to no lines.\n
This led to some pretty boring moments, and LeVar would sometimes nod off or even fall asleep completely. The best part? His eyes were hidden behind the VISOR, so no one really noticed!\n
In the \u201990s, Marina Sirtis was undeniably one of the most beautiful women to grace the sci-fi world. Famous for her British accent, she actually has Greek roots and speaks the language fluently.\n
Marina Sirtis, who played Counselor Troi, is often showered with compliments about how well-preserved she looks, even today.\n
Whenever photos of her pop up on social media, fans can\u2019t help but flood the comments with praise, saying she hasn\u2019t changed a bit since her Star Trek days.\n
\u201dI have a picture on my wall of all of us. It\u2019s the actual photo that Entertainment Weekly had on their cover, and it\u2019s on the wall in my living room. It reminds me of my best friends. And, you know what? I think we all look exactly the same. All the boys have less hair. Michael Dorn is much thinner now than he ever was before. Patrick (Stewart), I think, looks the same. And people always come up to me and said, \u201cYou haven\u2019t changed a bit.\u201d They\u2019re lying through their teeth, of course, because 25 years later, that\u2019s not possible. But I think we all still look pretty good. So it\u2019s not too disheartening to watch myself in the early episodes,\u201d she said.\n
Initially, it was Denise Crosby who was set to play Counselor Troi, while Sirtis was cast as Lieutenant Macha Hernandez, the security chief. However, just before filming the pilot, the two roles were swapped. And we\u2019re glad for that!\n
If you take a closer look at Star Trek: The Next Generation, you might notice a fun behind-the-scenes detail that many fans missed: Marina Sirtis, who played Counselor Troi, actually wore a wig for most of the series! Her real hair was styled around the wig to give her those signature flowing locks that fans loved.\n
Meanwhile, Gates McFadden, who portrayed Dr. Beverly Crusher, wore a full wig during the first few seasons too. The wig game was definitely strong in the \u201980s and \u201990s!\n
Gates McFadden\u2019s own hair caused quite a bit of trouble in Season 1. Her fine red hair was constantly affected by the studio lights, leading to a lot of time spent washing and resetting it to match continuity. By Season 3, the solution was to use a collection of expensive, real-hair wigs. And while Gates was rocking these luxurious wigs, Marina couldn\u2019t help but feel a bit envious! At conventions, Marina has confessed how she was a little jealous of Gates\u2019 wig collection, since she had to make do with a cheaper, nylon fall. But no worries \u2014 by Season 4, Marina finally got her own real-hair fall. Talk about a hair upgrade\u2026\n
So, next time you\u2019re rewatching, keep an eye out for these iconic hair tricks \u2014 it\u2019s a fun little nugget of TNG trivia!\n
Marina Sirtis wasn\u2019t a major star when she was offered a role in Star Trek. She admits that she had never watched the original series. \u201dI admit, I never saw the show but I knew it was popular,\u201d she once said.\n
\u201dI had no idea what I was getting into. They said it would be a year\u2019s work, the ten months promised was the longest job I\u2019ve ever had. The next six years were a bonus.\u201d\n
Sirtis also mentioned how devastated she was when the show came to an end.\n
\n
When Jonathan Frakes arrived for second-season rehearsals, he sported a beard he\u2019d grown during the 1988 writers\u2019 strike, planning to shave it off before filming began. However, the producers were immediately taken by the new look and asked him to keep it. Just like that, Riker\u2019s iconic beard was born, and it became a defining feature for the rest of the series.\n
The beard became so iconic that when Frakes finally shaved it off for Star Trek: Insurrection in 1998, fans were quick to notice. Even Q couldn\u2019t resist making a playful jab, quipping, \u201cRiker was more fun before the beard!\u201d Classic Q.\n
Around the same time, there was a meeting with Gene Roddenberry, producer Rick Berman, and another producer, Hurley. Roddenberry, intrigued by Frakes\u2019 new facial hair, remarked that it gave off a \u201cnautical\u201d vibe. This comment sparked an impromptu executive beard trimming contest, proving that even the smallest details could lead to quirky behind-the-scenes moments. The beard, of course, became just as legendary as Riker himself!\n
Star Trek: The Next Generation attracted plenty of celebrities and public figures who were huge fans of the original Star Trek series and jumped at the chance to make guest appearances.\n
One of the standouts was, of course, Whoopi Goldberg, who became a fan favorite with her recurring role as Guinan. Goldberg actually reached out about being on the series even before it premiered. However, it took nearly a year for her to get a response, as the producers initially didn\u2019t take her inquiry seriously.\n
Unfortunately, not every request could be granted. Robin Williams, for instance, was eager to join the cast, but because he was busy filming Hook (1991), he had to pass on a role in Season 5, Episode 9, \u201cA Matter of Time.\u201d Instead, Matt Frewer stepped in to fill the spot.\n
Sir Patrick Stewart was so sure Star Trek: The Next Generation would be a flop that he didn\u2019t even bother unpacking his suitcases for the first six weeks of shooting. But by the end of the first season, the show proved him wrong in a big way \u2014Paramount was raking in $1 million per episode in advertising revenue.\n
By 1992, each episode\u2019s budget had skyrocketed to nearly $2 million, with the studio pulling in a staggering $90 million annually from advertising alone. Each 30-second commercial was fetching between $115,000 and $150,000. With 178 episodes spread across seven seasons, from 1987 to 1994, Star Trek: The Next Generation was not just a cultural phenomenon \u2014 it was a financial powerhouse, leaving its mark on television history.\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The details you never noticed in Star Trek: The Next Generation Star Trek: The Next Generation wasn\u2019t just a TV show\u2014it was a cultural phenomenon that redefined science fiction on screen. Premiering in 1987, it boldly went where no series had gone before, blending the intellect of Shakespearean drama with the wonder of interstellar exploration.\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":110708,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[670],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-110699","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/290.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110699","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=110699"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110699\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":110710,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110699\/revisions\/110710"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/110708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=110699"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=110699"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=110699"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}