The writers of Star Trek: Picard have been hard at work on season two of the series in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic. This past week, Picard producer Akiva Goldsman sat down with Collider.com to discuss the future of the series and its progress so far. “We were to start shooting in June,” Goldsman said, “which I guarantee you we will not unless the world opens tomorrow. We are about halfway through the writing of it...We will start as soon as we can... Prep will have to resume, and then we’ll start.”

Writing an extended story arc requires a plan and knowing where you want to take each character. When referring to audience reactions of the first episodes of Star Trek: Picard, Goldsman said “They’re reviewing the first act of a movie. The first act of a movie is always dark…Because fundamentally in a longform narrative, it’s a redemption story. It’s a healing story. It has to be bad at the beginning so it gets good at the end. Otherwise, there’s nothing to fix.”

With a June 2020 filming schedule on hold due to social distancing guidelines, writers of Star Trek: Picard have been able to focus on the story. “What you really want is to be able to refine your setups once you’ve written the payoffs," Goldsman said. “If, in fact, you could have the time to write ten hours [of content] first, that would be amazing. And maybe we will.”

When pressed about the lifetime of the series, Goldsman noted that discussions had included the series running anywhere from three seasons until “forever”. In the end, he feels the fate of the show will likely depend on its star, Sir Patrick Stewart. “Star Trek: Picard, in my view, will go as long as Patrick Stewart wants to do it," Goldsman said. “I think he’s particularly delighted in a good way about having come back. And we will rely on that good will until he feels he’s done.” 

You can watch the full interview at Collider.com and be sure to catch season one of Star Trek: Picard, streaming now on CBS All Access.