Scottish actor James McAvoy has been cast in JJ Abrams’ Star Trek (2009), but it didn’t fit so well, which opened the door for him to find his perfect Star Trek Role. Star Trek (2009) brought the franchise back into the mainstream with a blockbuster and introduced James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) to a whole new generation. McAvoy is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men In most films he is the younger version of Patrick Stewart’s character, but he has a long list of impressive film and television appearances.

McAvoy recently appeared on Josh Horowitz’ Happy Sad Confused Podcast in which he talks about his love for Star Trek. McAvoy announced that he was up for a role in Abrams’ Star Trek (2009), but ultimately he felt he was not the best for the role. McAvoy also shared his passion for Star Trek: The Original Series and his subsequent films, but said the stories of Star Trek: The Next Generation fascinated him as he grew older. Considering that McAvoy has already portrayed a younger version of Patrick Stewart, Trek Fans loudly demanded that he appear as the young Jean-Luc Picard.

Although he did not appear in the 2009 Star Trek reboot, James McAvoy can still play a younger Picard

McAvoy would be perfect as young Jean-Luc Picard

Since James McAvoy is not in JJ Abrams’ Star Trek Movies, he is now free to play the role of Jean-Luc Picard in a future Star Trek Project. While Star Trek: Picard 30 years after the events of Star Trek: The Next Generation, The earlier adventures of Jean-Luc Picard were never shown on screen. Before taking command of the Enterprise-D, Picard served as captain of the USS Stargazer for 22 years. During that time, he served with Jack Crusher (Doug Wert) and fought in the Cardassian Wars.

While TNG occasionally offered insights into Picard’s past, a future Trek Project could learn more about Jean-Luc’s life before the Enterprise. Not only has McAvoy has already portrayed a younger version of Patrick Stewart, but both actors also have Shakespearean backgrounds. McAvoy even played Macbeth in a 2013 production directed by Jamie Lloyd, a role Stewart took on in a 2010 TV movie directed by Rupert Goold. McAvoy clearly has the acting talent to portray a young Picard, but the Scottish actor may be running out of time to appear as the Enterprise captain.

Is James McAvoy still young enough to play Picard’s younger self in Star Trek?

Yes, but maybe not for much longer

In 2021, James McAvoy joked that he might be getting too old to play Jean-Luc Picard, but Star Trek Casting older actors in younger roles is nothing new. Captain Picard was supposed to be around 58 years old when he became captain of the USS Enterprise-D, although Patrick Stewart was only 47 when he took on the role. James McAvoy is currently 45, only two years younger than Stewart when he began playing the character. Still, McAvoy could pass for several years younger than he is, and Picard was always older than Stewart anyway, so McAvoy’s casting could still work.

Of course, McAvoy will continue to age over the next few years, so a project with him as a convincing younger Picard should happen pretty soon. Star Trek often plays with multiple timelines and alternate universes, so anything is possible. Whether in a Prime Universe prequel or an alternate universe Picard story, James McAvoy would be a great choice to portray a younger Jean-Luc. As a bonus, McAvoy himself is a Star Trek fan and would probably jump at the chance to play Picard, especially considering he has already turned down a role in Star Trek (2009).

Source: Happy Sad Confused Podcast