10 Times Gene Roddenberry Hated Star Trek

Wesley Crusher was one of Gene Roddenberry's favourite characters in Star Trek. Mostly because the character was actually based on an idealised version of himself as a teenager.

The Audience's reactions to Wesley deeply upset Gene. At times, due to Wesley being based off of himself, he even saw their hate for the character as an attack on him. The truth is that most people disliked Wesley simply because he was too perfect. During season one of The Next Generation, Wesley was the star of the show, constantly saving the ship and beating impossible odds, and never making any mistakes.

As the series progressed, Wesley appeared less and less before leaving the ship to attend Starfleet Academy, then ditched the Federation altogether in the episode, Journey's End, to explore space and reality with the Traveler, his mysterious alien mentor. He isn't seen after this this point until the movie Star Trek: Nemesis, where he's just sitting in the background during the wedding scene.

Gene Roddenberry was always annoyed that his self-inserted character was side-lined, especially because it wasn't the studio that rejected him, but the fans.