Captain Pike and his crew are gearing up to launch onto our screens in the latest Star Trek show from Paramount, joining Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Lower Decks, Star Trek: Picard and a raft of other new adventures that are currently being fitted for their maiden voyages.
Here’s all we know so far about Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
When is the release date for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds?
While it seemed that shooting had hoped to begin in 2020, the global pandemic put a stop to that, meaning it will still be a while before we see Pike in the Captain’s chair once more. The good news is that in early March 2021 it was confirmed that shooting had begun on the new series.
‘We’ve started,’ stated Anson Mount (Captain Pike) in a recent announcement video, ‘we’re in Toronto, we’re in production.’
Of course, this also means that it will be late 2021 or even 2022 before the Enterprise returns to the smaller screen, but at least we know that the journey is soon to begin.
Strange New Worlds joins the schedule alongside Star Trek: Discovery season 4, Star Trek: Lower Decks season 2, Star Trek: Picard season 2 as well as the other debutant, Star Trek: Prodigy, an animated show featuring an entirely non-human crew.
What is the plot of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds?
While we still don’t know a lot about the kind of adventures the Enterprise will be having, there are some strong indicators that the show will return to the roots of the franchise. In an interview with Variety, series co-creator Akiva Goldsman told reporters:
“We’re going to try to harken back to some classical ‘Trek’ values, to be optimistic, and to be more episodic,” said Goldsman. “Obviously, we will take advantage of the serialized nature of character and story building. But I think our plots will be more closed-ended than you’ve seen in either ‘Discovery’ or ‘Picard.'”
This will be good news for those who prefer the self-contained stories that featured throughout not only the Original series but also in Star Trek: Next Generation, Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
What we do know is the series will be set in the decade before Kirk becomes Captain of the Enterprise, running alongside Star Trek: Discovery’s timeline. Well, at least the timeline that existed in season one and two.
In the latter, Captain Pike’s fate is revealed to him, much as it was in the original series episode The Menagerie. Not to spoil anything, but it’s hardly the upbeat, optimistic finale that a series would hope for, so the writers have a lot of work to do if they want to avoid leaving fans weeping as the voyage comes to an end.
Another rumour that may reduce Star Trek lovers to tears is a potential cameo appearance of Scott Bakula’s Captain Archer. This remains very much a rumour, and one that could be incredulous when you consider that the Discovery/Strange New Worlds timeline is about a century after Star Trek: Enterprise.
Who are the cast and crew?
At the time of writing, only the three principal characters of Pike, Spock, and Number One have been announced. Paramount has recently confirmed five additional actors who will appear as regular cast members but hasn’t given any details outlining the characters they will be playing.
Here’s the current ship’s roster:
- Captain Christopher Pike: Anson Mount
- Number One: Rebecca Romijn
- Spock: Ethan Peck
- Series Regular: Babs Olusanmokun (Black Mirror, The Drowning)
- Series Regular: Christina Chong (Black Mirror, Heirs of the Night)
- Series Regular: Jess Bush (Skinford: Chapter Two, Playing For Keeps)
- Series Regular: Melissa Navia (Dietland, Common Charges)
- Series Regular: Celia Rose Gooding (Several Broadway productions)
- Director: Akiva Goldsman
- Writer: Akiva Goldsman
- Writer: Alex Kurtzman
- Writer: Jenny Lumet
How can I watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds?
Depending where you are, access to Strange New Worlds and the other current Star Trek series will be through one or more of the major streaming services. In the USA, you’ll want to use Paramount+, which recently replaced CBS All Access.
In the UK it could be a little more complicated. Netflix currently offers Star Trek: Discovery and all the older shows, while Amazon Prime Video is home to Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Picard. So, if you want to see all of the Trek TV shows, you’ll need a subscription to both.
Where Strange New Worlds will end up is still unclear, but hopefully we won’t have to wait too long to find out.