'Star Trek: Picard' Leaked Set Photos Reveal More Starfleet Uniforms, More Patrick Stewart

Star Trek: Picard was unveiled at the CBS Upfront Wednesday, revealing both the title for the new Trek series announced in October 2018 and a single shot of Patrick Stewart, back in character as Jean-Luc Picard.

There's little to pore over in what was revealed. Picard appears to be in civilian clothing. According to Rob Owen, of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, someone offscreen says, "May I have your name, please, sir?" A yellow Starfleet uniform can be seen over Picard's left shoulder, a color reserved for Command, Helm and Comms in previous eras, but which could mean anything in 2397, the year Picard is set.

Newly surfaced photos leaked from the set of Star Trek: Picard expands the context around the image, giving us a better idea of the state of the Federation, and Picard. Captured by attendees to a business conference in Anaheim, the leaked photos show a large set, swarming with Starfleet personnel.

Taken from a distance, the photos are too grainy for fine details, though eagle-eyed observers on the Star Trek subreddit take the absence of clearly visible rank pips at the collar to indicate that we're seeing cadets, rather than seasoned Starfleet veterans. This comports with TrekMovie's analysis of the Starfleet uniform from the CBS clip, which the Star Trek site compared to cadet uniforms seen in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

It is widely speculated that Picard will be a Starfleet Academy instructor in the series. While Picard was never particularly good with kids, he's long shown an aptitude for nurturing future leaders. On The Next Generation, Picard was occasionally nostalgic for his Academy days, particularly when recalling his menteeship under the groundskeeper, Mr. Boothby (Ray Walston).

It would be as easy to read these leaked photos as evidence against a Starfleet Academy setting. The bustling traffic around Picard in the leaked photo looks more like a Starfleet hub than the uniformity of age and dress you'd expect from a school. The foot traffic generally looks older than Academy age as well—these are not willowy Wesley Crushers.

But regardless of what conclusions we can draw about Star Trek: Picard plot specifics, both the leaked photos and clip played at the CBS Upfront suggest Jean-Luc Picard has been away from Starfleet for a while. He looks out of place with the hustle. And that question—"May I have your name, please, sir?"—certainly suggests Picard is not the galactic celebrity or Starfleet emeritus we might have expected.

We may not have to wait look to learn more about Star Trek: Picard, with upcoming conventions like San Diego Comic Con in July a likely venue for a splashier, more public debut.

The ten episode first season of Star Trek: Picard will premiere on CBS All Access late in 2019.