Patrick Stewart's ex-wife flew a wig from the UK to the US for his 'Star Trek' audition: 'I do not know if my hairpiece flew first class'

• Patrick Stewart's ex-wife had to fly a wig from the UK to the US for his "Star Trek" audition.
• The actor spoke about his "Star Trek" tenure in his new memoir, "Making It So."

Captain Jean-Luc Picard in "Star Trek: The Next Generation" is one of Patrick Stewart's most iconic roles. But the character was initially envisioned rather differently.

In his new memoir, "Making It So," Stewart recalls how his close friend Ian McKellen tried to dissuade him from signing up for the series, and also shares some insight into what the audition process was like.

Stewart says that while he was traveling from the UK to Los Angeles to audition for the role, his ex-wife Sheila Falconer received a call from his agent.

He writes: "Right as I was boarding my plane at Heathrow, my London agent called Sheila at home and notified her that the Paramount people had been in touch, asking if I owned a hairpiece, and if I did, could I bring it to the audition?"

"Sheila diligently retrieved my 'audition wig' from its space in my wardrobe and boxed it up, whereupon a British Airways representative collected it and placed it on a later flight to Los Angeles," Stewart continues.

"I do not know if my hairpiece flew first class. But by Sunday, it had arrived, and I drove back to LAX to retrieve it. It was packed in my briefcase when I drove to the Paramount Studios lot on Monday morning," adds the actor.

Stewart goes on to write that when it came time to audition, he was only asked to perform one scene before being dismissed.

Later, three executives came to the actor's dressing room to say goodbye, he says. By this point, his hairstylist had removed his wig.

"Shit, here comes the bad news," Stewart recalls thinking.

"But all they did was thank me once more, wish me a good day, and take off," he continues. "When the door closed, Joy began jumping up and down gleefully. 'You know why they did that?' she said. 'They wanted to see what you looked like without the hairpiece. And I think they liked what they saw!'"

Stewart went on to star in seven seasons of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," and later reprised the role of Picard in four movies and the sequel series, "Star Trek: Picard."

Correction: October 10, 2023 — An earlier version of this story misstated the number of seasons of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" that Patrick Stewart appeared in. He appeared in seven, not six.