Star Trek: Picard showrunner explains why *that* twist for a classic character had to happen

[Warning: This article contains major spoilers for Star Trek: Picard, season one, episode seven.]

Star Trek: Picard fans may well still be reeling after the sci-fi drama's latest episode, 'Nepenthe', featured the tragic death of a classic character.

Former Borg Hugh (Jonathan Del Arco), who Picard helped to liberate from the collective almost 30 years ago, was sadly killed by Romulan spy Narissa who stabbed him with one of her throwing knives in the show's most recent episode.

Showrunner Michael Chabon, who co-wrote the episode, told The Hollywood Reporter that "it felt very sad to write" Hugh's shock death scene and that he is fully aware of how much the character of Hugh means to fans.

"I wouldn't say this was always the plan for the character, but when we started fleshing out and shaping Hugh's arc, it felt like the best – most emotionally honest – way to go," he said.

"The storyline for the season, as it first emerged, didn't originally include the character of Hugh," he added. But the writers soon found that including him meant that the show could better explore the lives of former Borg.

"The initial germ of having Hugh involved, and that he would die, came from the natural discussions of 'What does it mean to have been Borg?'" Chabon said.

"So once we sort of committed to a big part of our season being about the lives of former Borg and exploring how their lives are traumatized, how they have or have not dealt with that trauma, and how they remain these objects of fear and hatred even though they were victimized by the Borg. To put Hugh in the center of that led to what felt like a dramatic way to service the character's end."

Related: Star Trek: Picard season 2 – everything you need to know

And the fact that Hugh was about to lead another Borg uprising meant that the character's life was given "a certain trajectory", lending even more resonance to his death for fans who have been invested in Hugh's story since he was first introduced in 1992.

Star Trek: Picard star Michelle Hurd recently opened up about working on the show, saying that lead Patrick Stewart is a dream to work with.

"Everyday, it's like actor Christmas," she said. "There's no weird hierarchy there because, I mean, he's Patrick Stewart. But, no, he believes in the ensemble. Loves the ensemble, and that includes the crew as well."

Star Trek: Picard airs on CBS All Access in the US and Amazon Prime internationally, including the UK.

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