Summary
- Diana Muldaur left Star Trek: The Next Generation after one season under her own power and not because of any issues with the cast or Gene.
- She points the finger at the writers and producers for not being creative and feels they could have done better.
- Muldaur has no regrets about leaving the show and remains a part of the USS Enterprise-D's legacy.
Diana Muldaur, who replaced Gates McFadden's Dr. Beverly Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 2, explains why she left the series after just one season, contradicting long-running rumors. Muldaur, who previously appeared in Star Trek: The Original Series, played Dr. Katherine Pulaski in TNG. Pulaski took over as Chief Medical Officer of the USS Enterprise-D when Dr. Crusher left the ship to head up Starfleet Medical. However, Muldaur's Dr. Pulaski was unpopular with fans, and the actress left Star Trek: The Next Generation at the end of her lone season, allowing McFadden to return as Dr. Crusher.
Star Trek Explorer issue #9 features an interview with Diana Muldaur where the actress addresses her exit from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Muldaur says she was only in TNG for one year, and she left the show "under my own power" as opposed to being fired. Read her quote below:
There was a reason for it that I don’t want to go into, but it had nothing to do with Gene or the cast. I left the show because the year was up, simple as that, under my own power. And if anything else happened, I would still be leaving under my own power. I would not have stayed, let’s put it that way.
Muldaur also walks back previous comments she made in interviews that she was unhappy playing Dr. Katherine Pulaski in Star Trek: The Next Generation. Rather, the actress points a finger at the writers and producers behind the scenes for not being "creative." Read her quote below:
No, I was never unhappy. No. Never. I don’t even know why I said that. They were all good actors, they all worked very hard. I was a little disappointed in the people putting it together. I thought they were not creative as they might have been.
Star Trek: The Next Generation Cast & Character Guide
Star Trek: The Next Generation has one of the most beloved cast of characters in all of science fiction. Here are the major characters of the classic.
Why Gates McFadden's Dr. Beverly Crusher Left & Returned To Star Trek: TNG
Dr. Crusher was also a big part of Star Trek: Picard season 3.
Dr. Beverly Crusher's return to Star Trek: The Next Generation is inextricably tied to Diana Muldaur's Dr. Kate Pulaski leaving the show. Gates McFadden was disliked by Maurice Hurley, the showrunner of TNG season 2. Hurley made sure McFadden and Dr. Crusher were fired from The Next Generation, and Diana Muldaur was brought in as the USS Enterprise-D's new Chief Medical Officer. While Muldaur had trouble gelling with Patrick Stewart and the cast, Diana now attests in her interview that she was always going to leave after her year was up.
Wil Wheaton remained as Wesley Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 2, even though Dr. Beverly Crusher left her young son on the Enterprise.
Gates McFadden returned to Star Trek: The Next Generation as Dr. Beverly Crusher in season 3, with Patrick Stewart personally writing to Gates asking her to come back. Dr. Crusher went on to become a beloved member of the TNG crew, appearing in the rest of the series and the four Star Trek: The Next Generation movies. However, McFadden didn't find Crusher to have the best creative . This changed in Star Trek: Picard season 3 when Dr. Beverly Crusher became the best version of the character. Diana Muldaur seems to have no regrets about leaving Star Trek: The Next Generation, and she will always be a part of the USS Enterprise-D's legacy.
Star Trek: The Next Generation is available to stream on Paramount+.
Source: Star Trek Explorer
