James McAvoy reveals that he once did a Star Trek show on young Picard

James McAvoy has revealed that he's pitched a Star Trek Picard show that would have seen him reprise his role as a young Patrick Stewart.

During an interview on Happy, Sad, Confused, the Split and X-Men actor opened up about his love for Stewart's time in the Star Trek universe. He said it's something those overseeing the sci-fi franchise "almost did," and while it never happened, it's still an idea he's excited about to this day.

Rather than stemming directly from his love of Star Trek or even Stewart's Next Generation Captain Jean-Luc Picard, McAvoy's idea for a limited series also seems to have stemmed from his connection to Stewart himself.

"Stargazer Rebellion: It was a whole idea that I had that brought up the Star Trek people, too. I almost did," the actor quipped. When pressed for clarification, he said, "I have a whole story about an early Picard. I mean, all I really want to do in my career is play young versions of Patrick."

Of course, this is a reference to McAvoy's time playing Charles Xavier in films like X-Men: First Class, Days of Future Past, Apocalypse, and Dark Phoenix. It's a character that was made famous by Stewart's aging portrayal in the original X-Men trilogy of the 2000s, and given that most seem to think McAvoy will continue to play the role, a part as a young Picard could certainly make sense as well.

Alas, Picard's prequel never came up. The actor explained that he developed a whole story for what could have been a season of TV that he still loves to this day, but for now at least, his time as a young Stewart will be limited to the Marvel Universe.

@happysadconfused #JamesMcAvoy shares #STARTREK original audio details ♬ - joshuahorowitz

It was like a standalone chapter when he captained Stargazer, and what really happened was a secret he's kept throughout his career,” McAvoy said. "I just pitched it to them, talked to them, and they did a great job of it, but we had logistical issues, and we couldn't do it. But I love that story. I just go to bed and think about it at night."

Star Trek fans have already seen a lot of Jean-Luc Picard's life. The character was first introduced when Stewart played him on The Next Generation as the captain of the USS Enterprise, but you don't have to be a die-hard fan of the franchise to know that he's one of the most important characters. Despite this, the parts of his story that we know are more from later in his career, with his debut - as well as projects like First Contact, Insurrection and Nemesis - marking more of the timeline. The next more focused series, Star Trek: Picard, premiered in 2020 and ended in 2023.

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While McAvoy's story for a younger version of the character remains in the cutting room, you can see what Stewart had to say about his hopes for a new film. You can also read IGN's review of Picard season 3 9/10.