I’ll Never Understand Why Captain Picard Didn’t Save His Family In Star Trek Generations

Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) could have saved his family in Star Trek Generations, so I don't understand why he didn't. As the first feature film for Captain Picard and his Star Trek: The Next Generation crew, Generations was meant to serve as a passing of the torch from Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) to Picard. Although Kirk appears to die early in Generations, he actually finds himself in the Nexus, an extra-dimensional realm not bound by time or space.

After Star Trek Generations' opening scene in 2293, the film cuts to 2371. Soon after this celebratory moment, Captain Picard learns that his brother and nephew have been killed in a fire. Understandably distraught, Picard admits to Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) that he is distressed that the Picard family line will end with him. Picard could have saved his family using the Nexus, and I've always wondered why Generations didn't let him.

Why Didn’t Captain Picard Use The Nexus To Save His Family In Star Trek Generations?

Picard Could've Used The Nexus To Travel Back In Time To Save His Family

In his quest to stop Soran (Malcolm McDowell) from causing more destruction, Captain Picard enters the Nexus realm. Once there, he encounters an echo of Guinan (Whoopi Goldberg), who points Picard in the direction of Captain Kirk. Picard convinces Kirk to leave, and the two captains return to Veridian III just before Soran launched his devastating probe. Picard and Kirk could have emerged anywhere in time, raising the question of why Picard didn't travel back farther.

Traveling further back in time would have also allowed him Picard save his family. Theoretically, Picard could have traveled back and altered any number of tragedies from his past, but that would have been extremely disruptive to the timeline. To save his brother and nephew, however, Picard would only have to travel back a week. In the grand scheme of things, Picard saving his family would probably have caused only minimal changes to the Star Trek timeline, but it would've meant the world to him and his brother.

Picard Could Still Meet Kirk Before Saving Everyone In Star Trek Generations

The entire premise of Star Trek Generations was built around the idea that Captain Kirk and Captain Picard had to meet. But considering they lived in different centuries, there were only so many ways this could happen. Rather than incorporating a more traditional time travel plot, the writers of Generations created the Nexus realm. Ultimately, Picard saving his family was never part of the plan for Generations, but it illustrates the plot holes caused by it. While it had the potential to be an interesting concept, it ultimately just became a plot device that allows Kirk and Picard to meet.

Imagine a movie where Picard meets Kirk, and they both travel further back in time to save Picard's family. Kirk and Picard would have gotten more screen time together and had more time to formulate a plan to stop Soran. Star Trek Generations ultimately didn't work as well as it could have, and it's hard not to think about what could have been if the film had explored the full potential of the Nexus realm.