With nearly the entire cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation returning for the current season of Picard on Paramount Plus, some may wonder why that doesn’t include Denise Crosby as the Enterprise’s former chief of security Tasha Yar. Aside from some obvious reasons known by those familiar with the first season of The Next Generation, there may be more to it.

Viewers have already enjoyed some shocking twists in Picard season 3, and there’s still more to come. But fans likely found the return of Patrick Stewart’s fellow castmates from Star Trek: The Next Generation less surprising. Decades after they all parted ways (both in the franchise and real life), a universe-endangering threat forces them to team up again. But many have noticed the absence of Crosby’s Tasha Yar, and there’s a reason for that, or perhaps several.

One big reason is simple. Crosby herself confirmed on Twitter that she wasn’t even invited to the premiere of Picard season 3. That speaks to how the folks behind the show view her character’s importance relative to the rest of her castmates. It’s one thing not to include her in the season, but she has a connection to the storylines explored this season. One might think she could at least score a seat at the premiere if there’s no ill will.

Another possible reason involves Crosby’s feelings about the role. The returning characters from The Next Generation appearing in Picard all seemed to carry some fondness for the roles that brought them back to the fold. But Tasha endured a rather turbulent character journey throughout the original show. While the character was killed in the first season, following Crosby’s dissatisfaction with the role, later developments detailed an even more terrible fate for an alternate version of the character who had survived.

This could easily have been seen as a spiteful treatment of the character. So combined with Crosby’s already less-than-charitable view of the role and her lack of agency, the rather pointless demise of Tasha Yar left a bad taste in the mouths of pretty much everyone involved. Not only did the audience find it an unsatisfying character moment, but neither the character nor Crosby herself seemed to get anything worthwhile out of it.

So Crosby’s absence from Picard makes sense in a pretty morbid way. While many fans still hold affection for the character of Tasha Yar (as does Crosby, to a degree), it seems the ship may have sailed on ever seeing the actress reprise her role. While unfortunate, perhaps it’s for the best, considering how Crosby and Tasha have been treated by the Star Trek franchise.

Picard season 3 releases new episodes on Thursday on Paramount Plus.

Source: MovieWeb