Lynch: DS9 Work Different Than TNG

[Vic 17]

 

For director Paul Lynch, working on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was quite different than working on Star Trek: The Next Generation, even though both were Star Trek shows.

 

There were two factors that made Deep Space Nine different for Lynch, both centering on the captain of the shows.

 

The main difference to Lynch when it came to Deep Space Nine was the absence of Sir Patrick Stewart. “Well, it didn’t have Patrick Stewart, and that was the difference,” he said. “And the cast was not quite as good. It was OK, but without Patrick, it was an almost completely different show. And it was often hard to make it work.”

 

Initially, there were issues with Avery Brooks on Deep Space Nine that needed to be resolved too. “There was a problem with the lead actor,” said Lynch. “I had worked with Avery Brooks on a Spenser television movie, and he was sensational and terrific. But for some reason, they weren’t happy with what he was doing or what he had done in the pilot. So we kind of butted heads, which was unusual, because we hadn’t on Hawk. He’d been doing Hawk on Spenser for Hire for, I think, five years. So he knew Hawk, and that was fine, but this was a different character for him. So he’d done the (DS9) pilot and normally, by the pilot, the characters are set, the way they’re going to be played. That’s how he was playing it, but Rick had problems with the pilot and he had problems with my episode.”

 

After that episode, Lynch made a suggestion in hopes of solving the issue. “I said, ‘but look, here’s a suggestion. Why don’t you get Corey Allen to do the show after mine, because he did the DS9 pilot and he’s a wonderful director of actors. Maybe he can solve whatever problems you’re going to have, whatever you’ve got with Avery,’” said Lynch. “I thought Avery acquitted himself OK. He wasn’t as magnificent as Hawk. Hawk was a great character and Avery did it brilliantly. He wasn’t quite in the same position here. (Corey Allen) did the next episode and I don’t know what happened after that, but the next time I came back there was no indication that there was a problem with Avery.”

 

Currently, Lynch is “trying to put some films together,” after an eight year long hiatus.

 

 

 

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