Jonathan Frakes Is Why Riker Worked As First Officer, Says Star Trek: TNG Writer

Summary

• Jonathan Frakes' likability and charisma made fans love Commander Riker on Star Trek: The Next Generation, according to writer Ronald D. Moore.
• Riker's role as second in command was challenging because he was a human character with ambitions, but Frakes pulled it off with his innate charm and fun personality.
• In Star Trek: Picard, Riker finally became a Captain and asserted his own command authority, bringing depth and nuance to the role while resolving his marital issues and saving the galaxy.

Jonathan Frakes is why the character of Commander William T. Riker worked on Star Trek: The Next Generation, says writer Ronald D. Moore. TNG broke the mold of Star Trek: The Original Series by making the First Officer, Riker, younger and more dynamic than the more stoic and reserved Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart). This also placed the Riker character in a difficult spot as Will was supposed to be an ambitious Starfleet Officer, but Riker repeatedly turns down promotions to become Captain of his own starship to stay as First Officer of the USS Enterprise-D.
In the oral history, "The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek" by Peter Holmstrom, Ronald D. Moore discusses the challenges of creating a Star Trek First Officer that's different from Spock (Leonard Nimoy). Moore noted that Star Trek: The Next Generation's late showrunner Michael Piller identified with the Riker character and brought him into focus, but it was Jonathan Frakes' likability and charisma that made fans love Commander Riker. Read Moore's quote below:

It's a difficult role to be second in command on that series, if you're not the Vulcan science officer. Because the Vulcan science officer has a whole rich cultural thing as a character that you can get into, that's providing a yin and a yang to McCoy and a confidant and friend to Kirk. So that functions differently. Now, it's a human person, who's supposedly just as ambitious, just as capable and dynamic a hero in his own. Right. Okay. Why is he staying to be number two? It's a tricky role to pull off, but Jonathan pulls it off because Jonathan is so innately charming and fun, and you really, really liked him. You like Riker and you're intrigued with his backstory with Troi, and again, the force of the actor brings the character home.

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