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Published Jan 30, 2024

Star Trek: Section 31 Confirms Start of Production with First Look

Academy Award-winning actress Michelle Yeoh released a photo from set; plus, additional cast announced!

StarTrek.com

Red alert! 

Production is officially underway now on the original movie event, Star Trek: Section 31 , in Toronto, with the first image shared of Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh on the set of production.

In Star Trek: Section 31 , Emperor Philippa Georgiou, the fan-favorite character Yeoh first introduced in Star Trek: Discovery , joins a secret division of Starfleet. Tasked with protecting the United Federation of Planets, she also must face the sins of her past.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Star Trek on Paramount+ (@startrekonpplus)

In addition to Yeoh, the cast of the CBS Studios production includes Omari Hardwick ( Powers ), Kacey Rohl ( Hannibal ), Emmy Award winner Sam Richardson ( Ted Lasso ), Sven Ruygrok ( One Piece ), Robert Kazinsky ( Pacific Rim ), Humberly Gonzalez ( Ginny & Georgia ), and James Hiroyuki Liao ( Barry ).

L to R: Omari Hardwick (credit: Warwick Saint), Kacey Rohl (credit: Kristine Cofsky), Sam Richardson (credit: Abita Jefferson), Sven Ruygrok (credit: Justin Munitz), Robert Kazinsky (credit: Eric Blackmon), Humberly Gonzalez (credit: Kristina Ruddick), James Hiroyuki Liao (credit: Joshua Monesson) 

Executive Producer Alex Kurtzman enthusiastically states, "And we’re off to the races! Thrilled to report principal photography has started on Star Trek: Section 31 . We welcome our incredible cast of new characters as they join our beloved Michelle Yeoh on her next wild adventure across the Trek universe."

Previously when the project was announced , Yeoh shared, "I’m beyond thrilled to return to my Star Trek family and to the role I’ve loved for so long. Section 31 has been near and dear to my heart since I began the journey of playing Philippa all the way back when this new golden age of Star Trek launched. To see her finally get her moment is a dream come true in a year that’s shown me the incredible power of never giving up on your dreams. We can’t wait to share what’s in store for you, and until then: live long and prosper (unless Emperor Georgiou decrees otherwise)!"

Written by Craig Sweeny and directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi, Star Trek: Section 31 is executive produced by Alex Kurtzman, Craig Sweeny, Aaron Baiers, Olatunde Osunsanmi, Frank Siracusa, John Weber, Rod Roddenberry, Trevor Roth and Michelle Yeoh, and is produced by CBS Studios in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment.

Star Trek: Section 31 will be available to stream exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. and in all international markets where the service is available. The movie is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.

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‘Star Trek’ Cast, Including Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto, Returning for Fourth Film

By Adam B. Vary

Adam B. Vary

Senior Entertainment Writer

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They’re boldly going back.

Paramount is planning to enter negotiations for “ Star Trek ” stars Chris Pine , Zachary Quinto , Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, John Cho and Simon Pegg to return to the Enterprise for their fourth tour of duty in the venerable sci-fi franchise.

The announcement was made by J.J. Abrams during the Paramount Investors Day Presentation on Feb. 15.

“We are thrilled to say that we are hard at work on a new ‘Star Trek’ film that will be shooting by the end of the year that will be featuring our original cast and some new characters that I think are going to be really fun and exciting and help take ‘Star Trek’ into areas that you’ve just never seen before,” Abrams said. “We’re thrilled about this film, we have a bunch of other stories that we’re talking about that we think will be really exciting, so can’t wait for you to see what we’re cooking up. But until then, live long and prosper.”

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The six actors first stepped into their respective iconic roles as Kirk, Spock, Uhura, Bones, Sulu and Scotty in 2009’s “Star Trek,” directed by Abrams, which reset the “Trek” timeline and allowed for the reboot to exist unencumbered from the hundreds of hours of “Trek” continuity that had come before. The actors returned in two sequels, 2013’s “Star Trek Into Darkness,” also directed by Abrams, and 2016’s “Star Trek Beyond,” directed by Justin Lin.

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Abrams is producing the new, as-yet-untitled film through Bad Robot, with Matt Shakman (“WandaVision”) directing from a screenplay by Josh Friedman (“Avatar 2”) and Cameron Squires (“WandaVision”) based on a earlier draft by Lindsey Beer (“Sierra Burgess Is a Loser”) and Geneva Robertson-Dworet (“Captain Marvel”).

Paramount was close to bringing back this cast once before: In 2018, S.J. Clarkson (“Jessica Jones”) had signed up to direct a sequel that would have reunited Pine’s Kirk with his late father, played by Chris Hemsworth reprising his performance from the 2009 “Star Trek.” That film never materialized, however, after Paramount reportedly couldn’t close a deal with Pine and Hemsworth.

Since then, insiders say the studio has done market research to determine audience interest in the rebooted cast, given the long wait period between “Beyond” — which lost money for Paramount — and a prospective new “Trek” film. Execs determined that there was still lasting audience enthusiasm for Pine, Quinto and the rest of the cast in their established roles, which allowed the studio to feel comfortable with moving forward with bringing them back.

Paramount has also explored several other avenues for “Trek” features, none of which seem to have ultimately borne fruit. Quentin Tarantino reportedly cooled on a “Star Trek” script he was pursuing with “The Revenant” screenwriter Mark L. Smith. In late 2019, Paramount tapped “Fargo” and “Legion” creator Noah Hawley to write and direct a “Trek” movie that Hawley planned to feature new actors playing new characters. But when Emma Watts became president of the Paramount Motion Picture Group a few months later, insiders say she paused all “Trek” development, including Hawley’s film , to decide how best to move forward with one of the studio’s crown jewel franchises. With Watts’ departure from Paramount in September, it’s unclear what the current “Trek” film portends for other development for the franchise, including a screenplay by “Fear the Walking Dead” co-executive producer Kalinda Vazquez .

Bringing the 2009 “Trek” cast back could prove a challenge given they’ve all had busy schedules since “Beyond.” Pine added the “Wonder Woman” franchise to his resume and he’ll next appear in Olivia Wilde’s thriller “Don’t Worry Darling” and the black-ops film “Violence of Action.” Quinto headlined the AMC series “NOS4A2,” and starred in the Broadway revival of “The Boys in the Band” and its 2020 Netflix film adaptation. Saldana continued her run as Gamora in several Marvel Studios films, including “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” and “Avengers: Endgame”; she’ll star in “Avatar 2” this year and in “Guardians Vol. 3” in 2023. Urban appeared in 2017’s “Thor: Ragnarok” and he’ll continue his performance as Billy Butcher on Season 3 of Amazon’s “The Boys” in June. Cho starred in acclaimed indies “Columbus” and “Searching,” and he starred in Netflix’s live-action adaption of the anime series “Cowboy Bebop.” And Pegg starred with Nick Frost on Amazon’s horror comedy series “Truth Seekers,” and he’ll reprise his role as Benji in “Mission: Impossible 7” in 2023.

One member of the 2009 “Trek” cast, however, sadly cannot join them. Anton Yelchin, who played Chekov, died in an accident in June 2016, a month before “Beyond” opened in theaters. At that film’s premiere at San Diego Comic Con, the cast, filmmakers and invited guests sat in a full minute of silence in tribute to the late actor.

Brent Lang contributed to this story.

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Star Trek 4 Development Details And More

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J.J. Abrams rebooted the "Star Trek" franchise in 2009, and since then, the three films in the new Kelvin timeline have been a smashing success. Altogether, the first "Trek" reboot, 2013's "Star Trek Into Darkness," and 2016's "Star Trek Beyond" have grossed more than a billion dollars at the global box office. They've also done fairly well critically. With all that love, it seems pretty obvious that Hollywood would want to get "Star Trek 4" to theater screens at warp speed.

However, the road to "Star Trek 4" has not been a smooth one. In fact, it's been filled with starts and stops, various creatives coming and going, and a release date that keeps getting beamed all over the place. What do we actually know about the fourth installment of the "Star Trek" reboot series, and what will it look like when it finally makes first contact? Read on for everything we know so far about "Star Trek 4."

What is the release date for Star Trek 4?

"Star Trek 4" has been in the works for a long time ... a really long time. In June 2015, The Hollywood Reporter announced that Chris Pine (Kirk) and Zachary Quinto (Spock) had signed up for "Star Trek 4." But Pine and Chris Hemsworth (who was said to be returning as Kirk's dad) allegedly left a potential fourth project over pay disputes in 2018, and in 2019, it was announced that the film had been shelved. Eventually, the project started moving again and earned a release date of June 9, 2023, but that got kicked back to December 22, 2023 ... before vanishing from the release slate completely.

We have reason to believe "Star Trek 4" is still in the works, however. Speaking with Collider , former director Matt Shakman (who left the project to direct "Fantastic Four") said, "I think what they're still working on is a version of what I have been working on for the time that I was involved." In August 2023, Quinto added his own take on the likelihood of a fourth outing. "I think there's a lot of other stuff, creative things. It's complicated," the actor remarked (via TrekMovie.com ). He continued, "I don't know if and when it will happen ... And if coalesces again and we come back and we're able to do it, wonderful. If not, we had a great run."

In a September 2023 piece on the end of the Writers Guild of America strike, Variety reported that Paramount was looking to polish a "Star Trek 4" script. Another promising nugget of info emerged around this time, when writer-director Lindsey Anderson Beer, who co-wrote a prospective "Star Trek 4" script, told Collider , "It's still on the tracks." So, "Star Trek 4" isn't dead in the water, and with the 2023 Hollywood strikes ended, a major obstacle is gone. But that's pretty much all we know.

What is the plot of Star Trek 4?

At this point, no plot details for the upcoming fourth "Star Trek" movie have been revealed. Some proposed paths forward have been rumored to involve alternate timelines, or even another reboot — especially Tarantino's attempt — but they've all fallen by the wayside. For now, we can probably assume "Star Trek 4" will take place after the events of 2016's "Star Trek Beyond," which was directed by Justin Lin of the  "Fast and Furious" franchise .

In "Star Trek Beyond," Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise see their beloved ship crash on the planet Altamid after an ambush by a pre-Federation human soldier, Idris Elba's Captain Balthazar Edison. When Kirk and the gang discover Edison's plans to use an ancient bioweapon to destroy the Federation, they're forced to stop him — without the help of their ship. That film also explores the death of Leonard Nimoy's Ambassador Spock, as well as relationship troubles between Spock and Uhura.

One story we know "Star Trek 4" won't be exploring is a reunion between Captain Kirk and his father George, courtesy of time travel. Chris Hemsworth briefly played George Kirk in 2009's "Star Trek," but turned down a chance to reprise the role in a bigger story in 2018. "Star Trek 4" also won't tie into any of the current "Star Trek" TV series, like "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" or "Star Trek: Lower Decks." Those series take place in a universe separate from the Kelvin timeline.

Who is starring in Star Trek 4?

You'd expect a "Star Trek" movie set in the Kelvin timeline to feature the return of the ol' gang, right? Why, yes, you would. However, nothing has been easy about getting "Star Trek 4" off the ground, and that includes bringing back the original cast. In 2018, Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth reportedly walked away from the project over pay disputes. In February 2022, when producer J.J. Abrams announced that "Star Trek 4" was finally moving ahead, new behind-the-scenes drama erupted. While Abrams said the original stars were returning, none of the actors had officially agreed to the project.

In March 2022, Pine told Variety about his reaction to the "Star Trek 4" announcement: "I think everybody was like, 'Did you hear about this?' We're usually the last people to find out, but I do know we're all excited. Whenever they want to send us a script, we're ready for it." Karl Urban had a similar stance, telling the U.K.'s Radio X (via TrekMovie.com ) in May 2022, "I have heard that it is happening, but I've been hearing that for the last three years ... All I know is they are developing it, they're writing a script, and I know 100% that we all want to come back and do it. So I think it's all just a matter of logistics and timing at this point."

Sofia Boutella — who played Jaylah in "Star Trek Beyond" — also expressed interest in returning, saying (via Fandom Spotlite ), "I would love to see [Jaylah] evolve with all of the guys ... I would do it in a heartbeat." However, Zachary Quinto seems a bit wary of the whole thing. During a November 2022 interview with The Independent , the actor said, "At this point, I honestly have very little attachment to it. All of us would like to come back and make another movie, but I've learnt to only get excited about things I know are actually real. And there's nothing about a fourth 'Star Trek' movie that feels real right now."

Will Star Trek 4 recast Chekov?

One of the most classic and beloved "Star Trek" characters, Pavel Chekov was memorably played in the first three Kelvin timeline movies by Anton Yelchin. Yelchin was killed in a car accident in June 2016, just one month before the release of "Star Trek Beyond." His passing has definitely been felt by both fans and his "Star Trek" cohorts.

In March 2022, when the movie was still moving forward under director Matt Shakman, Uhura actress Zoe Saldaña told Entertainment Tonight about the project. "Obviously, it's bittersweet," she remarked, "because we are coming together for a fourth time and one of us is no longer with us with Anton's passing, but we honestly feel that going back and keeping the 'Star Trek' family together is a way to really keep him alive in our thoughts and our hearts because he was such a fan. And he was such a devoted artist to the craft and also to 'Star Trek.'"

Of course, that particular version of "Star Trek 4" is no longer moving forward, but if you think Saldaña's comments indicate that Paramount won't be recasting the part of Chekov, you're probably right. In a 2016 interview with Postmedia Network , shortly after Yelchin's death, producer J.J. Abrams explained, "I would say there's no replacing him. There's no recasting. I can't possibly imagine that, and I think Anton deserves better."

Granted, emotions were high when Abrams said they wouldn't replace Yelchin. However, there's been no indication in the years since the actor's death that a new Chekov will show up on the bridge of the Enterprise.

Who is directing Star Trek 4?

Perhaps the main reason that "Star Trek 4" hasn't happened yet is that Paramount Pictures is having a difficult time finding a director. For a moment, it looked like Quentin Tarantino was going to boldly go where he'd never gone before. J.J. Abrams was super excited about Tarantino's time-traveling concept of sending Kirk and co.  to a world of 1930s gangsters, similar to the classic "Trek" episode "A Piece of the Action." Screenwriter Mark L. Smith of "The Revenant" fame was set to pen the script, but sadly for Trekkies who wanted to see Spock quoting Ezekiel 25:17, Tarantino's vision never came to pass.

Then, it looked like S.J. Clarkson was going to make history as the first woman to helm a "Star Trek" movie. But after Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth left the project in 2018, the movie was subsequently shelved. Noah Hawley of "Fargo" fame was also working on a "Star Trek" movie — one that would've been about a brand new group of heroes — but Paramount eventually stepped in and shut things down because it wouldn't have featured the famous Enterprise crew.

The closest that "Star Trek 4" has come to happening was when Matt Shakman took the captain's seat. After he directed the entirety of the smash hit MCU series "WandaVision," the world was Shakman's oyster, and he intended to shepherd the newest entry in the "Star Trek" universe to theater screens. However, Marvel Studios was keen on working with Shakman again, and after director Jon Watts decided to step away from 2025's "Fantastic Four," the folks at Marvel asked Shakman to come back to the MCU — which he did. As a result, at the moment, "Star Trek 4" is floating through space without a captain.

Where to watch the previous Star Trek movies

While we all wait for news about "Star Trek 4," it might be a good time to go back and revisit previous installments in the "Star Trek" reboot series. If you want to watch the film that started it all and introduced us to new versions of Kirk, Spock, Uhura, and the rest of the Enterprise crew, you can stream 2009's "Star Trek" on Paramount+ . You can also rent it for $3.99 on Google Play ,  Amazon Prime Video , Apple iTunes , Vudu , and YouTube .

If you're ready for the 2013 sequel where Benedict Cumberbatch definitely doesn't play Khan Noonien Singh, you can stream "Star Trek Into Darkness" on Paramount+ . You can also rent it for $3.99 on Google Play , Apple iTunes , Vudu , and YouTube . Amazon Prime Video offers it for $4.29. If you're looking for the third film, where our heroes learn the true power of the Beastie Boys, you can stream "Star Trek Beyond" on Paramount+ . You can also rent it for $2.69 on Google Play and $3.99 on Amazon Video , Apple iTunes , Vudu , and YouTube .

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J.J. Abrams teases the return of his original cast in new Star Trek film

Maureen Lee Lenker is a senior writer at Entertainment Weekly with over seven years of experience in the entertainment industry. An award-winning journalist, she's written for Turner Classic Movies, Ms. Magazine , The Hollywood Reporter , and more. She's worked at EW for six years covering film, TV, theater, music, and books. The author of EW's quarterly romance review column, "Hot Stuff," Maureen holds Master's degrees from both the University of Southern California and the University of Oxford. Her debut novel, It Happened One Fight , is now available. Follow her for all things related to classic Hollywood, musicals, the romance genre, and Bruce Springsteen.

Star Trek is ready to boldly go where they've gone three times before.

On Tuesday, J.J. Abrams announced plans for a fourth Star Trek film at the Paramount Investors Day presentation. The film will be directed by Matt Shakman ( WandaVision ) with Abrams producing, and the aim is to bring back many of Abrams' original stars from his 2009 reboot of the long-running franchise.

"We are thrilled to say that we are hard at work on a new Star Trek film that will be shooting by the end of the year that will be featuring our original cast and some new characters that I think are going to be really fun and exciting and help take Star Trek into areas that you've just never seen before," Abrams said. "We're thrilled about this film, we have a bunch of other stories that we're talking about that we think will be really exciting, so can't wait for you to see what we're cooking up. But until then, live long and prosper."

However, EW has learned that the studio has yet to enter negotiations with that original cast at this juncture. The cast features a litany of high profile names, including Chris Pine as Captain Kirk, Zachary Quinto as Spock, Zoe Saldana as Uhura, John Cho as Sulu, Karl Urban as Bones, and Simon Pegg as Scotty. Anton Yelchin , who featured as Chekhov in Abrams' previous three entries , died in 2016 before the previous film in the franchise, Star Trek Beyond , hit theaters.

The new film will feature a screenplay by Josh Friedman ( Avatar 2 ) and Cameron Squires ( WandaVision ) based on a earlier draft by Lindsey Beer ( Sierra Burgess Is a Loser ) and Geneva Robertson-Dworet ( Captain Marvel ).

With his 2009 film, Abrams reset the Star Trek timeline, originally established in Gene Roddenberry's 1960s groundbreaking sci-fi television series. He followed it up with 2013's Star Trek Into Darkness, but the last time the characters' were seen on the big screen was in 2016's Star Trek Beyond, which Abrams produced with Justin Lin directing.

Plans to bring them back — including a 2018 announced sequel set to team Pine with Kirk's late father as portrayed by Chris Hemsworth in the 2009 film — have stuttered along the way. For a time, Quentin Tarantino was even circling a project .

Of late, Star Trek fans have turned back to television for new content on series Picard and Star Trek Discovery.

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly 's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.

Related content:

• See Whoopi Goldberg reprise her beloved Star Trek role as Guinan on Picard
• Sonequa Martin-Green takes the chair as captain in Star Trek: Discovery season 4 trailer
• Star Trek Beyond: Where does Star Trek go?

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Star trek origin movie officially announced by paramount for 2025 release.

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Every Upcoming Star Trek Movie & TV Show

Star trek fleet command codes (june 2024), star trek confirms doctor phlox's fate centuries after enterprise.

• Paramount Pictures announces new Star Trek movie for 2025, directed by Toby Haynes and written by Seth Grahame-Smith.
• Chris Pine-led Star Trek 4 remains in development, while the new film is an origin story set decades before Abrams' 2009 movie.
• Alongside the Star Trek origin movie, Paramount reveals a packed slate of exciting films for 2025-26 at CinemaCon in Las Vegas.

Paramount Pictures officially announces the next Star Trek movie, which is scheduled to arrive in theaters in 2025. As reported in January, the next Star Trek movie isn't the long-delayed, Chris Pine-led Star Trek 4 produced by J.J. Abrams, which remains in development at Paramount. Rather, the next Star Trek movie is an origin story directed by Toby Haynes ( Star Wars: Andor ) and written by Seth Grahame-Smith (A braham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter ).

Screen Rant' s Rob Keyes (@rob_keyes) is at CinemaCon in Las Vegas where Paramount Pictures confirmed the next Star Trek movie , currently called Untitled Star Trek Origin Story , to be released in 2025. J.J. Abrams is also producing Untitled Star Trek Origin Story, which takes place decades before Abrams' Star Trek 2009 movie. See Rob Keyes' Tweet below:

Paramount also confirmed Untitled Star Trek Origin Story will begin production later this year for theatrical release in 2025.

Star Trek is ending series like Discovery and Lower Decks but renewed Strange New Worlds while setting up new streaming and theatrical movies.

Star Trek's New Movies In Theaters And Paramount Plus Explained

Star trek is finally making movies again.

After nearly a decade, Star Trek i s back to making movies. Star Trek on Paramount+ has created a television renaissance for the franchise, but the theatrical side of Star Trek overseen by Paramount Pictures has languished in development hell since Star Trek Beyond bowed in the summer of 2016. Toby Haynes' Untitled Star Trek Origin Story is yet another prequel, but as it's said to be set decades before Star Trek 2009, it could very well be set after Star Trek: Enterprise 's mid-22nd century voyages but otherwise be an origin story for both Star Trek 's Prime and alternate Kelvin timelines .

Meanwhile, J.J. Abrams' Star Trek 4 , which is the "final chapter" of the USS Enterprise crew led by Chris Pine's Captain James T. Kirk and Zachary Quinto's Spock, has seen some movement with a new screenwriter, Steve Yockey ( The Flight Attendant ), tackling the long-delayed sequel. Pine and his fellow Star Trek actors, including Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, and Sofia Boutella, have all expressed their eagerness to return if Star Trek 4 can come together.

It's a positive sign that Star Trek movies are finally coming back.

Paramount+ is making their own Star Trek movies, with the recently-wrapped Star Trek: Section 31 awaiting a release date. Starring Academy Award-winner Michelle Yeoh, Section 31 i s the first made-for-streaming Star Trek movie, and it is reportedly set during Star Trek 's "lost era" with connections to Star Trek: The Next Generation. Section 31 could get a sequel if successful, and the Star Trek: Picard spinoff dubbed Star Trek: Legacy may also become a streaming movie instead of a series. However all this shakes out, it's a positive sign that Star Trek movies are finally coming back.

Source: Rob Keyes Twitter

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Simon kinberg in talks to produce ‘star trek’ movie franchise for paramount.

Paramount is looking to the ‘X-Men’ producer to boldly go and relaunch the property on the big screen.

By Etan Vlessing , Borys Kit May 21, 2024 9:28am

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Longtime X-Men producer Simon Kinberg  is beaming up to a new franchise.

The multi-hyphenate is in talks to produce a new Star Trek feature for Paramount Pictures , The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. If all goes well, the door would open to him taking active creative roles on the rest of the storied franchise’s film side. Alex Kurtzman and Akiva Goldsman are the main creative producers on Star Trek ‘s television side.

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Abrams remains involved with the new project as a producer. There is no release date for the feature, but the studio has signaled that it would like a 2025 opening. The machinations of the franchise take place against the backdrop of a potential sale of Paramount, which could find itself under the ownership of Sony or Skydance.

There hasn’t been a Star Trek movie since Star Trek Beyond , which was released in 2016. In recent years,  Trek  primarily has lived on the small screen, boldly finding new life thanks to numerous streaming shows on Paramount+, among them  Star Trek Discovery ,  Picard and Strange New Worlds . Efforts to relaunch the film side, including reuniting the Abrams Trek cast that included Chris Pine, Zoe Saldana and Simon Pegg, among others, have ended up stranded on rocky alien shores. Paramount is also understood to still be developing a fourth Trek  to feature that cast that is being described as the final chapter for this crew.

Puck was the first to report on Kinberg being in negotiations to reboot the Star Trek movie franchise.

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‘Star Trek’ Origin Story Movie Will Be Set Decades Before 2009 Film

CinemaCon 2024: The new project will be produced by longtime “Star Trek” steward J.J. Abrams

Paramount Pictures is ready to boldly go (again).

After rumors circulated earlier this year, Paramount officially announced a new “Star Trek” prequel film on Thursday, this time taking place decades before the original 2009 “Star Trek” feature.

“Andor” director Toby Haynes will direct from a script by Seth Grahame-Smith (who is also writing another hotly touted CinemaCon title, the third “Now You See Me” film). J.J. Abrams is returning to produce.

But then again, we’ve heard about a new “Star Trek” movie before.

During the run-up to “Star Trek Beyond” in 2016, it was revealed that a fourth film would reunite Chris Pine’s Captain Kirk with his deceased father (played, once again, by Chris Hemsworth). A year later, Quentin Tarantino approached Paramount about doing a “Star Trek” movie – this time as an R-rated gangster movie (based, in part, on the 1968 episode of the original series “A Piece of the Action”). In 2018 S.J. Clarkson, a TV vet who would eventually direct “Madame Web,” was hired to direct the fourth film in the Abrams-verse, but salary disputes led to Pine and Hemsworth leaving the project. That version was canceled in 2019 and Tarantino stated in 2020 that he wouldn’t be making his “Star Trek” either.

In November 2019 “Fargo” creator Noah Hawley was hired to write and direct a new “Star Trek” film based on his version of the series. A year later, this movie was canceled by new Paramount Pictures president Emma Watts. In 2021 “Star Trek: Discovery” writer Kalinda Vazquez was hired to write a version based on her original pitch, but a separate script was being developed by Lindsey Beer and Geneva Robertson-Dworet. The studio even set a summer 2023 release date for a new “Trek” (which “Trek” was the question).

In 2021 that release date was pushed to Christmas 2023, under the direction of “WandaVision” director Matt Shakman. Josh Friedman and Cameron Squires were brought on to retool the script. In early 2022 it was announced that the stars of the three previous “Star Trek” installments in the Abrams-verse would all be returning, although it was later reported that the actors had not entered negotiations to return.

In 2022 Shakman left “Star Trek” to join Marvel Studios’ “The Fantastic Four.” But just last month Steve Yockey was hired to write a fourth “Star Trek” movie.

Now, we are finally getting word of another film in development, with another writer/director team. But it’s not the first time that a “Star Trek” prequel script has been floated, as Erik Jendresen, cowriter of “Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning,” had submitted a script for “Star Trek: The Beginning” before J.J. had taken over and pitched his 2009 version. It depicted the Earth-Romulan War.

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New Star Trek Prequel Movie Is Officially Official, Andor And Black Mirror Director Confirmed

Captain's Log: Stardate 2024. It's been eight years since the USS Enterprise's last voyage on the big screen, with the franchise having since returned to its roots on television. During that period, the property has proliferated thanks to an influx of streaming series that's included everything from a "Next Generation" reunion to a raunchy cartoon and a wonderfully silly musical episode . But through it all, the question has lingered: when will Trekkies get to undertake another mission painted on the largest canvas available?

It's not been for lack of effort on Paramount's part. Ever since the commercial disappointment of 2016's "Star Trek Beyond" brought the escapades of the Kelvin Universe film series to a halt, the studio has cycled through one filmmaker after another in its quest to get "Star Trek" up and running in theaters once more. Most recently, it turned to "Black Mirror" director Toby Haynes to helm a new chapter based on a script by "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" and "The LEGO Batman Movie" scribe Seth Grahame-Smith. At the same time, Paramount has continued to try and mount a fourth and final chapter in the Kelvin Timeline story that began with J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek" in 2009, having only barely recruited Steve Yockey ("The Flight Attendant") to work his magic on the screenplay.

Thankfully, we finally got an official update today during Paramount's CinemaCon presentation in Las Vegas (which /Film's Ryan Scott was there to witness with his own two eyes). The studio confirmed that Haynes' film will usher in the franchise's long-awaited return to theaters while, apparently, also functioning as a prequel to the previous Kelvin Universe movies. Production will begin later this year.

Star Trek will boldly go before it's never gone before

Literally winding back the clock for a mission is common practice in "Star Trek," so much so that the property even has a strict set of rules covering all the do's and don'ts of time travel (lest anyone step on a butterfly and wipe James Kirk out of existence). Prequels, on the other hand, only really came into vogue in the 2000s with the one-two punch of "Star Trek: Enterprise" and Abrams' film, the latter of which also introduced the alternate timeline known as the Kelvin Universe. Now, much as its big screen reboot 15 years ago served to reinvigorate the franchise while also appealing to a new generation of Trekkies, it's possible Paramount's goal here is for Haynes' prequel to revive the Kelvin series before bringing the main cast back while at the same time offering a jumping-on point for those who're new(ish) to the whole trekking across space thing.

Haynes' movie itself has previously been described as an "origin story" for "Star Trek" at large , which certainly supports the idea of it functioning as a soft reset without actually wiping out any earlier continuity (just like Abrams' movie). The director, for his part, has already demonstrated an appreciation for the property with his acclaimed "Black Mirror" episode "USS Callister" — a darkly satirical take on "Star Trek" tropes and toxic fandom — while his work on the "Star Wars" series "Andor" proves he's more than up for the task of taking a beloved sci-fi property and subverting it in fresh and exhilarating ways. With a little luck, these past eight years will prove to be more than worth the wait.

Keep it tuned to /Film for further updates on anything and everything "Star Trek."

We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article.

Star Trek 4 potential release date, cast and everything you need to know

A new writer has boarded the USS Enterprise.

Star Trek 4 potential release date: When can we expect Star Trek 4?

Star trek 4 cast: who's going to be in star trek 4, star trek 4 plot: what's going to happen in star trek 4, star trek 4 trailer: any star trek 4 footage yet.

Star Trek 4 still isn't close to being released, but we do at least know that development continues on the long-awaited movie .

In March 2024, it was reported that Steve Yockey – who developed The Flight Attendant – had become the latest writer to tackle a new draft for the movie, which is intended to bring back Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto and Zoe Saldaña.

This is separate from the other two Star Trek movies in the works: a prequel movie directed by Toby Haynes and Star Trek: Discovery spin-off Section 31 , which finished filming in March 2024.

We'll likely see both of those movies before we see Star Trek 4 , but at least it should be released one day. But while we wait, here's everything you need to know about the (potential) return of the USS Enterprise in Star Trek 4 .

Is Star Trek 4 confirmed?

As far as we know, Star Trek 4 is definitely going to happen despite the fact we're nearing eight years since the last movie, Star Trek Beyond , was released.

The long-gestating movie finally looked to be on track in February 2022 when it was announced that JJ Abrams was returning to produce with Matt Shakman directing, to the surprise of the cast as much as the fans.

Unfortunately, Shakman left the movie in August 2022 to direct Fantastic Four for Marvel instead . And then in September 2022, Paramount took the movie off the release calendar entirely.

In March 2023, JJ Abrams – who has produced all three movies in the reboot trilogy and directed two of them – said that a search for a director is ongoing.

"I will say it's the first time [since the original reboot] that we have a story that feels as compelling as the first one," he told Esquire . Of course, Pine also called the franchise "cursed" so it depends how hopeful you feel like being.

We've heard nothing since about a potential director for the movie, but at least we know is that Star Trek 4 is in active development at Paramount, given that there is now a new writer on board.

Once upon a time, Star Trek 4 was scheduled to be released in cinemas on December 22, 2023.

Of course, that never happened, and Star Trek 4 hasn't got a confirmed release date as of May 2024. There's no rumours either about when it could reappear on the schedule.

In June 2022, prior to Shakman leaving the project, Paramount boss Brian Robbins did confirm development was under way on the fourth Star Trek . "We're deep into it with JJ Abrams, and it feels like we're getting close to the starting line and excited about where we're going creatively," he said .

However, in November 2022, star Zachary Quinto told The Independent : "At this point, I honestly have very little attachment to it.

"All of us would like to come back and make another movie, but I’ve learnt to only get excited about things I know are actually real. And there's nothing about a fourth Star Trek movie that feels real right now."

Other people involved seem to have faith in the project moving forward, though, and hopefully a new writer joining is a positive step.

All we can do is watch this space.

Even when Star Trek 4 was originally being released in December 2023, it hadn't been 100% confirmed that the reboot cast would be back.

That being said, during his June 2022 announcement, Robbins did say he knew audience "wants that cast in this movie" – referring to the reboot cast.

So, if it ever does come to fruition, we'd be surprised if it was with a brand-new cast. You can likely then expect the returns of Chris Pine (Kirk), Zachary Quinto (Spock), Zoe Saldaña (Uhura), Karl Urban (Bones), John Cho (Sulu) and Simon Pegg (Scotty).

Urban certainly seems keen for a return, although he also revealed in March 2022 that, like Pine, he hadn't read a script yet . "I would love to work with those guys again; so much fun, the best hang. We'll see," he enthused.

It all feels very up in the air, as per Quinto's quotes, but that doesn't mean we can't hope.

The initial plan for the fourth movie was to have a timey-wimey adventure that featured Chris Pine's James T Kirk somehow joining forces with his long-dead dad, played by Chris Hemsworth .

Hemsworth opened up in May 2019 about why he stepped away from the movie , saying: "I didn't feel like we landed on a reason to revisit that yet. I didn't want to be underwhelmed by what I was going to bring to the table."

It's unclear if this new version of Star Trek 4 plans to bring Hemsworth back or if it's gone in a totally new direction, but Hemsworth seems open to a return for the fourth movie.

In October 2022, Rings of Power bosses JD Payne and Patrick McKay teased more about what their original idea for the fourth movie was going to be. "The conceit was that through a cosmic quirk in the Star Trek world, they were the same age," McKay explained.

We also don't know yet whether the new movie will recast Pavel Chekov following Anton Yelchin's tragic death in 2016. "It's bittersweet because we are coming together for a fourth time, and one of us is no longer with us," Saldaña said in March 2022 .

"But we honestly feel that going back and keeping the Star Trek family together is a way to really keep him alive in our thoughts and our hearts."

Right now, we don't have any confirmed plot details for the fourth movie, and it's not clear how closely it'll follow on from the ending of Star Trek Beyond .

The third movie ended with Kirk declining the promotion to vice admiral and staying as the captain of the USS Enterprise. Spock also chose to remain in Starfleet and reignited his romance with Uhura.

As the movie ends, they're all set to continue their mission on a brand-new USS Enterprise after the previous one was destroyed during the movie's events.

It means that the fourth movie can go anywhere. But, for Pine, he believes that whatever the plot is, it shouldn't try to compete with Marvel .

"I've always thought that Star Trek should operate in the zone that is smaller. You know, it's not a Marvel appeal. It's like, let's make the movie for the people that love this group of people, that love this story, that love Star Trek ," he said.

"Let's make it for them and then, if people want to come to the party, great. But make it for a price and make it, so that if it makes a half-billion dollars, that's really good."

You're kidding, right? We'd love to get all timey-wimey ourselves and show you a trailer for Star Trek 4 from the future, but we're stuck in the Mirror Universe.

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Movies Editor, Digital Spy  Ian has more than 10 years of movies journalism experience as a writer and editor.  Starting out as an intern at trade bible Screen International, he was promoted to report and analyse UK box-office results, as well as carving his own niche with horror movies , attending genre festivals around the world.   After moving to Digital Spy , initially as a TV writer, he was nominated for New Digital Talent of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards. He became Movies Editor in 2019, in which role he has interviewed 100s of stars, including Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Keanu Reeves, Idris Elba and Olivia Colman, become a human encyclopedia for Marvel and appeared as an expert guest on BBC News and on-stage at MCM Comic-Con. Where he can, he continues to push his horror agenda – whether his editor likes it or not.  

Gabriella Geisinger is a freelance journalist and film critic, and was previously Deputy Movies Editor at Digital Spy. She loves Star Wars , coming-of-age stories, thrillers , and true crime. A born and raised New Yorker, she also loves coffee and the colour black, obviously.

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Star Trek 4 release date estimate and latest news

It's been too long since the Kelvin timeline was last on the big screen, so we've scoured the web for all the Star Trek 4 news out there.

Tom Percival

Published: Nov 20, 2023

When is the Star Trek 4 release date ? It’s been more than a decade since the crew of the Kelvin timeline USS Enterprise last boldly went where no one has gone before in Star Trek: Beyond.

Set in an alternate timeline to the rest of the Star Trek we know and love (including all our favorite Star Trek series and the previous Star Trek movies ), the reboot films follow the adventures of the most famous  Star Trek captain , James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and his beloved crew. Unfortunately, though, in recent years, Star Trek 4 has been trapped in the Tholian web of development hell. Still, there’s reason to be hopeful, so here’s everything we know about the crew of the USS Enterprises’s next big adventure.

When is the Star Trek 4 release date?

Star Trek 4 was scheduled for release on Friday, December 22, 2023. However, the film was delayed indefinitely after the director Matt Shakman left the project, and Star Trek 4 was eventually removed from Paramount’s upcoming slate of movies in August 2022. 

That all sounds pretty bad, so is there any good news? Well, Star Trek 4 hasn’t been officially canceled yet, and Lindsey Anderson Beer, who was a writer on the project, has hinted that the movie is still in the works; it’s just a bit delayed.

“It is, it’s still on the tracks,” Beer said as recently as September 2023 [via Collider ]. “I love that project, and it was another one that I had to hop off of to direct this movie, and that was a hard thing to do. But I love that everybody involved with that project.”

If “still on the tracks” means that the story is being developed/worked on in the background, then there’s still hope that a new Star Trek movie isn’t off the table completely. With that in mind, perhaps a 2026 release date wouldn’t be impossible, assuming they would need two years to write and shoot.

That said, would-be leading man Chris Pine has been the most recent person to talk about the ongoing project, and he hasn’t heard much. Well, actually, he hasn’t heard anything. “Not that I know,” he said [via ComicBook.com ] when asked if there was any movement on the fourth movie. When asked if he’d seen a script, he said: “Of course not.”

Frankly, if Captain Kirk himself hasn’t heard anything, we’re not going to hold our breath on this one. Be sure to check back for more news.

Who’s in the Star Trek 4 cast?

If Star Trek 4 were ever to make it to screens, we’d expect the Kelvin timeline crew to return, including Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldaña, Simon Pegg, John Cho, and Karl Urban.

Paramount previously announced that the whole reboot cast would be returning for Star Trek 4, which made it sound as though Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldaña, and John Cho would all be back aboard the USS Enterprise.

However, Paramount’s announcement was disputed by several of the cast’s agents, who explained nothing had been agreed and that negotiations were ongoing.

Since then, things have gotten even more complicated. Pine was said to have eventually reached an agreement, but then production hit significant blocks elsewhere. Whether the cast’s agreements still stand now, over a year later, is uncertain.

The expected Star Trek 4 cast list:

• Chris Pine as Captain James T. Kirk
• Zachary Quinto as Spock
• Zoe Saldaña as Nyota Uhura
• Simon Pegg as Montgomery Scott
• John Cho as Hikaru Sulu
• Karl Urban as Doctor Leonard McCoy

In addition, Sofia Boutella has also said she’d be interested in reprising the role of Jaylah, who we met in Beyond. At the same time, Star Trek 4 would no doubt address the absence of Chekov, who was played by the late Anton Yelchin.

Matt Shakman was brought on board to direct Star Trek 4, but he left the project to make the MCU’s Fantastic Four reboot after Spider-Man’s Jon Watts decided he needed a break from making superhero movies.

What will Star Trek 4 be about?

The plot of Star Trek 4 is anyone’s guess right now, as we know that many different scripts have progressed into various stages of production before being scrapped. 

Because this is Star Trek, it could literally be about anything. Time travel, old villains returning, disputes over territory, you get the picture.

Pine has been open in that he’d like to see the film have a smaller budget and really focus on making the fans happy. “Let’s make the movie for the people that love this group of people, that love this story, that love Star Trek,” he told Deadline . “Let’s make it for them, and then, if people want to come to the party, great. But make it for a price and make it so that if it makes a half-billion dollars, that’s really good.”

That certainly seems like a good way to go and may help to rein in some of the worst excesses of the Kelvin Star Trek timeline movies, which tend to be about world-ending stakes and massive action. That’s fun and all, but many Star Trek fans (yes, including us) would be up for something far more lowkey that makes use of the franchise’s sci-fi setting, although we wouldn’t say no to a Borg appearance.

Is Quentin Tarantino making Star Trek 4?

No, Quentin Tarantino isn’t making Star Trek 4. However, it’s true that Tarantino did express interest in making a Star Trek movie. Allegedly, he wanted to make a big screen adaptation of A Piece of the Action — an episode set on a gangster planet — and the film was surprisingly far in development.

A script was written, but Tarantino walked away from the film in late 2019, forcing Paramount to rethink its next Trek movie.

Tarantino is now hard at work on his final film as we move towards The Movie Critic release date . We don’t think it’s a secret Star Trek sequel, though that would be a very fun surprise indeed.

Where can I watch Star Trek 4?

If Star Trek 4 does ever come out, the movie will be a theatrical exclusive. 

In the meantime, a new Star Trek movie with Michelle Yeoh in the lead role is heading straight to Paramount Plus . You can read more about that with our guide to the Section 31 release date .

That’s it on Star Trek 4 for now until we get another update. For more on Star Trek, you can check out which Star Trek captains we think would survive in a zombie apocalypse , as well as our interview with Anson Mount and Rebecca Romijn . You can also find out more about George Takei’s first meeting with the Star Trek creator  and why Leonard Nimoy was ready to quit Star Trek .

Or, find out how we celebrated Captain Picard Day  before learning all about our hopes for a Star Trek Legacy release date  and taking a look at our picks for the best movies of all time. If that’s not enough, Starfleet, find out about the Strange New Worlds season 3 release date . We’ve also got a list of all the best Star Trek Starships  so you can brush up on your history in the meantime.

Tom Percival After graduating with an MA in journalism from the University of Salford, Tom set out to make a career for himself in the heady world of entertainment journalism. After spending six years working at UNILAD (and moonlighting at the BBC) where he interviewed the likes of Hugh Grant, Hugh Jackman, and Hugh Bonneville (plus other people not called Hugh) he left to find his fortune as editor at The Digital Fix where he spends his days trying to guess if the MCU's Doctor Doom will be in Avengers Secret Wars, thinking about Spider-Man , and watching Game of Thrones in a desperate attempt to untangle the Targaryen family tree . 

New 'Star Trek' movie featuring Picard is on the way, Patrick Stewart says

Three seasons wasn't enough of an epilogue it seems for nostalgia's favorite Starfleet admiral.

Patrick Stewart isn't ready to give up being Jean-Luc Picard.

The third season of the "Next Generation" spin-off " Picard " centered around the titular Starfleet captain ended in April of last year after successfully polarizing "Star Trek" fans. Many were turned off from the final season because it was very much a cookie-cutter carbon copy of the last two, relying heavily, once again, on attempting to remain suspenseful by applying a what's-in-the-box?! style of storytelling. 

But it turns out we may be seeing more of Jean-Luc. Stewart appeared recently on an episode of the podcast Happy Sad Confused , hosted by  Josh Horowitz to discuss the experience of playing the role of Jean-Luc Picard. 

"After we finished recording our seven seasons of 'Next Generation' we made four Star Trek movies of varying qualities, the best one being ['First Contact'], directed by Jonathan Frakes. He was one of the people who had the most influence on me on the show because of his experience and his understanding of the complexities and how bringing different qualities onto the stage was very, very important in diversity and change," Stewart said. 

As he continued, however, Stewart made a surprise statement, saying that there was a "Star Trek" movie script being written with him in mind. 

"So it's an ongoing procedure for me. I heard only last night about a script that is being written, but written specifically with the actor, Patrick [Stewart], to play in it. And I've been told to expect to receive it within a week or so. I'm so excited because it sounds like the kind of project where the experimentation that I want to do will be essential for this kind of material. It's good at 83…"

Related: Star Trek streaming guide: Where to watch the Star Trek movies and TV shows online

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The recording took place in November at about the time that Stewart was promoting his new memoir, "Making It So" and this is the latest "Star Trek" movie rumor to circulate as The Hollywood Reporter ran a story just a day or so ago that Toby Haynes, who directed episodes " Andor " will helm a new feature, with Seth Grahame-Smith writing.

The plot is said to take place within the Kelvin Universe, decades before the events of 2009’s Star Trek, which J.J. Abrams directed and Bad Robot will produce the movie.

Then there are the circulating rumors involving the new TV shows, like the Section 31 and Starfleet Academy spin-offs.

"What was so interesting about Picard, and the main reason why I decided to commit to three seasons of it was that Akiva Goldsman talked to me about the changes that had happened in my life in the last 20 years. And he said, 'Were there any?' and of course, I said yes there were lots and lots and new journeys and new experiences and relationships," said Stewart.

"And he said, 'Exactly! Well that has also been Jean-Luc’s experience.' He’s not the same man. He’s no longer captain of the Enterprise. He was made an admiral. It became really desk work, which is not what he ever wanted to do. And now he’s back at home, living on his vineyard and seeming to be reasonably content. All that was an act. All that was Jean-Luc trying to pretend, as I think my father did, that everything was all right. But it wasn’t," Stewart added.

The full interview is on YouTube here .

 —  'Star Trek: Insurrection' at 25: When Picard and the Enterprise crew found the Fountain of Youth

 — 'Star Trek' advisor warps into NASA to talk real science of sci-fi

 — 'Star Trek: Lower Decks' will get a choose-your-own-adventure graphic novel

The fifth and final season of "Star Trek: Discovery" airs sometime in April and "Discovery" and every episode of every "Star Trek" show — with the exception of "Star Trek: Prodigy" — currently streams exclusively on Paramount Plus in the U.S. "Prodigy" has found a new home  on Netflix . 

Internationally, the shows are available on Paramount Plus in Australia, Latin America, the UK and South Korea, as well as on Pluto TV in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland on the Pluto TV Sci-Fi channel. They also stream on Paramount Plus in Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In Canada, they air on Bell Media's CTV Sci-Fi Channel and stream on Crave.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected].

When Scott's application to the NASA astronaut training program was turned down, he was naturally upset...as any 6-year-old boy would be. He chose instead to write as much as he possibly could about science, technology and space exploration. He graduated from The University of Coventry and received his training on Fleet Street in London. He still hopes to be the first journalist in space.

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• crazywater Not sure what the author is referring to but the final season of Picard was what the first two seasons should have been. Seasons 1 and 2 were embarrassingly bad and not Star Trek. Season 3 was terrific. Thank God Patrick Stewart was removed from creative control. If he gets that role back for this movie it will probably revert back to the garbage from the first two season. Reply
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Star Trek 4: Plot, Cast, Release Date, and Everything Else We Know

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Star Trek 4 is shrouded in mystery and apparent defeat. The sequel to Star Trek: Beyond on J.J. Abram’s Kelvin timeline is currently stuck in dry dock. There have been plans for Paramount to make the movie for years , and sometimes, it even seems like they’re going to do it. Fans were hopeful in 2022 when it looked like things were about to go ahead, but when the stars aligned, director Matt Shakman stepped down from the project to work on Marvel’s Fantastic Four reboot instead.

Trekkies everywhere were heartbroken. Although Paramount continues to produce good Star Trek series like Strange New Worlds and Discovery , it doesn’t look like we’re going to get that big blockbuster film any time soon. That being said, hope still exists. Star Trek 4 is one of Paramount’s biggest, untapped titles, and the stars are still up for another journey into the final frontier. Things are looking dark, but somewhere, out there in the vastness of Hollywood, there is a way to make this movie. Fans still whisper, and celebrities still talk, and time and time again, it appears as if Star Trek 4 is emerging from the water.

Updated January 22, 2024: This article has been updated by Jessica Peerez with more recent information regarding Star Trek 4, the development hurdles of the film and the plans that Paramount Pictures appears to have for the franchise.

Star Trek 4: The Plot

There were a lot of rumors about the plot coming up to Star Trek 4 ’s removal from Paramount’s release slate. When Paramount first announced the sequel, the intention was to have it bring back Chris Hemsworth, who, since his small role in the first film had blown up as a Hollywood superstar thanks to his role as Thor in the MCU, they wanted him to reprise his role from the 2009 film as George Kirk, James T. Kirk’s father. This version of the script made it far enough through development to actually reach the actors. The pitch was to do Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade but with Star Trek , where when the Enterprise investigates the wreckage of the Kelvin, they find that an exact copy of George Kirk was stored in the ship transporter so he is able to return to life at the exact moment before his death and much of the movie would have been how the two Kirks do not get along as neither of them is what the other expected before needing to accept one another for who they are. In an interview with Josh Horowitz , Hemsworth explained how he felt about the story:

"It wasn’t what I was thinking it would have been or could have been. And I thought, ‘Oh, cool, let’s figure that out and keep going’ and then I think everyone just got busy and so on. It’d be a bit weird now to flash back to your father and ‘Why is he so much older than when he died?’"

Not only did Hemsworth pass on the project, but negotiations broke down in terms of pay with both him and star Chris Pine. Paramount then decided to pivot, bringing on Noah Hawley ( Fargo, Legion ) to write a new Star Trek film with a new cast of characters. J.J. Abrams was even having conversations with Quentin Tarantino about giving him an opportunity to write a Star Trek movie . While Tarantino did begin work on a script, he eventually passed on the project as he plans to retire after ten movies and he did not want Star Trek to be his final movie. Meanwhile, Hawley's pitch was scrapped as the story involved a plague, and following the COVID-19 pandemic, Paramount was not keen on that idea. It was then decided to make a direct sequel to Star Trek Beyond and bring back the original cast.

In July 2021, Matt Shakman was hired to direct Star Trek 4 . Then, in February 2022, when Paramount Pictures made the big splashy announcement that the original cast of the three previous Star Trek movies would return after it appeared years of contract negotiations had held them up, they had nothing. Even the stars and their agents were surprised that they were going ahead with the movie when, apparently, they hadn’t told a soul. The plan was to secure investors first and sort the details out later, which they did, eventually. When writers started sitting down at their laptops, there was much talk about where a story could go.

Related: Star Trek: The Funniest Episodes in the Franchise, Ranked

The studio seemed confident in the film and dated it for December 23, 2023, to take the slot that was previously held by Star Wars: Rogue Squadron , which had recently been vacated due to creative differences between Lucasfilm and director Patty Jenkins. While it felt like they would have little time, many fans were hoping they could make the release date. But in August 2022, Shakman would drop out of Star Trek 4 in favor of directing Fantastic Four , and Paramount removed Star Trek 4 from their release schedule.

Despite the stumbles in its journey, repeated delays, and the dismay of hopeful fans, Star Trek 4 appears not to have been fully scrapped yet. In September 2023, screenwriter Lindsey Anderson Beer confirmed that Star Trek 4 is still moving forward. The fourth film will reportedly be the final chapter of the main series. With no new information to dispute the claim as of January 2024, it appears that the fourth installment might still make it to screens. However, with the lack of information regarding a concrete plot or cast and Beer having since left the project , Star Trek 4 might have a long road ahead before viewers can once again join the USS Enterprise on an adventure as now Paramount Pictures is shifting to a new prequel film.

Star Trek 4: The Cast

The original hope for the movie — no matter which way the plot went — was to get as much of the original cast back on board as possible. Although talks fell through with Chris Hemsworth and his part in the film, Chris Pine ended up making a solid deal to return as Captain James T. Kirk . Zachary Quinto had been confirmed as Spock, and John Cho would come back as Sulu. Simon Pegg, even though he helped write Star Trek: Beyond and played Scotty, made no commitments either way, but it would be likely that he would return due to his major involvement with the films.

Karl Urban, who plays Bones, said that he had some scheduling conflicts due to his work on The Boys , but now that the schedule has changed, his participation remains to be seen. Zoe Saldaña has commented on some frustration for working in so many franchise films, but she would return if the movie was able to pull itself together. Of course, due to the untimely death of Anton Yelchin , Chekov's character would not be recast but instead respectfully written out of the movie.

Star Trek: Everything Else

It has now been nearly eight years since the last Star Trek film, Star Trek Beyond, came to screens. Uncertainty has continuously clouded the fourth film, and despite its status as still being in active development, Paramount looks to be moving ahead with a brand-new film. According to Variety , the new film has Andor 's Toby Haynes in the director's seat, with Seth Grahame-Smith penning the script. J. J. Abrams's Bad Robot will be produced.

Details regarding the plot and cast of the new movie have not been confirmed yet. However, it is set to be an origin story that takes place decades before the events of 2009's Star Trek. It has been confirmed that the new film will also be an expansion of the Star Trek universe.

Related: Star Trek 4 Should Be Directed by Michael Giacchino, and Here's Why

The status of a prequel film is interesting, as Star Trek 2009 begins with the timeline being split off, forming the new Kelvin timeline. So, any prequel to Star Trek would also technically exist in the original timeline canon, and there have been plenty of those recently, including Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , and, of course, Star Trek: Enterprise . This would mean the events of the film would have to line up with both timelines before the splinter point of the 2009 film.

Release Date

The production and development journey for Star Trek 4 has definitely not been easy. The film was initially set to start production in 2022 and was slated for release on December 23, 2023 , before being scrapped. That release date vacancy allowed for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom to become the big release of the holiday movie season for 2023 that Star Trek 4 hoped to accomplish.

The film now has no release date. However, despite the lack of an end to their anticipation in sight, fans can find some consolation in the fact that Star Trek 4 is still very much alive and kicking.

X-Men's Simon Kinberg Is Working On The Next Star Trek Movie, But As A Fan, I Have Some Major Concerns

A new Star Trek movie is on the way, and it has a familiar producer joining what already sounds like a wild project. Simon Kinberg, known for many projects including overseeing much of the X-Men franchise when it was with Fox, will be a producer on a new movie that will serve as a prequel story to Trek 's prime timeline. The recent news has given me major concerns without even getting into the fact that First Contact is already the definitive prequel story.

As the resident Star Trek fan who recently reiterated I have zero interest in seeing Quentin Tarantino's movie brought to life , I'm now sharing my concerns for Simon Kinberg entering this franchise too. At the risk of sounding like an over-protective parent who thinks the new person dating their child is "bad news," here are some of the red flags I have with the news about this latest Trek movie arriving sometime in 2025.

Simon Kinberg Has Had Zero Involvement With The New Era Of Star Trek Television

The biggest detail about this new project is that according to Variety , it takes place in the main timeline shortly after First Contact . The "main timeline," otherwise known as the "prime timeline," hasn't been touched by the major Star Trek feature films for many years. Instead, the "Kelvin timeline" was created, providing a clear and distinct separation between the movie and television divisions of Star Trek .

Now it seems like Paramount is interested in once again bringing the Prime timeline to theaters, and yet it's not doing it by featuring Star Trek: Section 31 with Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh on the big screen. Instead, we're getting Simon Kinberg and a director from Andor on this new movie , neither of whom have been involved with the work on television since 2017.

When CinemaBlend spoke to Jonathan Frakes, he mentioned the separation between the Star Trek movie and television divisions . When they take place within separate universes, it's not really a big deal. However, when the canon is beholden to whatever this movie is about for upcoming Star Trek shows going forward, I'd like to know that Alex Kurtzman and others have some say in what's going on. Thus far, I haven't seen anything that states that, so I do have some fears based on that fact alone. The idea of someone potentially undoing the hard work of many with a wild movie that has to be acknowledged is very scary as a fan.

Simon Kinberg Produced Much Of X-Men's Movie Era, Which Struggled With Keeping Its Canon Consistent

There's no denying that were some great X-Men movies that Simon Kinberg played a part in, but there are also some others that weren't that great as well. Yes, he was the Days Of Future Past writer, but he also wrote The Last Stand , Apocalypse and Dark Phoenix . In the eyes of critics, he's behind a lot more misses for the X-Men than hits. This Trek movie is being written Toby Haynes, so one would reckon he won't have total control over the overall script as a producer.

What's worse is that the franchise as a whole during the Fox era had a lot of trouble keeping its continuity straight , which is what I fear most about Simon Kinberg making a movie set in Star Trek 's prime timeline. Pretty much all of the positive things going on for this franchise at the moment exist in the prime timeline. Now we have this movie on the way that is set to detail the time after First Contact , which is one of the biggest cornerstones of the Star Trek lore.

Granted, I would think that there are some people in the know at Paramount who recognize this and have measures in place to ensure the movie doesn't go too far off the rails in any one direction. After all, who wants to make a movie that is so bad it potentially jeopardizes the shows as well? Obviously that's a bit of an alarmist take on my end, and it's a bit unfair to not even give this movie a fair shake with little information to go on. Still, there's no harm in being cautious, especially with a movie that has so much power.

The Next Major Star Trek Movie Needs To Be A Hit

When Star Trek hits at the box office, great things can happen. It was J.J. Abrams' 2009 Kelvin timeline movie that injected life into the stagnant franchise, which was struggling to find legs after Enterprise 's cancellation. Now, it feels like we've entered a situation in which it's the opposite way around, and the success of the shows has encouraged the film division to try and draw on the popularity of the prime timeline.

This movie must be a hit, especially for those who want to see Star Trek continue to have a future in Hollywood. Sure, the franchise has survived box office bombs and poor reviews from critics in past releases, but there hasn't been a movie on screens in eight years. It's officially the longest gap between Trek movies, and that gap could be even longer if this new movie ends up being a poorly-reviewed flop at the box office.

All of this is to say that if the plan is for Paramount to bring in Simon Kinberg to oversee the future of Star Trek movies, I do hope that it ends up being something that truly gets this franchise up and rolling again in theaters. I also hope that this movie draws on some of the talent that has made the prime timeline such a success, but of course, only the biggest names put butts in seats when it comes to major motion pictures. I guess we'll see what the plan is as we get closer to the movie's arrival in 2025.

CinemaBlend will continue to track the development of the next Star Trek movie to hit theaters, as well as keep our fingers crossed that it is only destined for success. Continue to check in for more updates in the meantime, and fire up that Paramount+ subscription to see what all is going on in this new era of the franchise if you haven't already.

Upcoming Star Trek TV Shows: What's Ahead For The Sci-Fi Franchise

Here's what's ahead for Star Trek.

It’s a golden era for Star Trek tv shows, as the franchise is churning out more content than ever before. Fans with a Paramount+ subscription can stream a plethora of old and new content from one of the greatest sci-fi franchises of all time.

There’s a ton of new Star Trek content coming in the future, including the debut of a new show as well as the return of all the ones fans already know well. For those who need a breakdown of what all to expect, look no further because here’s where and when all the new Trek will arrive in 2023 and beyond. There’s even some information on planned shows that aren’t quite ready yet, but hopefully, we’ll see them soon enough. 

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 - Premiering On April 4th 2024

Captain Michael Burnham and the crew are back, and based on what we've seen and heard about Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 so far, some changes are on the way. Season 5 will see the crew race against others in an attempt to secure an ancient power, and will apparently have a tonal shift that will skew more toward action and adventure. We also learned that this coming season will be the final adventure , as Paramount+ decided to end the series after this coming season. The final season will kick off in April and, fingers crossed, leave an avenue open for more stories with these characters in the 32nd century. 

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 - In Production

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is coming back for Season 3, and is currently filming for the upcoming season. It's likely the season will kick off with the second part of the adventure started in the Season 2 finale . Pike must decide whether or not he's going to listen to Starfleet and retreat to avoid further conflict with the Gorn or to stay and try to save the kidnapped crew members. I have a hunch I know what decision he'll make, but I'm also very invested in seeing if Scotty will remain with the crew and what other adventures will come as well. 

Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 - Coming In 2024

Paramount+ originally renewed Star Trek: Prodigy for Season 2, but announced later that it had been canceled alongside other shows on the platform. While the news was a bummer to many and encouraged responses from stars like Kate Mulgrew , there is a silver lining. After some talk with other companies, Paramount managed to negotiate a deal where the series will transition over to Netflix , and Season 2 will release over there. At this time, it's unknown whether or not this will lead to more seasons of Prodigy , but fans are thankful they'll at least get to see the season that was being worked on coming up in 2024. 

Section 31 Movie - Production Complete

Section 31 was one of the first Star Trek spinoffs announced after Discovery , and yet it took the longest to get off the ground. The series was supposed to Michelle Yeoh ’s Phillipa Georgiou and her efforts in the secret ops Starfleet faction that does the jobs that others in the organization would rather not know about. Other former Discovery stars, like Shazad Latif, were involved at one point, but some believed the odds of it happening aren't great after Michelle Yeoh's Oscar win .

It turns out Yeoh was interested in making it happen, and Paramount+ decided to alter the idea to a movie . Fans are excited about the project all the same, and ready to see Michelle Yeoh back in her role. Production on the film is officially underway, and it's looking like a premiere sometime in late 2024 to 2025 is likely.

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Starfleet Academy - Production Starting In 2024

Alex Kurtzman revealed not long ago that Star Trek is actively working on another new live-action series , and it’s going to be set at Starfleet Academy. Of course, we don’t know exactly what era this series is set to take place during or who is going to star in it yet. We don’t really know much of anything, though it’s worth noting that Star Trek: Discovery did write off its character Tilly when she took an offer at Starfleet Academy. The episode where that happened seemed like it could be a backdoor pilot for the show, but again, we have no idea. We do know that the writer's room is underway, but details are scant beyond that.  

As shown above, there’s still a ton of Star Trek on the way in 2024, and beyond. The only way to watch these shows is with a Paramount+ subscription , which is totally worth picking up with the increasing amount of shows and movies available to watch. 

Mick Joest is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend with his hand in an eclectic mix of television goodness. Star Trek is his main jam, but he also regularly reports on happenings in the world of Star Trek, WWE, Doctor Who, 90 Day Fiancé, Quantum Leap, and Big Brother. He graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Radio and Television. He's great at hosting panels and appearing on podcasts if given the chance as well.

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‘Star Trek: Discovery’ is over. Now Alex Kurtzman readies for ‘Starfleet Academy’ and ‘Section 31’

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In “Star Trek” terms, and in the real world of “Star Trek” television, Alex Kurtzman, who oversees the 21st century franchise, might be described as the Federation president, from whose offices various series depart on their individual missions. Indeed, to hear him speak of it, the whole enterprise — honestly, no pun intended — seems to run very much on the series’ ethos of individual initiative and group consensus.

The first series to be launched, “ Star Trek: Discovery, ” has come to an end as of Thursday after five seasons on Paramount+. Others in the fleet include the concluded “ Picard, ” which brought “The Next Generation” into a new generation; the ongoing “ Strange New Worlds, ” which precedes the action of what’s now called “The Original Series,” from which it takes its spirit and several characters; “Lower Decks,” a comedy set among Starfleet service workers; and “Prodigy,” in which a collection of teenage aliens go joyriding in a starship. On the horizon are “Starfleet Academy,” with Holly Hunter set to star, and a TV feature, “ Section 31, ” with Michelle Yeoh back as Philippa Georgiou.

I spoke with Kurtzman, whose “Trek” trek began as a writer on the quantum-canonical reboot movies “ Star Trek ” (2009) and “ Star Trek: Into Darkness ” (2013), at Secret Hideout, his appropriately unmarked Santa Monica headquarters. Metro trains glide by his front door unaware. We began the conversation, edited for length and clarity here, with a discussion of his “Trek” universe.

Alex Kurtzman: I liken them to different colors in the rainbow. It makes no sense to me to make one show that’s for everybody; it makes a lot of sense to make a lot of shows individually tailored to a sect of the “Star Trek” audience. It’s a misnomer that there’s a one-size-fits-all Trekkie. And rather than make one show that’s going to please everybody — and will almost certainly please nobody — let’s make an adult drama, an animated comedy, a kids’ comedy, an adventure show and on and on. There’s something quite beautiful about that; it allows each of the stories to bloom in its own unique way.

Do you get pushback from the fans?

Absolutely. In some ways that’s the point. One of the things I learned early on is that to be in love with “Star Trek” is to engage in healthy debate. There is no more vocal fan base. Some people tell you that their favorite is “The Original Series,” some say their favorite is “Voyager” and some say their favorite is “Discovery.” Yet they all come together and talk about what makes something singularly “Trek” — [creator] Gene Roddenberry‘s extraordinarily optimistic vision of the future when all that divides us [gets placed] in the rearview mirror and we get to move on and discover things. Like all great science fiction, you get to pick your allegory to the real world and come up with the science fiction equivalent. And everybody who watches understands what we’re talking about — racism or the Middle East or whatever.

What specific objections did you find to “Discovery”?

I think people felt it was too dark. We really listen to our fans in the writers’ room — everybody will have read a different article or review over the weekend, and we talk about what feels relevant and what feels less relevant. And then we engage in a healthy democratic debate about why and begin to apply that; it seeps into the decisions we make. Season 1 of “Discovery” was always intended to be a journey from darkness into light, and ultimately reinforce Roddenberry’s vision. I think people were just stunned by something that felt darker than any “Trek” had before. But doing a dark “Star Trek” really wasn’t our goal. The show is a mirror that holds itself up to the times, and we were in 2017 — we saw the nation fracture hugely right after the election, and it’s only gotten worse since then. We were interpreting that through science fiction. There were people who appreciated that and others for whom it was just not “Star Trek.” And the result, in Season 2, Capt. [Christopher] Pike showed up, Number One showed up, Spock showed up, and we began to bring in what felt to people more like the “Star Trek” they understood.

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You’re ending the series after five seasons. Was that always a plan?

You know, we were surprised we didn’t continue, and yet it feels now that it was right. One of the things that happened very quickly as streaming took off was that it radically changed watch patterns for viewers. Shows that used to go 10, 12 seasons, people would tap out after two — like, “I got what I want” — so for any show to go five seasons, it’s a miracle. In ways I don’t think we could have predicted, the season from the beginning feels like it’s the last; it just has a sense of finality. The studio was wonderful in that they recognized we needed to put a button on it, we needed a period on the end of the sentence, and so they allowed us to go back, which we did right before the strike, and [film] the coda that wraps up the series.

“Discovery” is a riot of love stories, among both heroes and villains.

There’s certainly a history of that in “Star Trek.” Whether or not characters were engaged in direct relationships, there was always a subtext of the love between them. I believe that’s why we love the bridge crew, because it’s really a love story, everyone’s in a love story, and they all care for each other and fight like family members. But ultimately they’re there to help each other and explore the universe together. If there’s some weird problem, and the answer’s not immediately apparent, each of them brings a different skill set and therefore a different perspective; they clash in their debate on how to proceed and then find some miraculous solution that none of them would have thought of at the outset.

One of the beautiful things about the shows is that you get to spend a long time with them, as opposed to a two-hour movie where you have to get in and out quickly and then wait a couple of years before the next one comes along. To be able to be on their weekly adventures, it affords the storytelling level of depth and complexity a two-hour movie just can’t achieve in that way.

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It’s astonishing how much matter you got into these things. Some storylines that only lasted an episode I remembered as seasonal arcs.

The sheer tonnage of story and character we were able to pack into “Discovery” every episode was kind of incredible. The thing to keep in mind is that “Discovery” was made as streaming was exploding, so what I think you’re also seeing there is a lot of writers who were trained in the network world with an A, B and C story applying it suddenly to a very different kind of storytelling in a much more cinematic medium. And when you have that kind of scope it starts to become really, really big. Sometimes that works really, really well and sometimes it was too much. And we were figuring it out; it was a bunch of people with flashlights in the dark, looking for how to interpret “Star Trek” now, since it had been 12 years since it had been on a television screen.

Are you able to course-correct within a season?

Sure. You get people you really trust in the room. Aaron Baiers, who runs Secret Hideout, is one of my most important early-warning systems; he isn’t necessarily in the room when we’re breaking stories, but he’s the first person who’ll read an outline and he’s the first person who’ll read a script. What I value so much about his perspective is that he’s coming in cold, he’s just like, “I’m the viewer, and I understand this or I don’t understand it, I feel this or I don’t feel it.” The studio executives are very similar. They love “Star Trek,” they’re all die-hard fans and have very strong feelings about what is appropriate. It then goes through a series of artists in every facet, from props to visual effects to production design, and they’re bringing their interpretations and opinions to the story.

Did “Strange New Worlds” come out of the fact that everybody loved seeing Christopher Pike in “Discovery?”

I really have to credit Akiva Goldsman with this. He knew that I was going to bring Pike into the premiere of the second season of “Discovery,” and said, “You know, there’s an incredible show about Capt. Pike and the Enterprise before Kirk takes over; there’s seven years of great storytelling there” — or five years, depending on when you come into the storyline. I said, “We have to cast a successful Pike first, so let’s see if that works. Let’s figure out who’s Number One, and who Spock is,” which are wildly tall orders. I hadn’t seen Anson Mount in other things before [he was cast as Pike], and when he sent in his taped audition it was that wonderful moment where you go, “That’s exactly the person we’re looking for.” Everybody loves Pike because he’s the kind of leader you want, definitive and clear but open to everyone’s perspective and humanistic in his response. And then we had the incredibly tall order of having Ethan [Peck] step into Leonard [Nimoy’s] and [Zachary Quinto’s] shoes.

He’s great.

He’s amazing, just a delight of a human being. And Rebecca Romijn‘s energy, what she brings to Number One is such a contemporary take on a character that was kind of a cipher in “The Original Series.” But she brings a kind of joy, a comedy, a bearing, a gravitas to the character that feels very modern. Thank God the fans responded the way they did and sent that petition [calling for a “Legacy” series], because everybody at CBS got the message very quickly. Jenny Lumet and Akiva and I wrote a pilot, and we were off to the races. Typically it takes fans a minute to adjust to what you’re doing, especially with beloved legacy characters, but the response to “Strange New World” from a critical perspective and fan perspective and just a viewership perspective was so immediate, it really did help us understand what was satisfying fans.

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What can you tell me about “Starfleet Academy?” Is it going to be Earth-based or space-based?

I’m going to say, without giving anything away, both. Right now we’re in the middle of answering the question what does San Francisco, where the academy is, look like in the 32nd century. Our primary set is the biggest we’ve ever built.

So you’re setting this —

In the “Discovery” era. There’s a specific reason for that. As the father of a 17-year-old boy, I see what my son is feeling as he looks at the world and to his future. I see the uncertainty; I see all the things we took for granted as given are not certainties for him. I see him recognizing he’s inheriting an enormous mess to clean up and it’s going to be on his generation to figure out how to do that, and that’s a lot to ask of a kid. My thinking was, if we set “Starfleet Academy” in the halcyon days of the Federation where everything was fine, it’s not going to speak to what kids are going through right now.

It’ll be a nice fantasy, but it’s not really going to be authentic. What’ll be authentic is to set it in the timeline where this is the first class back after over 100 years, and they are coming into a world that is only beginning to recover from a cataclysm — which was the Burn, as established on “Star Trek: Discovery,” where the Federation was greatly diminished. So they’re the first who’ll inherit, who’ll re-inherit, the task of exploration as a primary goal, because there just wasn’t room for that during the Burn — everybody was playing defense. It’s an incredibly optimistic show, an incredibly fun show; it’s a very funny show, and it’s a very emotional show. I think these kids, in different ways, are going to represent what a lot of kids are feeling now.

And I’m very, very , very excited that Holly Hunter is the lead of the show. Honestly, when we were working on the scripts, we wrote it for Holly thinking she’d never do it. And we sent them to her, and to our absolute delight and shock she loved them and signed on right away.

And then you’ve got the “Section 31” movie.

“Section 31” is Michelle Yeoh’s return as Georgiou. A very, very different feeling for “Star Trek.” I will always be so grateful to her, because on the heels of her nomination and then her Oscar win , she just doubled down on coming back to “Star Trek.” She could have easily walked away from it; she had a lot of other opportunities. But she remained steadfast and totally committed. We just wrapped that up and are starting to edit now.

Are you looking past “Starfleet” and “Section 31” to future projects?

There’s always notions and there are a couple of surprises coming up, but I really try to live in the shows that are in front of me in the moment because they’re so all-consuming. I’m directing the first two episodes of “Starfleet Academy,” so right now my brain is just wholly inside that world. But you can tell “Star Trek” stories forever; there’s always more. There’s something in the DNA of its construction that allows you to keep opening different doors. Some of that is science fiction, some of it has to do with the combination of science fiction and the organic embracing of all these other genres that lets you explore new territories. I don’t think it’s ever going to end. I think it’s going to go on for a long, long time. The real question for “Star Trek” is how do you keep innovating, how do you deliver both what people expect and something totally fresh at the same time. Because I think that is actually what people want from “Star Trek.” They want what’s familiar delivered in a way that doesn’t feel familiar.

With all our showrunners — Terry Matalas on “Picard,” the Hagemans on “Prodigy,” Mike McMahan on “Lower Decks,” Michelle Paradise, who has been singlehandedly running “Discovery” for the last two years, and then Akiva and Henry Alonso Myers on “Strange New Worlds” — my feeling is that the best way to protect and preserve “Star Trek” is not to impose my own vision on it but [find people] who meet the criteria of loving “Star Trek,” wanting to do new things with it, understanding how incredibly hard it is to do. And then I’m going to let you do your job. I’ll come in and tell you what I think every once in a while, and I’ll help get the boat off the dock, but once I hand the show over to a creative it has to be their show. And that means you’re going to get a different take every time, and as long as those takes all feel like they can marry into the same rainbow, to get back to the metaphor, that’s the way to keep “Star Trek” fresh.

I take great comfort because “Star Trek” really only belongs to Gene Roddenberry and the fans. We don’t own it. We carry it, we try to evolve it and then we hand it off to the next people. And hopefully they will love it as much as we do.

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'Star Trek: Discovery' ends as an underappreciated TV pioneer

Eric Deggans

Sonequa Martin-Green as Michael Burnham. Michael Gibson/Paramount+ hide caption

First, an admission: Though this column will offer a lot of discussion and defense of Star Trek: Discovery as a pivotal show, it won’t spend much time talking up the series’ current, final season or its finale episode, “Life, Itself,” dropping Thursday on Paramount+.

That’s because, for this critic, the last few seasons of Discovery have been a bit bogged down by the stuff that has always made it a tough sell as a Trek series: overly ambitious, serialized storylines that aren’t compelling; new characters and environments that don’t impress; plot twists which can be maddening in their lack of logic; big storytelling swings which can be confusing and predictable at once.

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The show’s finale features the culmination of a sprawling scavenger hunt which found the crew of the starship Discovery bounding all over the place, searching for clues leading to a powerful technology pioneered by an alien race which created humanoid life throughout the galaxy. Their goal was to grab the technology before another race, ruthless and aggressive, could beat them to it, laying waste to everything.

It's no spoiler to reveal that Discovery ’s heroes avoid that nightmarish scenario, wrapping its fifth and final season with a conclusion centered on Sonequa Martin-Green’s ever-resourceful Capt. Michael Burnham and fond resolutions for a multitude of supporting characters (there’s even a space wedding!)

Still, this good-enough ending belies Discovery ’s status as a pioneering show which helped Paramount+ build a new vision for Star Trek in modern television – breaking ground that more creatively successful series like Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds would follow years later.

And it all began with a singular character: Michael Burnham.

A take on Star Trek for modern TV

Discovery debuted in 2017 on CBS All Access — the streaming service which would become Paramount+ — facing a serious challenge.

As the first new Trek series in a dozen years, it had to chart a path which offered a new vision of the franchise without going too far — carving out a new corner in the universe of Capt. Kirk and Mr. Spock not long after the release of Star Trek Beyond , the third feature film produced by J. J. Abrams featuring rebooted versions of those classic characters.

Producers set Discovery ’s story 10 years before the days of Kirk and Spock (originally depicted on NBC for three seasons starting way back in 1966). The new series wouldn’t be centered on a starship captain, but its second in command: Burnham, a Black woman who also happened to be the hitherto unknown adopted daughter of Vulcan ambassador Sarek, Spock’s father (she would get promoted to captain of Discovery much later).

A Black human woman who was raised among the emotionally controlling, super-intellectual Vulcans? Who Trek fans had never heard of over nearly 60 years? Before I actually saw any episodes, my own feelings ranged from cautiously intrigued to cynically pessimistic.

But then I saw the first episode, which had an amazing early scene: Martin-Green as Burnham and Michelle Yeoh as Discovery Capt. Philippa Georgiou walking across an alien planet – two women of color marking the first step forward for Star Trek on a new platform.

People once sidelined in typical science fiction stories were now centerstage — a thrilling, historic moment.

Michelle Yeoh as Captain Philippa Georgiou and Sonequa Martin-Green as First Officer Michael Burnham in the very first episode of Star Trek: Discovery. Jan Thijs/CBS hide caption

And it got better from there. Back in the day, Trek writers often felt hamstrung by creator Gene Roddenberry’s insistence that, in the future depicted by the show, humans were beyond social ills like greed, prejudice, sexism, war, money and personal friction. The writers chafed, wondering: How in the world do you build compelling stories on a starship where interpersonal human conflict doesn’t exist?

But Discovery found a workaround, putting Burnham in a position where logic led her to mutiny against her captain, attempting a strategy which ultimately failed — leaving humans in open combat with the legendarily warlike Klingons. Discovery also featured a long storyline which played out over an entire season, unlike many earlier Trek shows which tried to offer a new adventure every week.

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The show’s first season had plenty of action, with Harry Potter alum Jason Isaacs emerging as a compelling and unique starship captain (saying more would be a spoiler; log onto Paramount+ and check out the first season). Fans saw a new vision for Trek technology, leveraging sleek, visceral special effects and action sequences worthy of a big budget movie, with design elements cribbed from several of the franchise’s films.

Later in its run, Discovery would debut Ethan Peck as Spock and Anson Mount as Christopher Pike, classic Trek characters who eventually got their own acclaimed series in Strange New Worlds . So far, five other Trek series have emerged on Paramount+ from ideas initially incubated on Discovery – including a critically acclaimed season of Picard which reunited the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation .

Not bad for a series one TV critic eventually called among “the worst in the [ Trek ] franchise’s history.”

Discovery’s unappreciated legacy

Unfortunately, Discovery has taken some turns which didn’t work out quite so well. At the end of Discovery ’s second season, the starship jumped ahead in time nine centuries – perhaps to remove it from Strange New World ’s timeline? – placing it in an environment only distantly connected to classic Trek .

And while Discovery initially seemed cautious about referencing classic Trek in its stories, later series like Strange New Worlds and Picard learned the value of diving into the near-60-year-old franchise’s legacy – regularly tapping the show’s longtime appeal, rather than twisting into knots to avoid it.

There are likely fans of Discovery who would disagree with this analysis. But I think it helps explain why the series has never quite gotten its due in the world of Star Trek , initially shaded by skeptical fans and later overshadowed by more beloved products.

Now is the perfect time to pay tribute to a show which actually accomplished quite a lot – helping prove that Roddenberry’s brainchild still has a lot of narrative juice left in the 21st Century.

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Netflix’s Eric, Star Trek: Discovery’s series finale, and more new TV this week

Plus: The end of Hulu’s Under the Bridge, Hacks season 3, and more

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The week has barely started (if you’re in the U.S. and reading this on the Monday holiday: even less so!), and already there’s a whole lot of TV to get through.

With any luck, the long weekend gave you some time to catch up with things — after all, as our summer preview is any indication, there’s only gonna be even more coming soon. But while a bunch of new stuff might be coming up, there’s plenty to watch this week alone. Under the Bridge and Hacks are both wrapping up really strong seasons, while shows like Pyramid Game and We Are Lady Parts are just ramping up.

Here are all the best new TV premieres and finales this week.

New shows on Netflix

Genre: Drama miniseries Release date: May 30, with all episodes Showrunner/creator: Abi Morgan Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Gaby Hoffmann, and more

Vincent (Benedict Cumberbatch) is a puppeteer happily living and working in 1980s New York City. Then, his 9-year-old son goes missing on the way to school, plunging Vincent into a dark, volatile depression. Vincent believes his son will come back if only he can get Eric, a monster based on a drawing his son did, to the screen.

Genre: Teen show Release date: May 30 Based on the book by: Holly Smale Cast: Emily Carey, Sarah Parish, Emmanuel Imani, and more

Harriet (Emily Carey) is just another geek trying to get by in high school, even if it means brushing off some mean girl bullies to do it. But everything changes when — against the odds and Harriet’s wishes — she finds herself scouted to be the next hot supermodel.

New shows on Hulu

The veil season finale.

Genre: Spy thriller Release date: May 28 Showrunner/creator: Steven Knight Cast: Elisabeth Moss, Yumna Marwan, Josh Charles, and more

The stage is set in London for a deadly attack. But Imogen (Elisabeth Moss) and Adilah (Yumna Marwan) are also on the move. And with Imogen keeping her master plan secret from even us, it seems likely that this attack could go either way.

Under the Bridge finale

Genre: True-crime mystery Release date: May 29 Showrunner/creator: Samir Mehta, Quinn Shephard Cast: Lily Gladstone, Riley Keough, and more

There’s nothing about the murder of Reena Virk (Vritika Gupta) that feels easy to swallow, and it’s a testament to Under the Bridge that the show has been able to balance the complexities of that reality in its seven episodes so far. Now, it’s coming to a close — one that no doubt will carry the weight of every ounce of tragedy in this story.

New shows on Max

Hacks season 3 finale.

Genre: Comedy Release date: May 30 Showrunner/creator: Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello, and Jen Statsky Cast: Hannah Einbinder, Jean Smart, and more

It’s all happening for Deborah (Jean Smart), now that she finally got her dream of hosting a late-night show. Only suddenly, there’s some last-minute doubt: Will Ava (Hannah Einbinder) be allowed to come along for the ride?

New shows on Paramount Plus

Pyramid game.

Genre: Thriller Release date: May 30, with all 10 episodes Showrunner/creator: Choi Sui Cast: Bona, Jang Da-a, Ryu Da-in, and more

Seong Su-ji is a new student at the Baekyeon Girls’ High School, and everything is already feeling like a fight for survival as she battles bullies and studies alike. And then she’s introduced to a new ranking system that lets people secretly vote for who they think should be a class outcast. Now, Su-ji has to decide whether to keep going along (and possibly accepting the violence that comes with it) or else lead an uprising against this shadowy “Pyramid Game.”

Star Trek: Discovery series finale

Genre: Star Trek Release date: May 30 Showrunner/creator: Akiva Goldsman Cast: Sonequa Martin-Green, Mary Wiseman, Doug Jones, and more

The end of an era! By which I mean not only the season we got of 900 years in Star Trek’s future, but also Discovery , which wraps up this Thursday. It’s the end of the first Star Trek show of the modern era, and is free in a way Star Trek hasn’t been in a long, long while , all while paving the way for more Trek to come.

New shows on Peacock

We are lady parts season 2.

Genre: “Yeah, I’m in a band” teen comedy Release date: May 30, with all episodes Showrunner/creator: Nida Manzoor Cast: Anjana Vasan, Sarah Kameela Impey, Juliette Motamed, and more

We Are Lady Parts is back and ready to record their debut album. Which means it’s the perfect time for more bandmate shenanigans — including battling a rival Muslim band, playing a festival, exploring your “villain era.” All that and Malala Yousafzai is supposed to show up sometime this season!

New shows on Apple TV Plus

Loot season 2 finale.

Genre: Comedy Release date: May 29 Showrunner/creators: Alan Yang and Matt Hubbard Cast: Maya Rudolph, Joel Kim Booster, Nat Faxon, and more

The Wells Foundation — and Molly (Maya Rudolph), the billionaire woman who runs it — are nearing their greatest success yet. Which, of course, means reality is about to come crashing in with some major personal decisions. How will the dust settle in the season 2 finale?

New shows on Showtime

Couples therapy season 4.

Genre: Documentary series Release date: May 31, with one episode; on-air premiere at 10 p.m. EDT on June 2 Showrunner/creator: Dr. Orna Guralnik Cast: Real-life couples in therapy

It’s a new season of Couples Therapy, and an all-new cast of couples to undergo real therapy with Dr. Orna. The result will be unpredictable — couples therapy, after all, is about figuring yourselves out together, not necessarily saving the relationship. The good news? It will most likely be cathartic, one way or another.

The next level of puzzles.

Take a break from your day by playing a puzzle or two! We’ve got SpellTower, Typeshift, crosswords, and more.

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• June 4, 2024 | Netflix To Release All 20 Episodes Of ‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Season 2 In July; Also Coming To SkyShowtime
• June 4, 2024 | Nog Is Faced With A Ferengi Existential Crisis In Preview Of ‘Sons Of Star Trek’ #3
• June 3, 2024 | ‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Season 2 Coming To Netflix In July
• May 31, 2024 | Podcast: All Access Says Farewell To ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ With “Life, Itself”
• May 30, 2024 | Alex Kurtzman Explains Why ‘Star Trek: Starfleet Academy’ Is Set In The ‘Discovery’ Era

‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Season 2 Coming To Netflix In July

| June 3, 2024 | By: TrekMovie.com Staff 56 comments so far

Just a couple weeks after the producers asked for patience , there is finally news on the release of the second season of Star Trek: Prodigy .

Start your July with new Prodigy

Today the second season of Star Trek: Prodigy showed up on the “Coming Soon” tab for Netflix Kids, listing Monday, July 1 for the release. TrekMovie has confirmed this with CBS Studios. However, we were not yet able to confirm if the release will include all 20 episodes of season 2 . [ See our UPDATE: Netflix To Release All 20 Episodes Of ‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Season 2 In July; Also Coming To SkyShowtime ]

The listing on Netflix also includes a new synopsis:

Now Starfleet trainees, Dal and his friends embark on another adventure to solve the mystery of the Protostar and save the planet from destruction.

From Netflix app

Season 2 of Prodigy will feature the return of Star Trek: Voyager’s Robert Picardo as the Holographic Doctor, now serving on the new USS Voyager-A under the command of Vice Admiral Janeway. The Doctor will be tasked with minding the new trainees Dal R’El, Rok-Tahk, Zero, and Jankom Pog along with their Melenoid slime worm companion Murf.

Earlier this year Picardo had high praise for the Prodigy  writers and their approach to his character…

“What’s wonderful about the writing of the show is that they maintain what I love most about doing  Voyager  itself, which was I could be a comic relief, but on a dime I could turn and it could get quite serious when it was a dire situation. [ Prodigy ] used me for comic relief, believe me, in a lot of scenes, in a lot of episodes. But there are some dramatic moments which was really a pleasure to do as well.”

Gwyn will still be a big part of the show in season 2. She has a mission of her own, to save her people the Vau N’Akat on the planet Solum.

The doctor gives the provisional cadets a briefing in preview of season 2

The first season of Prodigy  wrapped up on Paramount+ in December 2022. Season 1 was re-released worldwide on Netflix last Christmas after Paramount+ removed the series in the summer of 2023. Netflix previously announced that season 2 would arrive in 2024 and today is the first time there has been a specific date. In March all 20 episodes were unexpectedly released early on French TV (dubbed in French).

We are awaiting more details and the release of preview images or possibly even a trailer. A clip from season 2 was released by CBS last summer .

This is a developing story. We will provide updates as soon as they are available.

Keep up with news about the  Star Trek Universe .

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Netflix To Release All 20 Episodes Of ‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Season 2 In July; Also Coming To SkyShowtime

‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Producers Urge Fans To Be Patient Waiting For Season 2 On Netflix

‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Creators Say “Miscommunication” Led To Unexpected Early Release Of Season 2 In France

All Access Star Trek Podcast , Discovery , Lower Decks , Star Trek: Picard , Star Trek: Prodigy , Starfleet Academy , Strange New Worlds

Podcast: All Access Goes To SXSW For The ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Season 5 Premiere

It’s been a long road, getting from there to here. Welcome back cadets! Can’t wait to see The Doctor :)

It’s been a long road, getting from there to here. 

I said the same thing on Facebook and X, lol.

Yes, so excited to see the Doctor back!!! I cannot wait to see him and Janeway in a room again. It’s been far too long.

Oh cool, I didn’t expect any more Trek for a long while.

I liked the first season although it lost something when it became too Voyager. Was never a fan of Voyager so not sure how I feel about this. We’ll see.

“I  liked the first season although it lost something when it became too Voyager. Was never a fan of Voyager.”

This is where I am, too.

I’m the opposite, the more Voyager the better. Bring it on if you ask me.

How does this work for Canada? It is usually shown on CTV Sci Fi and is not on Netflix here currently.

We will be following up with more info including international release for those countries outside the current Netflix countries. This includes Eastern European countries with SkyShowtime and Canada with CTVScifi

In Canada, it used to be that Star Trek shows were on CTV (a network) and Crave (a streaming service), both of which are owned by Bell Media. Now the only way to watch Prodigy is via CTV, which I think requires a cable TV subscription; there’s no streaming service that carries it. Any chance this might change…?

You can use a VPN to make your device look like it’s in the US. I recommend Surfshark, IP Vanish or Express VPN. I use Surfshark. I watch Netflix from the US, London, UK or Budapest, Hungary.All from the comfort of my home from the GTA. (Greater Traffic Area..)

So far, season 1 is still available on CRAVE. I haven’t seen anything in the listings for CTV Sci-Fi or CRAVE regarding season 2 yet. I’m in Montreal, so I will check the Videotron guide to see if the Prodigy season 2 is listed in the guide at that time. But I think I can only look 2 weeks ahead.

This is very very exciting!

I just watched season one for the first time literally a month ago and I was so impressed with this show. I adored practically everything about it; especially having Janeway back. But all the new characters were great and enjoyed all their arcs Dal went from my least favorite to favorite after the first half of the season.

Other than Picard season 3, this is the only other show in NuTrek I have truly loved. Hopefully we will see more Voyager characters along the way

Well I’m still so happy you finally found something else in NuTrek to be excited about! It sounds like you finished the season and loved it! :)

As far as more legacy characters showing up, I am 100% convinced at least one more Voyager character will appear, even if it’s just a cameo or something. But they have said there will be another major legacy character involved in the season outside the Doctor and not from Voyager. So most likely TNG or (hopefully) DS9.

And I’m also happy to see you can post your thoughts without feeling harassed over it as you were but I will digress on that. Most people here are actually very open, friendly and civil, but yes like yourself, VERY passionate lol.

Haha, thanks!

Yes it is really nice to be enjoying another show outside of Picard. But I didn’t watch it because I thought it was bad, but simply not for me being geared to young children. But you and others were so right, it really does speak to adults as much as kids. I just appreciate it’s telling authentic Star Trek stories again. I know the others try but I have other issues with them beyond just that.

I would truly love anyone from TNG or DS9. I was actually a bit irked we didn’t get anyone from DS9 at all on Picard. I didn’t expect Odo for obvious reasons even though the season dealt with the changelings, but Kira or Bashir popping up would’ve been fabulous. Let’s hope we get another shot on Prodigy!

And yes everyone has been super lovely outside of that one individual I won’t name; just happy they are gone. But I haven’t had an issue with anyone else and have always had pleasant conversations, even when we do disagree from time to time. As you said, we are all passionate and sometimes resolute in our opinions; but that’s no excuse to be a bully to others because you can’t handle a difference of opinion that’s frankly been said many times over by others anyway. If you can’t have a civil conversation without getting so triggered over it, just keep scrolling. But I want to reiterate, this has been a great board to pop my head in from time to time to give a few random opinions and talk to you lovely people the last few months. :)

And I haven’t really posted here or other boards much lately anyway since I decided not to watch Discovery this season (but really hoped you and others liked it) and there haven’t been a lot of other things that have interested me. This show definitely has my attention now though.

Okay that’s good to know! 😊

Sadly that’s so much of the Internet these days so we’re all used to it but this board is very small as it is and it’s sad when someone new comes along who has never bothered anyone and is treated that way really bothered me. I’m guessing all the shouting and meltdowns over shows and movies we have here probably keep most new people away as it is lol. But it’s different when you are being harassed or attacked for simply having an opinion.

And most of the strife has mostly been over Discovery IMO. Passions just run very high on that show on either side. But the irony is the last season has been an absolute delight to discuss lol. Seriously, very little fighting has happened over it. There are still people who hate it as others who love it but very little infighting or trolling over it

Part of it has to do with certain personalities finally being banned who kept all the silly fights going in the first place as you experienced yourself, but there has just been a lot less people talking about the show overall for some reason and more people seem to generally like the season including me. That always helps lol. All in all it was actually a pretty tame, chill and frankly a dull place at times to discuss the show for a change.

Now that’s it’s over these boards will probably take a turn for the better overall since the other current shows are just more well liked or just less bitterness over them lol. Prodigy is one of those shows that gets 50 posts on a GOOD week discussing an episode and there is very little strife over it. People obviously disagree here and there but it’s a pretty easy going show to discuss so can’t wait. Prodigy brings more good vibes!

(See I got it back on topic ;))

And definitely would love to see Kira or Bashir. Anyone from DS9 would be a plus. Give me 10 episodes with Brunt and I won’t complain lol.

I think we’re going to get a great season either way!

I guess things become better on boards when you eliminate the elderly children who wants to throw a temper tantrum towards others when they don’t get their way haha.

And I’m very happy you enjoyed this season of Discovery. I haven’t read any of the articles or the comments about the season so not sure how others felt about it. Someone I talk to on FB watched it and it sounds like she liked it too and she’s not a big fan of the show either. I did watch a YouTube video discussing the finale yesterday to see how they handled the Progenitors. It sounded fine but not something I need to watch personally. But I hope its fans enjoyed the ending.😊

But I’m still in the middle of my Enterprise rewatch I started a month ago and currently on season 3. By the time I finish Prodigy may have already started!

So a good way to pass the time along until it gets here. 😄

And I would have no problems if Brunt joined the show lol. Jeffrey Combs is a Star Trek treasure.

It’s always great to talk to you. You’re always so sweet.

LOL thanks. And yes very excited about Prodigy. I really had no idea how I would ultimately feel about this season of Discovery considering I haven’t been a big fan of the last four lol. And while it did come out a little better as I hoped, it still wasn’t a complete home run either. But I felt it did just enough to feel it ended OK at least and that’s really all I can ask for at this point. I still have zero interest to rewatch it anytime soon though.

With Prodigy my expectations are much much higher because I trust the people who make that show 100%. They knocked it out of the park in the first season and I imagine it will be just as solid next season as well.

And enjoy your Enterprise marathon. Although I know you didn’t watch Discovery this season I know you’re obviously aware about the big reveal in the finale and one of the reasons why I liked it so much. Just a cool tie in although I know others are more mixed on the revelation. Not me, I thought it was great and I just love how it basically bookends Enterprise and Discovery together. :)

they did get Ro in, who was supposed to be in DS9 but ms forbes declined the role.

“What’s wonderful about the writing of the show is that they maintain what I love most about doing Voyager itself, which was I could be a comic relief, but on a dime I could turn and it could get quite serious when it was a dire situation.”

What I love about Prodigy is that they didn’t change the legacy characters so much that they were unrecognizable. They feel like a plausible continuation of the characters.

I’m rewatching S1 now and it’s so much fun. These writers can put in so much story in 23 minutes and it works. I can’t wait for S2. I’m hoping for a S3 or maybe a TV or theatrical movie.

This is amazing news!

Prodigy is my favorite show in the modern era and just tick all the boxes of great Star Trek for me! It’s also cool we now have less than a month for the next show.

As Janeway would say, do it!

Amazing News! Can’t wait to see what Kevin & Dan and their incredible team have in store for us.

Great news!

Yay! Have Anthony & Laurie talked about how they are going to review the season if they are all dropped at once? Like maybe 2 per week or something like that?

I hope they at least have a little break between batches of episodes. Dropping all 20 would be ridiculous. They’d be gobbled up in a flash and fan conversations wouldn’t be as fun.

I prefer this format. Having the freedom to choose when/how to watch each episode is a gift. Specially with Prodigy!

I feel like 10 episode releases with a short break a la Bridgerton is getting plenty. We all benefit from being able to talk about these shows on relatively the same timeline. Watching a show on my own time is fine, but I enjoy talking about them as they happen. With Netflix shows it’s always a case of, “OMG did you see episode 6 yet? No? Oh. Okay, well let me know when you get there!” or “Oh man I’m not there yet! Bummer.” The immediacy of conversations is stifled a bit. I find the majority of people gobble up binge shows like candy in one big bender, and everyone from the fans to the creators doing publicity chatters excitedly for maybe a month… and then the audience moves on to the next content that must be consumed. Binge models lead to longer hiatuses too. Even beyond Ted Sarandos’ inane comments, I lament what Netflix has done to the industry more than the convenient disruptions it has pioneered.

I assume TrekMovie will stagger reviews for episodes that have come out and it could become a big jumble of different schedules.

I’m hoping they at least divide the season up and we get 10 in July and maybe the other 10 in September or something. Give people wanting more. But don’t space it out too much. I really feel a big reason the show failed on P+ is because after they dropped the first half of the season, it took a full year to get the second half and most people (especially kids) just moved on by then.

Precisely, this is what modern animators don’t seem to understand. Kids grow up fast, which means you need to get the content to them quickly. In thine olden times there use to be 65 episodes spread over 13 weeks to tell the show’s story. If it was really successful it would get an order for the next year.

I’m of the opposite opinion. I hope they drop the entire season so that it can be binged. That seems to be the dominant strategy at Netflix.

I get it. And Prodigy’s team are going to be delighted it’s being seen at all and supported. It just would be nice if it were over the span of 20 weeks at a decent ebb.

This show is really great with the addition of the Voyager characters. Can’t wait to see The Doctor.

More Voyager please!

I wish that I could muster-up the level of enthusiasm the show’s biggest boosters (saluting you, Tiger 2) have for it, but I’m happy for them and will certainly be checking it out myself. From my perspective it’s fine for what it is: a children’s show set in the Trek universe. There’s nothing at all wrong with that in principle, and the best Pixar outings can easily transcend the demographic they’re pitched to accommodate. It’s just not particularly what I come to Star Trek for.

And speaking of Pixar, whatever reservations I have about Prodigy — man, is it gorgeous to look at. Many years ago, before TAS premiered, I remember Roddenberry boasting that the level of animation at Filmation Studios was on a par with Disney. . . a claim that, to be generous, was pretty generous. But that the level of cinematography and production design in Prodigy often compares favorably with feature films is just what you happen to see on the screen. It’s stellar work.

I laughed pretty hard over that first sentence.

And at the end of the day, you gave it a chance and it’s not really your thing. That’s all anyone can ask for. And yes, if nothing else, the show is stunningly beautiful to look at. Why it’s disappointing it didn’t reach the original target audience as it was meant to; or not as many as Paramount hoped I guess. Maybe it will have a better shot being on Netflix.

We’ll now know soon!

In regards to the visual quality, I agree it’s stunning to see. And it’s even more impressive considering it’s apparently about half as expensive to make compared to other animated shows (according to what the Hagemans have said), and they were working during the height of the pandemic which would have created certain hurdles getting it done.

Well…my patience died a couple weeks ago, but maybe I should have tried to be just a tiny bit more patient to begin with, because I am surprised Netflix isn’t waiting until December like I was thinking they were going to. So, this month The Acolyte, and next month Prodigy!

Even if they do drop them all at once, I will be watching one per week.

Alright, maybe two or three per week.

This is great news to have confirmed at last. Now the big question for me is will season 2 get a physical blu-ray/DVD release later down the line? Netflix are very against this, but Paramount are for it. Wonder which way it will go.

Not saying it’s a guarantee, but Netflix shows that were produced by outside studios have gotten physical releases. The Crown and Narcos come to mind.

I hope they release all 20 eps at once. The once-a-week thing is getting tiring…

I’m with you on that. Poor Anthony and Laurie though.

I prefer the once a week releases. But they will probably release 10 or 20 at once.

Erich Anderson r i p

If this ends up being the last season, as I’m suspecting it will be, I hope they get a chance to wrap things up.

I was thrilled to see this yesterday. After all that the show went through, and all the waiting for a release date, it’s great to finally know we’re in the home stretch. I loved this show. The biggest surprise of the modern era for me (though Lower Decks was a close second in that regard). So excited to see what’s in store for season 2. I’ve been hearing nothing but great things from those who’ve seen it (and thankfully no spoilers either).

YAY!! The wait is over. PROD rocks!!!

Finally! I was about to start learning French.

Will they Release all 10 or 20 Episodes all at once or will they get released weekly

Netflix typically releases episodes all at once. So we’ll probably either get all 20 on July 1, or get the first ten then and get the second half at a later date.

YES! Definitely keeping my Netflix subscription. CANT WAIT FOR SEASON 2! Seeing the Doc again will bring a tear to my eye I bet.

The Doctor was one of my 2 favorite Voyager characters (hard to choose between him and Seven), so I’m thrilled we’re getting him back. And I could easily imagine him being great on Prodigy, with these writers. He should have great interactions with everyone, including very likely having scenes with Janeway.

Yes I love the Doctor so much as well. I was hoping he showed up on Picard at some point but sadly not to be. But this is actually better because he will be a full time character and back on another Voyager with Janeway! I can’t wait for their scenes together. That’s music to my ears.

Doctor who?

Yep the Doctor is one of my favorite characters as well. I was so happy to hear he’s coming back on this show.

I’m ecstatic with all the Voyager love we’re getting on this show. And it’s so great how accurate canon has been on it. They have honored the Star Trek universe well.

Good news, time for a rewatch of season one.

We’re getting our beloved Prodigy back in less than a month and I can’t wait! Absolutely love this show. We have to show up in force and let Netflix know we want a third season!

This show and LDS is what I’m excited to see this year! It’s great to have them back even if it’s their final seasons.

Yaa…. I’m boycotting prodigy. People wasted their time trying to save it when they should of been trying to save Lower Decks and Discovery. Aww well. I hope this is the last season of prodigy ever.

Netflix Is Finally Getting A New Season of Star Trek: Prodigy

The second season of Trek’s most underrated series is coming.

The continuing mission of the crew of the USS Protostar is coming to Netflix at warp speed. After previously having b een yanked from Paramount+ , the nascent animated Star Trek spinoff series Star Trek: Prodigy is staging a massive comeback. After its apparent cancellation in 2023, it was later announced that Netflix would pick up the distribution of the series. And now, Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 is almost here. Here’s when the new episodes will hit Netflix, how many episodes there will be, and how to catch up on this Trek show if you missed it the first time around, back in 2021.

Mild spoilers ahead for Star Trek: Prodigy Season 1.

Set in the late 24th century — after Voyager , but before the flashbacks in Picard — the events of Prodigy mostly focus on a group of rag-tag teenage aliens who find an abandoned experimental Starfleet ship called the USS Protostar. Because all these kids are working in a horrible slave-mining situation (think Temple of Doom in space) they use the downed Protostar to escape. Armed with the life-changing Trek technology of the universal translator, this crew can suddenly understand each other, and, in search of a better life, leave the Delta Quadrant to find the Federation and Starfleet.

Consisting of 20 episodes in its first season, Prodigy began in a kind of vague Star Wars-ish universe, and then, gradually, brought the characters into the Star Trek universe. Creators Kevin and Dan Hageman viewed the show as the kind of series a young person could watch, and be introduced to various Star Trek ideas little by little. And, by the second half of Season 1, the crew of the Protostar is fully integrated into the machinations of Starfleet, in the familiar 24th century setting. By the end of Season 1, the crew was under the tutelage of Admiral Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), and set for a new adventure, possibly on a brand-new starship.

And now, after an almost two-year wait, Season 2 is finally coming.

Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 release date

The crew of the Protostar need a new ship. Will Season 2 deliver?

According to a tweet from showrunners Kevin and Dan Hageman, Season 2 of Prodigy will hit Netflix on July 1 on Netflix. But, there’s a bit of a twist here. Like Season 1, this season of Prodigy is a full 20 episodes long. So, the question is, will all 20 episodes drop at once, as per standard Netflix practice? Or, will the season be split up somehow?

While some outlets are claiming all 20 episodes will drop on July 1, there’s been no confirmation from Netflix, CBS, Paramount, or the Hagemans on that detail. As of this writing, all we know is that Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 begins on July 1, 2024, on Netflix. Between then and now, it seems likely the distribution schedule of the episodes will be made clear, but until then, some Trekkies are preparing for one of the longest binges in Star Trek history.

• Science Fiction