Doesn't Jean-Luc Picard French origin bugs you?

[shiftdel]

May we could put the things simple: he is a French raised in UK, by his grandmother...

[NCC1966]

Nothing against a French captain. It's just that pick a British actor for the role almost sounds like an acid joke because all the historical competition between France and England! Perhaps they did it by purpose just to pinch people?



And on a side note - hell yeah, Jonathan Frakes played a too much more French role in Riker!

[NCC1966]

raised in UK, by his grandmother...

Well Picard has not that expected characteristic soft style from someone that was raised by grandma...

[Moongrim]

Zut alors! It good to see I'm not alone in this.

It's easy to armchair quarterback, so I'll go ahead and do so.
I agree with you all. I'm not too familiar with Jean Reno (French Actor of Spanish descent), but even so, someone who actually was French would've been able to perform inherently better as a "Captain of French Descent'. Mr. Stewart did a fine job as Picard, but I've no idea of how better a performance a french actor would've done. If they made such a big deal of his being French, then get a Real French actor....the perfect method acting. And he/she would've come with a certain ...je ne sais quoi...

[NCC1966]

The French origin of Picard not only is hard to swallow as well it doesn't add any value to the character or the series. If they wanted to keep the actor and the character's name they could make him a Canadian with a far French heritage. It would be too much more acceptable (although the British behavior and accent still would bug).

The point is why to throw the lights over a certain trace of a character if you aren't going to take advantage of it?Imagine the Spock half-human thing and how it would be completely pointless to mention if the writers hadn't explore along the series his continuous internal conflicts with the emerging emotional side earned from his mother.

Picard as a French is like if they had picked a red hair ginger actor to play Chakotay in Voyager. Wouldn't it be similarly odd?

[Tesral]

Picard as a French is like if they had picked a red hair ginger actor to play Chakotay in Voyager. Wouldn't it be similarly odd?

Conan O'Brian would have been perfect for the role.

[NCC1966]

Picard as a French is like if they had picked a red hair ginger actor to play Chakotay in Voyager. Wouldn't it be similarly odd?

Conan O'Brian would have been perfect for the role.

[nova1972x]

It always bugged me.

Why they picked a British actor to play a role of a French character? It doesn't make any sense for me, specially because his behavior has all that characteristic pedant style of Britain. Unless by his name I just can't see a French guy when I look at him. He doesn't even have a minimal trace of a French accent.

The questions that remains in my mind are:

1) Why they didn't pick a French actor for the role? I think that Jean Reno would play an excellent Federation ship captain.

2) If they wanted badly to use Patrick Stewart why they just didn't make him a British?

I really never will understand the point. What am I missing here?

Now that everything is said and done, I can't imagine anyone else in the role. I am glad they cast him.

That said, I admit that Patrick Stewart's accent did bother me a little bit at first. Also, there was one episode (can't remember which) where Picard boasts of a Picard ancestor fighting at the Battle of Trafalgar. Yes the French were there, but usually that is a battle that the English have nostalgia and pride for, because of Admiral Nelson. For a French person, that is like being proud getting your ass kicked at Waterloo! It literally IS the same thing.

That all said, I rationalized Picard having an English accent as:
a) By the 24th century, perhaps the UK and France were so close together that English became so widely spoken, an English accent was commonplace.
OR
B) He could have went to a UK based school growing up, since transporters made distance irrelevant.
C) That is not his real accent. It is what we hear from the Universal Translator.

As to why Stewart was cast, and why they didn't just portray him as English instead of French, here are my theories
A) Since Picard was an intellectual, the producers probably wanted an English accent to make him sound "smart." Remember, TNG was produced in the US. As erroneous as it is, for some reason many Americans equate British accent as "Intellectual." I know it's silly, and especially does not "translate" well to viewers from countries outside the US, but if you are familiar with MASH, Winchester spoke with a fake English/Mid Atlantic accent to sound smarter, though he was from New England.
B) I think GR was set on casting a Non-American character as the lead
C) Also, Picard is similar to Pike. I have always wondered if GR channelled that intentionally or not.
D) Other than his accent, I don't see why Patrick Steward wouldn't pass for a French Guy. I don't know that there is a specific French guy "look", outside the stereotypical beret, stripped shirt, and pencil mustache.

[Moongrim]

The French origin of Picard not only is hard to swallow as well it doesn't add any value to the character or the series. If they wanted to keep the actor and the character's name they could make him a Canadian with a far French heritage.

The problem with that: as a Quebecer he'd have refused to speak anything other than Quebec/French.
Which would've lead to no few problems with a career in Diplomacy.

[Tesral]

The problem with that: as a Quebecer he'd have refused to speak anything other than Quebec/French.
Which would've lead to no few problems with a career in Diplomacy.

Quebcois are known rather for being neck stiff. Also for being hole arse about the language whole thing.