Getting up to speed on Trek mythology

When I was auditioning for the role on Next Generation, I went out and rented tapes of the original show so that I’d get some sense of the gestalt and what all the fuss was about.

I knew that it was a cultural icon, but I didn’t know to what degree. I didn’t really know what all the fuss was about until I tuned in. Then you could see how culty it had become, and I had no preparation for what would happen to us, obviously.

At the time it was an opportunity to get a pilot. You come to LA as an actor because you want to get a pilot and you hope that the pilot becomes a series and, God knows, if you’re lucky enough the series goes to a second year. We had no idea, I don’t think any of us, that this would turn into a life-altering situation. Thank God it has. It’s been wonderful. From those series of auditions, all of our lives changed essentially. For the better, I should add.