Star Trek has an impressively robust lineup of film and television series in development, from the end of Star Trek: Discovery to the beginning of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. After J.J. Abrams' Kelvin timeline reboot films starring Chris Pine as a young Captain James T. Kirk renewed interest in the Star Trek franchise, Discovery brought Star Trek back to the small screen in 2017. Discovery was controversial, but a hit, and was quickly followed by the likes of Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Lower Decks.
Star Trek on Paramount+ is in a bit of a transitional period. Star Trek: Picard recently ended after a long-planned three-season run, while the upcoming Star Trek: Discovery season 5 will be its last. Reflecting industry-wide changes in streaming content, Paramount is also said to be rethinking its Star Trek strategy a bit, starting with an expansion into made-for-streaming movies that are designed to feel like blockbuster events. This may mark another moment of change for the franchise, but the future still looks bright for Star Trek.
Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4
The live-action TV shows Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard both strike the same modern, serious tone full of moral dilemma and interpersonal drama. The animated series Star Trek: Lower Decks, which follows the misadventures of the USS Cerritos, does the exact opposite, as it's a cartoon comedy aimed toward a grown-up audience, à la Family Guy, South Park, and Rick and Morty. From the Cerritos' Second Contact missions to routine maintenance, Star Trek: Lower Decks pokes fun at the less glamorous aspects of Star Trek's Starfleet life, but it still finds time to develop its offbeat crew dynamic.
Star Trek: Lower Decks featured appearances from the likes of Captain William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Q (John de Lancie), and the animated comedy amped up the narrative for seasons 2 and 3, with critics praising the show's characters, jokes, and unique ideas. Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4 has been confirmed and is slated to debut in late summer-2023. Like much of the modern Star Trek programming so far, Lower Decks season 4 will only consist of 10 episodes, so prepare to have your Boimlers tickled. Ensigns Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) and Brad Boimler (Jack Quaid) will also appear in live-action in a crossover episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2.
Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2, Part 1
The CGI-animated, family-friendly Star Trek: Prodigy proved to be a delightful surprise in its debut season. The show follows the adventures of a group of ragtag young aliens who steal a Federation starship, the USS Protostar, in an effort to escape their brutal slave master, the Diviner (John Noble), and start new lives in the benevolent Federation. Along the way, the crew are taught about the ideals of Starfleet by a holographic version of Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew). Star Trek: Prodigy's season 1 finale promised a very different show in its second season, leaning into its ties to Star Trek: Voyager and now featuring Admiral Janeway leading the former Protostar crew. The first half of Prodigy season 2 is currently slated to air in late 2023.
Star Trek: Discovery Season 5
Star Trek: Discovery is coming to an end with its upcoming fifth season. The adventures of Commander Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) in the 23rd century brought Star Trek back to its television roots after over a decade-long absence. Like plenty of other Star Trek shows, Discovery had a bumpy beginning creatively, not really figuring itself out until it made the jump to the 32nd century at the end of season 2. Captain Burnham has since led the USS Discovery to overcome back-to-back galaxy-shattering crisis, but Star Trek: Discovery season 5 promises a lighter, more adventurous tone.
Star Trek: Discovery has a devoted fan base and should always be remembered as the show that began the current Star Trek renaissance, but it now also feels somewhat out of step with the current direction of the franchise. Discovery is also now an older series - five seasons for a streaming show is a minor miracle - which means it's getting more expensive to produce in an era where streamers are looking to cut costs. The curtain will close on Star Trek: Discovery after its upcoming season 5, slated to debut in early 2024.
Star Trek: Section 31
Long discussed as the premise for an ongoing series, the Section 31 project is now set to be the first Star Trek original movie for Paramount+. Star Trek: Section 31 will star Emperor Philippa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh), the Mirror Universe version of Michael Burnham's late mentor. Once a ruthless despot, Georgiou's time in the Prime universe with Michael softened her a bit. Phillipa was forced to leave her USS Discovery comrades behind after her time and dimensional displacement threatened to kill her. Georgiou was granted access to a different timeframe by the Guardian Of Forever (Paul Guilfoyle), though it remains unclear in what era. Star Trek: Section 31 is slated to debut sometime in 2024.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
Another long-gestating project, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy was officially announced in early 2023. Details about the project, developed by Star Trek executive producer Alex Kurtzman and Nancy Drew writer Noga Landau, are still mostly under wraps. What little plot information that's been made available suggests Starfleet Academy will likely be set in the post-Star Trek: Discovery 32nd century and will spotlight a diverse assortment of alien and human teenage Cadets, with possible guest starring roles from familiar Discovery faces. Star Trek: Starfleet Academy doesn't have a release date, but production is slated to start in 2024 with a potential 2025 release date.
Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2, Part 2
Star Trek: Prodigy is a unique production among the current crop of Star Trek projects. It's technically a co-production with Nickelodeon, which makes sense given its younger intended audience. Animated children's productions follow a different set of rules than live-action, adult-oriented shows, so Prodigy's seasons are a robust 20 episodes each, split in two for their initial runs on Paramount+ before eventually surfacing on the traditional broadcast Nickelodeon. As very little is known about the first half of Prodigy season 2, naturally even less is known about the back half, other than it won't debut before 2024 and will likely be great.
Star Trek 4
Star Trek 4 has become the problem child of the franchise. After Star Trek Beyond's theatrical bow in 2016, the Kelvin timeline entered a stop-and-start limbo that it's yet to escape. Multiple scripts, directors, and release windows have come and gone with nothing concrete on the table as of 2023. Paramount seems unable to find a story worth telling or a direction for the film worthy of it's A-list cast led by Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto. With Paramount+ beginning its own series of small-screen Star Trek films, it's fair to question what the future holds for J.J. Abrams-produced Star Trek theatrical movies.