The invigorating “Star Trek” franchise is a flourishing galaxy of content these days and that imaginative sci-fi realm is about to become even more fertile as evidenced by all the Star Trek-centric projects heading our way that were revealed at Saturday’s “Star Trek” Universe panel at New York Comic Con.
On Saturday, a full house at the Javits Center’s Empire Stage in New York City greeted an eclectic gang of cast member and producer luminaries from the “Star Trek” sphere to deliver details and surprises on all the geeky TV projects on the horizon at the streaming service Paramount Plus.
“Star Trek: Starfleet Academy“, “Star Trek: Section 31,” “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” and the final season of “Star Trek: Lower Decks” were the four main topics of discussion, with “Lower Decks” launching its last season on Oct. 24 and the other three offerings arriving sometime in 2025. Check out our guide on how to stream Star Trek to get set for all the new shows.
Starting it off and accompanied by an emotional reception and outpouring of love for “Lower Decks” (fans were chanting for the “Lower Decks” cast), a sneak peek at the premiere episode of Season 5 was screened for the fans, then first up was the creative crew of the animated comedy series, which kicks off next week for its fifth and final season. In attendance was creator and executive producer Mike McMahan and vocal stars Tawny Newsome, Jack Quaid, Noël Wells and Eugene Cordero who play four low-ranking officers on the USS Cerritos who were promoted to junior grade lieutenants at the end of last season.
“The Lower Deckers have gone through a lot in these now 50 episodes,” McMahan explained regarding the alternate versions of the characters seen in the preview. “And this season is all about now that they are lieutenant junior grades and are settling into those roles looking to the future and where are we going and who am I going to be, and giving just a taste of them seeing where they could go in the first episode was important for the rest of the season.”
Another Matt Ferguson “Lower Decks” Season 5 poster was also unveiled on the stage screen as the third official promo artwork for this finale run. A clip of that premiere episode shown before the panel was also shared on StarTrek.com.
“Star Trek: Starfleet Academy” was next on the docket and represents a fresh direction for “Star Trek,” with its coming-of-age storyline set in 32nd century San Francisco and revolving around a new class of Starfleet cadets as they mature.
Robert Picardo, who will be reprising his role as The Doctor in “Starfleet Academy,” took the stage to the roar of the crowd to comment on his unexpected casting alongside series co-stars Holly Hunter and Paul Giamatti.
“I was delighted,” Picardo said. “It is now I think 600 years ahead of “Voyager” so I’m now about 900 years old, give or take. And it’s great, I don’t look bad for 900.”
Alex Kurtzman joined the presentation with a live video feed from the “Starfleet Academy” set in Toronto where the creator and co-showrunner saluted the Javits Center fans and introduced the six main cadets featured in the upcoming series before dropping a couple of major announcements.
“I’ve had the incredible privilege of being able to direct her and I can tell you she’s such a genius … we have Tatiana Maslany coming on board and she’s just incredible,” Kurtzman revealed. “She’s been an amazing addition to the cast. And we just got some good news, we just wrapped at 5 a.m. this morning so we’re a little bit bleary, but the studio and Paramount Plus are very happy with the way we’re going so they’re giving us a season two. So season two is officially happening and we’re going right from one into two.”
Attention, Cadets! We’re thrilled to announce that Star Trek: Starfleet Academy has been renewed for Season 2 and Tatiana Maslany has joined the ranks for Season 1! pic.twitter.com/vGQozQXwAvOctober 19, 2024
“Strange New Worlds,” already done filming its third season and getting polished up for a 2025 launch, was next on the big “Star Trek” panel lineup, with co-showrunners and executive producers Akiva Goldsman and Henry Alonso Myers joined by stars Carol Kane (Pelia) and Ethan Peck (Spock).
“It had been a long time between those two season’s productions,” Peck explained on filming last season’s harrowing Gorn-centric cliffhanger then picking right back up. “Over a year, right? A year-and-a-half. We all showed up and were a little concerned and hoped we could still act and play these characters. And I remember putting on my Starfleet boots and I was like, ‘I feel like I was just here yesterday.'”
Henry Alonso Myers teased a big Season 3 casting treat that’s swirling with rumors.
RED ALERT! 🚨 Rhys Darby is joining Season 3 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds as a guest star. pic.twitter.com/w5s8W10drTOctober 19, 2024
“We’re bring a gentleman named Rhys Darby aboard who you might know from “Our Flag Means Death” and “What We Do in the Shadows,” he shared. “Incredibly excited to have him on the show playing a character that will be familiar and yet completely new to folks who know “Star Trek.” That’s what I’ll say. I’m not going to confirm anything but I’m not going to deny anything. I’m just going to say that if you know ‘Star Trek, ‘you’re going to have a lot of fun with him. And we had more fun than I can possibly imagine when he came to set.”
A blazing new clip for “Strange New Worlds” was then screened with some fantastic footage of the Enterprise engaged in a dogfight with Gorn spaceships in Season 3.
Lastly, “Star Trek: Section 31” will be the venerable franchise’s first television movie, directed by by Olatunde Osunsanmi (“Star Trek: Discovery”) and starring Michelle Yeoh returning to her “Discovery” role as Philippa Georgiou, a harsh dictator from the Mirror Universe now marooned into the prime “Trek” universe. The film finds her recruited into the shadowy black-ops division of Starfleet to bond with characters played by Rob Kazinsky, Omari Hardwick, Sam Richardson, and Kacey Rohl.
Brought out on stage were director Osunsanmi alongside Kazinskyi, Hardwick, Richardson and Rohl just as Michelle Yeoh beamed in via live feed from Prague to join her creative team to wrap up the exciting NYCC “Star Trek” Universe panel.
“Philippa Georgiou is probably one of the most complex, fun, out-of-this-world characters that I’ve ever played,” she noted on stepping back into the character’s shoes again. “When it was first discovered in “Discovery,” it’s not possible to let go of a character like that. So thanks to Alex and Tunde and everyone at Paramount Plus, we kept on with this amazing Emperor Philippa Georgiou and on to ‘Section 31.'”
Osunsanmi then disclosed that “Star Trek: Section 31” will be officially released on Jan. 24, 2025 on Paramount Plus before sharing a brand new poster for the film.
“Well it’s unbelievably intimidating, especially when you put it like that,” he shared on the topic of contributing his vision to “Star Trek’s” legacy. “It’s an honor and I don’t take it for granted. I’ll never forget my first conversation with Alex when he asked me to come aboard and my first conversation with Michelle and just knowing that this is going to happen. You want to do right by it not because of just me and my vision, but getting it right for all of you, because ‘Star Trek’ belongs to all of you.
“I grew up watching it and it meant so much to my life. I want to make sure along with the rest of the family that we represent “Star Trek” in a way that it continues to mean a lot to you as well. I want to make sure that what I felt watching it is what you feel watching it. And that’s a lot of love and feeling accepted and all the wonderful ideals that “Star Trek” speaks to.”
