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Don’t believe everything you read on the internet. There are times when a news story is made up, taken out of context, and the internet runs with it.

Earlier this year Jonathan Frakes told ScreenRant that he had directed his last episode of Star Trek “for the time being.” The quote was picked up by numerous outlets who lost the nuance of what Frakes said, reporting that he was done with Star Trek for good. Now Frakes is setting the record straight.

“That was horrible,” Jonathan Frakes revealed during a Star Trek: The Next Generation spotlight panel at MegaCon 2026. “They implied on wherever that was that I was done with Star Trek. Star Trek was done. There was no new shows on the air. I guarantee you: if there’s another new Star Trek, I’ll be the first one in line to direct it. Why would I not? If I was lucky enough to get those gigs. I bring them in on time. They like that.”

Frakes has a long history with the franchise, which began when he was cast as William Riker in Star Trek: The Next Generation. He’s gone on to direct numerous Star Trek projects, including episodes of Deep Space Nine, Discovery, Voyager, and numerous others.

The bottom line, as long as they keep making new Star Trek, Frakes is always ready to jump into the director’s chair. Or, you know, use the Riker Maneuver.

Space may be the final frontier, but there's no end to Popverse's love of the Star Trek universe. Hop aboard the starship Enterprise with our Star Trek watch order, explore strange new worlds with our upcoming Star Trek TV shows and movies list, seek out the new life of the franchise, and boldly go where no Star Trek film has ever gone before - with Quentin Tarantino?