Star Trek fans are waiting for the 2025 TV schedule to reunite them with the latest installment of the Paramount+ subscription driver Strange New Worlds. Unfortunately, that Original Series prequel doesn’t include veteran co-star Wil Wheaton. That doesn’t mean his time in the final frontier is concluded, but rather waiting for the right window to return. That leaves the author with time to reflect on the career he’s had on the screen and the page.
Thanks to a recent interview diving deep into both corners, the frequent Big Bang Theory guest star and geek icon opened up not only about his childhood struggles with his parents, but also how those unfortunate events led to Wheaton considering his Next Generation crewmates his chosen family.
Why Wil Wheaton Considers His Star Trek Co-stars His Family
As a guest on the Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum podcast, the geek culture personality opened up about how his struggles with his parents led to this unique situation. Laying out how childhood abuse and exploitation from his own family left him feeling as if he didn’t actually have parents, Wheaton broke those feelings down into this bittersweet story:
Every child has a mom and a dad, and you want to share [your achievements] with them. And I’ve just accepted that I don’t have that when I have that impulse, I text my Star Trek family. I text Gates [McFadden] and [Jonathan] Frakes and Marina [Sirtis] and Brent [Spiner] and Patrick [Stewart] and Michaell [Dorn] and LeVar [Burton] .
Whether you knew his story or not, Wil Wheaton’s reaction to TNG’s lifetime achievement award from last year’s Saturn Awards is even more heartwarming when you think about it. Not only has this role secured him a spot in sci-fi pop culture, but it also gave him a murderer’s row of actors with whom anyone would feel honored to merely chat.
Those connections run much deeper, however, as you’ll see in the stories that the Just A Geek author shared about how The Next Generation’s LeVar Burton and Jonathan Frakes. Instilling a sense of pride and warmth through simple interactions, those seasoned performers
LeVar Burton And Jonathan Frakes Continue To Remind Wil Wheaton Of How Proud He Makes Them
Continuing the story about releasing a book into the world, Wil Wheaton offered another anecdote about a text he’d sent to the legendary Reading Rainbow host about the big moment. That led to the long, but thankful message you’re about to read:
I said, ‘I just want you to know that we’re announcing today, and I’m excited and kind of nervous. But this wouldn’t exist without you. This wouldn’t exist if you hadn’t believed in me, if you hadn’t said, ‘I want you to do this.’ This wouldn’t exist if you hadn’t said, “How can I help? … I just want to thank you for being there for me, when you didn’t know that you were.
Knowing Wheaton’s voice from gigs like audiobook narrations and even his ecstatic return for Star Trek: Prodigy, you could practically hear those words in his voice (even if you haven’t clicked on the convenient video link sourced above). That sentiment is more important than you’d think, as Burton’s part of the story led to this emotional turn:
LeVar called me last night, totally unexpected, and told me how proud of me he was. He said, ‘I couldn’t just text you. I had to hear your voice.’
Pride is something that many of Wil Wheaton’s Star Trek family members have expressed throughout his career. Even before his recent appearance on Inside of You, receiving that phone call was like a surprise reminder that these ties, and the feelings associated with them, remained strong as ever. Which brings us full circle through this final anecdote:
The thing is, twice in my life I have felt what I imagine it is like when your parents love you and approve of you. Once was when Frakes was on Ready Room, and he told me how proud of me he was and how much he loved the show. He was curious about me, and about what I did, and how I did it. And then last night, it felt that way from LeVar.
No matter what incarnation of his character he’s playing, Wil Wheaton’s emotional connection to Wesley is always going to shine through. Learning a little more about the man himself, it’s clear that it isn’t just a case of loving a role, but also basking in the feeling of family it inspires. So while we’re waiting to see if that hypothetical Wesley Crusher spinoff ever comes to pass, now’s a great time to recognize Wil Wheaton’s dedication to maintaining the personal connections that come with those duties as well.
