Summary
- Jonathan Frakes is a beloved director, with a prolific career in television, including directing episodes in Star Trek and other shows.
- Frakes directed iconic episodes like "The Offspring" in TNG and has also worked on films like Clockstoppers and Thunderbirds.
- Frakes has directed episodes in popular shows like Roswell, Dollhouse, Castle, Burn Notice, Agents of SHIELD, Falling Skies, and NCIS: Los Angeles.
Jonathan Frakes is one the most beloved directors of Star Trek, but he is also an incredibly prolific director across television. Frakes' directing career began on Star Trek: The Next Generation, where he occasionally took a break from starring as Commander William Riker to step behind the camera. Frakes directing debut was TNG season 3, episode 16, "The Offspring," which focused on Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) and his attempt to create a child. With its compelling premise and heartbreaking ending, "The Offspring" remains one of the most highly-praised episodes of TNG.
After Jonathan Frakes took to directing, he continued to helm stories within the Star Trek franchise, including the feature films Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek: Insurrection. Frakes also directed the 2002 film Clockstoppers and the 2004 film Thunderbirds, but most of his directing credits come from television shows. Frakes remains an active television director today, both within the Star Trek franchise and without. He directed the excellent Star Trek: Strange New Worlds crossover with Star Trek: Lower Decks, as well as the penultimate episode of Star Trek: Discovery's final season. Here are 10 other shows with episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes.
Frakes is also set to direct the upcoming 10-part series Deathlands, based on the book series of the same name.
10 Roswell
Five episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes
Centering on three aliens masquerading as high schoolers, Roswell was one of the first television shows Jonathan Frakes directed outside of the Star Trek franchise. When a local girl named Liz Parker (Shiri Appleby) discovers the aliens' secret, she gets involved in a love triangle with the alien leader, Max (Jason Behr), and her human high school boyfriend. Over its three seasons, Roswell explores stories of relationships, as well as classic science fiction concepts like clones and shapeshifters.
Star Trek writer and producer Ronald D. Moore was brought on for Roswell's second season to incorporate more sci-fi into the show. Moore acted as co-showrunner alongside creator Jason Katims for the show's final two seasons. Jonathan Frakes not only directed five episodes of Roswell, but also served as an executive producer for all three seasons and appeared as himself in two episodes.
Roswell
In Roswell, New Mexico, high school student Liz learns that three of her classmates are actually alien survivors of a UFO crash that took place years prior. She and her other human friends must keep the secret, but as Liz and the others form deeper bonds with their alien classmates, the situation becomes more and more complex.
9 Dollhouse
One episode directed by Jonathan Frakes
Created by Joss Whedon, Dollhouse centers around a corporation that can turn people into blank slates and then program them with various personalities and skills. Wealthy clients can then hire these "dolls" as spies, assassins, experts in particular topics, or any other kind of person they can imagine. One of the dolls, Echo (Eliza Dushku), slowly begins to gain awareness, and her own unique personality becomes more difficult to erase.
With mixed reviews and underwhelming ratings, Dollhouse did not achieve the popularity of Whedon's other shows (like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel) and was abruptly canceled before the second season had finished filming. Jonathan Frakes directed Dollhouse season 2, episode 4, "Belonging," which focused on the doll named Sierra (Dichen Lachman), and how she came to be at the Dollhouse.
Dollhouse
Dollhouse is a sci-fi action series that aired on the Fox network in 2009. The show centers around the concept of "Dollhouses," which hosted women with various skills, from infiltration to assassination worldwide - with their original memories wiped and saved on external drives to put them back to normal after they complete their contracts. The protagonist is a woman named Echo, a "doll" who works in an L.A. dollhouse. Echo remains unique due to her retention of small amounts of memories between missions and eventually maintains a personality that is incapable of being overwritten.
8 Castle
Three episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes
The crime comedy/drama Castle follows best-selling author Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion), who works alongside homicide detective Kate Beckett (Stana Katic), solving various cases in New York City. Needing inspiration for his next book series, Castle begins shadowing Beckett on the job, much to her annoyance. Despite their clashing personalities, however, Castle and Beckett eventually develop feelings for one another.
Jonathan Frakes directed three episodes of Castle, one in the show's second season and two in season five. Frakes makes a cameo in one of his episodes, Castle season 5, episode 6, "The Final Frontier," which also contains numerous Star Trek references. Castle ran for eight seasons on ABC, eventually coming to a close in 2016. The series remained popular throughout most of its run, winning several fan-voted awards and spawning multiple tie-in novels.
Star Trek: The Next Generation's Michael Dorn had a recurring role in six episodes of Castle as Dr. Carver Burke, a psychiatrist helping Beckett.
7 Burn Notice
Five episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes
When Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) loses his job at the CIA, he sets out to find who burned him. With his old friend Sam Axe (Bruce Campbell) and ex-girlfriend Fiona Glenanne (Gabrielle Anwar), Westen works as an unlicensed private investigator in Miami, as he searches for answers. Burn Notice ran for seven seasons, consisting of 111 episodes and one made-for-television prequel film.
Jonathan Frakes directed five different episodes of Burn Notice, spread out over seasons 4, 5, 6, and 7. Like many procedural crime dramas, Burn Notice combined serialized plot elements with case-of-the-week storylines, but the show's irreverent sense of humor and use of voice-overs set it apart. Burn Notice received mostly positive reviews and has an 88% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Burn Notice
After being "burned," (i.e., fired and cut off from his job as a spy), former CIA agent Michael Westen finds himself stuck in Miama with no cash, no credit, and no job history. With the help of an old friend and an ex-flame, he takes whatever work he can as a private investigator, while trying to solve the mystery behind why he was burned.
6 Marvel's Agents of SHIELD
One episode directed by Jonathan Frakes
Jonathan Frakes may not officially be part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (yet), but he did direct an episode of the MCU's first television series, Marvel'sAgents of SHIELD. Despite his apparent death in 2012's The Avengers, Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) returns and gathers a SHIELD team to handle strange superhero-related cases. In its early seasons, Coulson and his team face off against Hydra terrorists and Inhumans.
Jonathan Frakes directed Agents of SHIELD season 1, episode 8, "The Well," which focuses on Grant Ward (Brett Dalton) as he's forced to revisit painful memories from his childhood. "The Well" also serves as a direct follow-up to Thor: The Dark World, in one of the first connections between a blockbuster Marvel film and a television show. The MCU would, of course, continue to grow to incorporate numerous connected films and television shows.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
After the events of The Avengers and with his friends and allies believing him to be dead, Agent Coulson puts together a small, secretive S.H.I.E.L.D. team to handle the cases that haven't been classified yet. In a world now filled with the strange and unknown, not to mention, superheroes, Coulson, along with Agents Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen), Grant Ward (Brett Dalton), Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker), Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge), and hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet) aim to prove that the non-powered heroes can work together to make a difference.
5 Falling Skies
Three episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes
Executive-produced by Steven Spielberg, Falling Skies centers around the survivors of a devastating alien invasion. Colonel Dan Weaver (Will Patton) and his second-in-command Tom Mason (Noah Wyle) lead a group of survivors who come together to fight back against their alien attackers. A former history professor, Mason's knowledge of military history proves especially useful as he searches for his son Ben (Connor Jessup).
Jonathan Frakes directed three episodes throughout Falling Skies' five seasons, one each in seasons 3, 4, and 5. With its alien invasion story, Falling Skies is firmly science fiction, but its post-apocalyptic setting makes it very different from Star Trek's style of sci-fi. Still, Falling Skies adds another show to Frakes' impressive roster of directing alien-related shows and films.
Falling Skies
When Earth is invaded by extraterrestrials, humanity loses the battle against the alien attackers. Picking up after the defeat of the human race, Falling Skies tells the story of a former college professor (Noah Wyle) who becomes the leader of the Second Massachusetts, a group of soldiers and civilians who are struggling to fight against the occupying force.
4 NCIS: Los Angeles
Six episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes
For all of its 14 seasons and 323 episodes, NCIS: Los Angeles was one of the most popular television series on network television. Following Special Agents Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) and Grisha Callen (Chris O'Donnell), NCIS: Los Angeles centers on a special branch of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service that deals with undercover operations. As the team investigates various cases, the show also explores their personal relationships with one another.
NCIS: Los Angeles is just one of the many spin-offs in the NCIS franchise, and Jonathan Frakes is, of course, no stranger to mega franchises. Frakes directed six total episodes of Los Angeles, spread out over six seasons. Frakes makes an uncredited guest appearance as Navy Commander Dr. Stanfill in Los Angeles season 2, episode 11, "Disorder," an episode he also directed.
NCIS: Los Angeles
NCIS: Los Angeles began in 2009 and currently has 14 seasons. Created by Shane Brennan, the release is the second installment in the NCIS franchise and the first major spinoff. The premise follows a group of special agents within the Naval Criminal Investigative Service as they aim to investigate and protect people in the Lost Angeles area.
3 The Librarians
Two movies & ten episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes
Jonathan Frakes joined The Librarians franchise as a director of the second made-for-television film, The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines. Frakes went on to direct the third film, The Librarian: The Curse of the Judas Chalice, and later joined the production team of the television series. The films centered on Flynn Carsen (Noah Wyle) as The Librarian assigned to protect the many magical objects secured in the secret section of the Metropolitan Public Library.
Beginning in 2014, The Librarians television series introduced four new characters who solve various mysteries and embark on adventures to protect humanity. Jonathan Frakes directed ten episodes of the show over the course of its four seasons, including the first season finale. Frakes also appeared in Return to King Solomon's Mines as Debra's husband and made an uncredited cameo as a trombone player in The Curse of the Judas Chalice.
Rebecca Romijn portrays Colonel Eve Baird, who serves as the Guardian of the new Librarians. Frakes would go on to direct Romijn again in the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds/Lower Decks crossover episode.
2 The Gifted
One episode directed by Jonathan Frakes
Set in an alternate Marvel Universe timeline where the X-Men have disappeared, The Gifted follows Reed (Stephen Moyer) and Caitlin (Amy Acker) Strucker as they care for their teenage children. When Reed and Caitlin discover that their children are mutants, they go on the run to avoid the anti-mutant Sentinel Services. They then join an underground community of mutants who are fighting for their survival.
Jonathan Frakes only helmed one episode, The Gifted season 2, episode 13, "teMpted," which features some insight into the character of Erg (Michael Luwoye), while also moving Lauren's (Natalie Alyn Lind ) and Polaris's (Emma Dumont) stories forward. The Gifted explored themes of discrimination and prejudice, using many characters and elements from the X-Men comic books. Despite solid ratings and reviews, The Gifted was canceled after only two seasons.
Fellow Star Trek actor-turned-director Robert Duncan McNeill also directed three episodes of The Gifted and two of The Orville, among many other shows.
The Gifted
Part of the X-Men franchise, although set in an alternate timeline from the films, The Gifted follows the Strucker family who must suddenly go on the run when the two children, Lauren and Andy, are discovered to possess mutant abilities. In a world where the X-Men have disappeared and mutants are heavily mistrusted and persecuted by the government, the once law-abiding Struckers must ally themselves with a group of rogue mutants attempting to help who they can and fight back against the corruption that threatens their lives.
1 The Orville
Two episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes
Seth MacFarlane's The Orville resembles Star Trek the most out of any of the entries on this list, and Jonathan Frakes directed two episodes of this sci-fi comedy. Following Captain Ed Mercer (Seth MacFarlane) and the crew of the USS Orville, The Orville was heavily inspired by Star Trek and regularly paid homage to the franchise. Although the first season of The Orville was met with mixed reviews, seasons 2 and 3 both received critical acclaim.
Jonathan Frakes directed The Orville season 1, episode 5, "Pria," which featured Charlize Theron as the titular Captain Pria Levesque, as well as season 2, episode 23, "Sanctuary." After its first two seasons, the show moved from Fox to streaming exclusively on Hulu for the third season in 2022. Although The Orville has not officially been canceled, the fate of the show's future remains unknown. With his impressive resume and obvious skill as a director, we hope Jonathan Frakes always finds his way back to the Star Trek franchise.
