Will Buffy and the X-Files kill Star Trek?

We've slipped a bit over the last ten years. The ratings have fallen a little bit but it is partly due to the enormous amount of Star Trek that's available.

I have seen nights where there are Star Trek movies on movie channels, and there are re-runs of the original series, The Next Generation, Deep Space 9 and Voyager. I think a lot of people have reached saturation point. People found when Deep Space 9 and Voyager were on the air, that there was only one hour a week that they were willing to devote to Star Trek. When you suddenly end up with The X-Files and with all the numerous other fantasy and science fiction shows that have gone on the air in the last five years - whether it's your Xena type of science fiction or your Buffy type or your X Files type - it's a great deal of competition and there are a lot of people who are looking for something fresh.

On the other hand, Star Trek has a familiarity to it that I think makes it very special for many, many people. They've grown up with Star Trek and they know the terminology. The key is to create both movies and television series that are comfortable to the audience, that have charming people that the audience wants to come back and see, week after week. And, that's what we're continuing to try to do.