Movies - TV
Star Trek’s
Uncomfortable Costumes Led To A Classic Picard Maneuver
By WITNEY SEIBOLD
In his autobiography, “Making It So: A Memoir,” Patrick Stewart proclaimed his distaste for the ill-cut and clingy uniforms on “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
Stewart was tired of wearing clingy, sexist jumpsuits that were “made of spandex [...] deliberately cut one size too small so that they [...] kept our bodies on constant display.”
He also revealed they were painful, writing, “The problem was that these uniforms, beyond their leaving little to the imagination, were constricting to the point of causing pain.”
Devising a plan to get out of those uniforms, Stewart wrote that he asked his doctor to petition the producers, claiming that he couldn't wear the tight outfit for medical reasons.
If they didn't listen, he would sue the studio for the cost of his medical bills. When the uniforms were finally altered, the mandate to keep them smooth-looking didn't go away.
To keep his new uniform smooth, Stewart had to give it a slight tug whenever he stood up or sat down. Fans of “Star Trek” called the mannerism the “Picard maneuver.”