The Star Trek Actor That Should Have Won An Emmy, According To Patrick Stewart

by

Although Star Trek has been around for approximately 60 years and produced multiple television series, it’s surprising that no actor from the franchise has ever won an Emmy Award for their performance. Intriguingly, only Leonard Nimoy, who played Mr. Spock, was even nominated for such an honor. This is notable given the numerous esteemed actors and acclaimed performers who have graced the Star Trek universe, including Emmy winners like Ricardo Montalbán and Kelsey Grammer, as well as Oscar winners Louise Fletcher and Michelle Yeoh, with Yeoh even headlining a spin-off movie titled “Section 31.

The franchise has been recognized for Emmy Awards multiple times and managed to win in technical categories such as best costuming, editing, and special effects. Additionally, the original “Star Trek” series and “The Next Generation” were both nominated for the prestigious outstanding drama series award, with the original series winning in two out of its three seasons. However, it was defeated by “Mission: Impossible” in 1967 and ’68, as well as “Picket Fences” in 1994.

Patrick Stewart, renowned from his role in “Star Trek,” has been nominated for multiple awards despite his achievements being widely recognized beyond “Star Trek.” He’s a three-time Golden Globe nominee and even won a Grammy for his 1996 spoken word album, “Prokofiev: Peter And The Wolf.” However, Stewart thinks that at least one other cast member from “The Next Generation,” specifically Brent Spiner, is long overdue for an Emmy award.

Brent Spiner played the toughest role in Star Trek: The Next Generation

Among the esteemed cast of “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” Patrick Stewart believes that Brent Spiner, who played the android Data, deserves an Emmy for his exceptional acting. According to Stewart, portraying a character without emotions was a significant challenge, yet Spiner managed to make Data both humorous, dramatic, and endearing at times. In particular, Stewart praised Spiner’s performance in the third-season episode, “The Offspring.

In that particular episode, one of the most emotional in “Star Trek”, Data constructs an artificial daughter named Lal (Hallie Todd). However, when her programming malfunctions, he urgently works to rectify her neural network to prevent her from expiring. With barely a hint of emotion and swift gestures of his hands, Spiner skillfully draws out poignant feelings from the viewers, causing them to empathize with the notion that a seemingly devoid-of-emotion android might be experiencing some level of distress.

In his memoir, “Making It So,” Patrick Stewart admiringly commented on Brent Spiner’s exceptional portrayal. Spiner skillfully explored the complexities of a character reminiscent of Pinocchio – a human creation yearning to be human. It’s deeply unfortunate that despite this remarkable performance as Data, Brent Spiner has never been awarded an Emmy for his role. However, Stewart was also captivated by Spiner’s acting beyond the iconic android role in Star Trek.

Spiner’s performance spanned generations

In contrast to Michael Dorn who is recognized for appearing in the highest number of “Star Trek” episodes, Brent Spiner might boast the most diverse character portrayals, particularly within the main cast of “The Next Generation.” Unlike his single role as Commander Data, Spiner also brought to life Data’s sinister twin brother Lore (a part that made the episode he acted in the most difficult to film), his creator Dr. Noonien Soong, and his long-lost android sibling B-4, across different episodes of “TNG.

In addition to being iconic due to Spiner’s ability to expand upon the Data character, episodes such as “Masks” and “Fistful of Datas” are notable because they allowed Spiner to portray various heroes, villains, and even characters within a character, like when he was controlled by alien spirits or stuck in a faulty Holodeck. One particularly impressive performance is Spiner’s portrayal of Data playing Sherlock Holmes, which stands out not just for the role change but because Data himself was acting as a character, a challenging task that any actor would find intriguing.

Following “The Next Generation,” Brent Spiner persisted within the franchise, playing Data in the four “TNG” films and in episodes of spin-offs such as “Enterprise” and “Star Trek: Picard.” In these appearances, he portrayed Arick Soong, Adam Soong, and Altan Indigo Soong, who were ancestors of Noonien Soong. He enacted Data’s death scene during Season 1 of “Picard,” only to reappear in the final season in a more human-like version of Data, fulfilling the character’s dream reminiscent of Pinocchio. It is hoped that one day Spiner may attain Stewart’s aspiration for him, winning a Lifetime Achievement Emmy for his contributions to the success of “Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Read More

2025-07-24 13:30