Picard's Season 3 Finale Will Air In IMAX, Finally Washing Star Trek: Nemesis Out Of Our Mouths

Who doesn't love second chances? Over in "Star Wars" land, both Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen were given the chance to redeem themselves in the "Obi-Wan Kenobi" series after their first go-around in the prequel trilogy ended up in rather divisive waters. The "Star Trek" equivalent, meanwhile, meant retrofitting a perfect send-off for the cast and crew of "The Next Generation" with the final season of "Star Trek: Picard" ... one that could wash away the bad taste of the misbegotten film "Star Trek: Nemesis" straight out of our collective mouths. Now, that fanciful idea is becoming closer to a reality with the news that the final two episodes of the series will receive the big-screen IMAX treatment.

In a joint announcement by Paramount+ and CBS Studios (via Variety), word has come down that fans will be able to flock to theaters next week to catch the last two episodes of "Star Trek: Picard" in participating theaters. Incredibly enough (and in a twist fitting of the post-capitalistic society of "Trek"), this exclusive event will be completely free. All you have to do is head on over to the official website to sign up tomorrow, April 12, 2023, promptly at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET. Should you be lucky enough to live near the 10 theaters located in Los Angeles, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, Orlando, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, and Dallas will be able to score a special commemorative poster and even enjoy a live Q&A afterwards, involving the main cast, executive producer Alex Kurtzman, and writer/director/showrunner Terry Matalas.

Read on for all the details!

The series finale of "Star Trek: Picard" is scheduled for next Thursday, but a select number of eager Trekkies will be able to catch the highly-anticipated conclusion a day ahead of everyone else on the biggest screen possible.

The news certainly comes as a welcome development to those brave souls who had to suffer through the disappointment of "Star Trek: Nemesis," the previous conclusion to the adventures of Patrick Stewart's Jean-Luc Picard, Jonathan Frakes' Will Riker, Marina Sertis' Deanna Troi, LeVar Burton's Geordi LaForge, Michael Dorn's Worf, and all the rest of the crew of "The Next Generation." The 2002 film, directed by Stuart Baird and by and large considered a franchise-killer, nonetheless had far-reaching implications in "Trek" lore. It introduced a previously-unknown Picard clone played by a young Tom Hardy (just go with it), killed off Brent Spiner's beloved Data, and squeaked out a widely-derided ending for our group of space-exploratory heroes.

Now, however, at least chances are high that the crew of the USS Enterprise will be able to go out in a blaze of glory far improved from their last big-screen appearances. "Picard" joins an increasingly popular trend of concluding shows receiving a special limited run in theaters — and in IMAX, at that — as Paramount pulls out all the stops to bring this story to a crowd-pleasing conclusion.

Picard and Co. are currently embroiled in a galaxy-spanning conspiracy that has seen Starfleet compromised at the highest level by the returning threat of the Changelings, tying together disparate plot lines involving Picard and Beverly Crusher's (Gates McFadden) son Jack (Ed Speelers), some leftover "Deep Space Nine" loose threads, and more surprises to come.

The finale of "Star Trek: Picard" airs on Paramount+ Thursday, April 20, 2023.