Patrick Stewart to Return as Star Trek‘s Jean-Luc Picard and the Internet Is Pretty Excited

The internet couldn’t be happier about the latest Star Trek news.

In a thrilling announcement, Patrick Stewart, everyone’s favorite British actor, revealed that he would be returning to television in a new Star Trek series based on his iconic character Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

The franchise series, which will run on CBS All Access, will focus on the next chapter of Captain Picard’s life, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Stewart surprised everyone at this year’s Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas with the announcement on Saturday.

“It is an unexpected but delightful surprise to find myself excited and invigorated to be returning to Jean-Luc Picard and to explore new dimensions within him,” said Stewart, 78, of the new role. “During these past years, it has been humbling to hear many stories about how The Next Generation brought people comfort, saw them through difficult periods in their lives or how the example of Jean-Luc inspired so many to follow in his footsteps, pursuing science, exploration and leadership.”

Stewart said he feels ready to return to the role and hopes his reprisal of the character can help shine light into people’s lives during “these often very dark times.”

So far, no details have been revealed about the name of the series, its premier date or how many episodes it will be, THR reports. The new series is the third franchise spin-off of the beloved sci-fi show, joining Discovery and Star Treks on CBS’ on-demand subscription platform.

There are four Star Trek: The Next Generation feature films, the most recent being Star Trek: Nemesis in 2002, which was the last time Stewart played Picard.

People can’t seem to wait to get him on-screen again.

You can watch Stewart’s announcement at the Star Trek convention here: