Chilean actor Santiago Cabrera plays Cristobal “Chris” Rios, the former pilot of La Sirena and current Starfleet Captain of the U.S.S. Stargazer, on Star Trek: Picard. Cabrera also portrays the emergency holograms aboard La Sirena. An earlier model of the Stargazer was Admiral Picard’s (Sir Patrick Stewart) first ship, which he later described in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “Relics” as an “overworked, underpowered vessel, always on the verge of flying apart at the seams.” In the second season of Star Trek: Picard, Captain Rios is in command of Picard’s former ship. During last night’s virtual premiere, fans learned more about what to expect the rest of the season for the recently recommissioned captain.

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During last night’s virtual premiere, hosted by a Ten Forward Lounge bartender played by Star Trek: Lower Deck’s Beckett Mariner voice actor Angélique Roché, several of the Star Trek: Picard actors appeared to answer questions about what fans can expect for the second season of the series. The Ten Forward server asked Cabrera, “Chris has gone through so many amazing things. He’s now captaining a ship. What has been your favorite memory working on this journey, this season, or even Picard overall?”

In response to the first question from the Ten Forward Lounge bartender, Cabrera answered:

Next, the Lounge server congratulated Cabrera about some of the amazing group moments coming in the second season of Star Trek: Picard, and fans were gobbling up the news, especially once they learned some of those amazing moments will deal with time travel.

I think it’s been, I just love my set. I love La Sirena, and being on that ship and kind of having ownership of that place. And then, the cast, we’ve got such a good banter and a good relationship between the whole cast and between scenes. When they put us all together because a lot of the time you’re in your own stories, we’ve got individual storylines, but when they put us all together, those are definitely the best moments.

The Future of Chris Rios

     Paramount+

To avoid spoilers, let’s just say that a lot has happened to Chris Rios since fans saw him last in the first season of Star Trek: Picard. At the virtual premiere, the Ten Forward Lounge bartender asked, “What can you share about what’s up for one of our favorite captains?”

Cabrera said that fans can expect new things from the captain in the second season as he explores his identity more thoroughly. He said:

She then asked a personal question of Cabrera, “Now, here’s the great thing about this season. There’s a lot to do with time. And I was wondering when and where, if you could choose, Santiago, where would you set the destination?” To which Cabrera responded:

Well, you are going to see a completely new light of Rios this season, as a whole new facet of him and traveling into a time period that’s not his own is definitely going to bring up new challenges and a whole new experience. I think this season for Rios is about identity and sort of finding his place because we meet him there as captain of a major Starfleet vessel, but he’s not quite in his element. So it’s about finding that identity and finding his place.

Outside of Star Trek: Picard, Cabrera has also appeared as the character Isaac Mendez in the television series Heroes, Lancelot in Merlin, and Aramis in The Musketeers. He was also the lead in the television series Salvation as Darius Tanz.

I think there’s no time like the present reality, but if it was, I mean, depends on if it was just to go for five minutes, I’d probably like, you know, go and sit in a room where Mozart is composing some, you know, one of his masterpiece or something and just watch him at work and have a drink with him or something. But, I guess, you know if it’s for a longer time period, then it gets more complicated, but I do believe there’s nothing like the present.

Correction: In an earlier edition of our article, it was mentioned that fans were speculating that Tawny Newsome was Star Trek: Lower Decks’ Beckett Mariner voice actor. It has since been confirmed that it’s Angélique Roché.