“Star Trek: Discovery” will end with the upcoming fifth season, which will premiere sometime in early 2024, Paramount said Thursday. Principal filming has been mostly completed, with additional shooting set to take place later, an individual with knowledge told TheWrap.
Leading up to the final season, Paramount+ will honor “Discovery’s” legacy with yearlong celebrations and appearances at key events in markets around the world.
“‘Star Trek: Discovery’ is a perennial favorite on the service, near and dear to the hearts of legions of ‘Star Trek’ fans as well as all of us here at Paramount+,” Tanya Giles, chief programming officer at Paramount Streaming, said in a statement.
Giles continued, “The series and its incredible cast and creatives ushered in a new era for ‘Star Trek’ when it debuted over six years ago, embracing the future of streaming with serialized storytelling, bringing to life deep and complex characters that honor Gene Roddenberry’s legacy of representing diversity and inclusion, and pushing the envelope with award-winning world-building. This final season will see our beloved crew take on a new adventure and we can’t wait to celebrate the series’ impact on the franchise leading up to its final season early next year.”
The streaming sci-fi show launched as a CBS All-Access (now Paramount+) original back in 2017. It was the first new “Star Trek” show since “Star Trek: Enterprise,” which ran for four seasons from 2001 to 2005.
“As lifelong fans of ‘Star Trek,’ it has been an immense honor and privilege to help bring ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ to the world. The ‘Trek’ universe means so much to so many — including us — and we couldn’t be prouder of everything ‘Discovery’ has contributed to its legacy, particularly with representation,” executive producers and co-showrunners Alex Kurtzman and Michelle Paradise said in a statement. “If just one person sees themselves, or the possibilities for their future, in a new way because of ‘Discovery,’ then we think we’d have made Gene Roddenberry very proud.”
They continued, “Of course, there would be no ‘Discovery’ without Sonequa Martin-Green and the extraordinary team of artists, both in front of and behind the camera, who have brought this show to life. Their passion and determination to make every episode special has been deeply inspiring; so too has their love and support for one another and their genuine love for ‘Star Trek.’ ‘Discovery’ has truly become a family over the years — and we couldn’t be more grateful to be part of it. To the fans around the world, thank you for joining us on this incredible journey. Your love for these characters and your excitement for every episode, every season, has meant the world to us. We can’t wait for you to see what we’ve been working on for this final season; we appreciate your patience in the meantime and trust us when we say it’ll be worth the wait. We love you all! LLAP.”
“Discovery” stars Martin-Green as Commander (later Captain) Michael Burnham, the adopted sister of Spock (Ethan Peck). It was initially set a few years before the original “Star Trek” series, but jumped ahead 900 years, depicting a Federation in the far distant future never seen in the “Trek” universe. The fifth and final season will find Captain Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery uncovering a mystery that will send them on an epic adventure across the galaxy to find an ancient power whose very existence has been deliberately hidden for centuries. But there are others on the hunt as well who will stop at nothing to claim the prize.
Green was the first Black woman to lead a “Trek” series (Avery Brooks was the first Black male lead with “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”). “Discovery” also featured the first major LGBTQ+ relationship between two primary cast members: Lt. Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp) and Dr. Hugh Culber (Wilson Cruz). The series also stars Doug Jones, Mary Wiseman, David Ajala and Tig Notaro.
For her part, Martin-Green said in a statemement, “I can hardly believe that this mind-blowing journey with ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ is ending. I’m astoundingly blessed by God to have played Captain Michael Burnham and to have taken part in a legacy alongside an extraordinary cast, phenomenal crew and remarkable writing team. To our most supportive partners at CBS Studios and Paramount+, who insisted on making television history, I’m deeply grateful. I’m also deeply grateful for the creative collaboration with our showrunners Michelle Paradise and Alex Kurtzman, as well as Olatunde Osunsanmi and the incomparable team of executive producers.”
She continued, “I will never forget how it felt to stand together as a show family, cradling the heirloom of ‘Trek’ with all those from the franchise at large and with the fans. The fans welcomed us into their hearts as we launched a new iteration of ‘Trek’ and an entire entertainment platform, and we’ll never forget it. 65 episodes later, here’s to the entire company of ‘Star Trek: Discovery,’ to the show and its fifth and final season, to its beloved fans and to all those who envision a better future. Let’s fly…”
In Season 3, “Discovery” introduced its first explicitly nonbinary character Adira Tal (played by nonbinary actor Blu del Barrio) and transgender character Gray Tal (played by trans actor Ian Alexander).
Season 2 introduced the U.S.S. Enterprise commanded by Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), the predecessor to James T. Kirk. A spinoff, “Strange New Worlds,” launched in 2022 featuring Pike, Spock, and the Enterprise crew.
Several other “Star Trek” series have followed. “Star Trek: Picard,” starring Patrick Stewart as the eponymous Starfleet legend, is currently airing its third and final season on Paramount+. There are also two animated series: “Star Trek: Lower Decks” and “Star Trek: Prodigy.”
“When we first started talking about the return of ‘Star Trek’ eight years ago, we never could have imagined the indelible impact ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ would have,” David Stapf, president of CBS Studios, said. “The series brought back a beloved global franchise, and just like its predecessors, ‘Discovery’ honored ‘Star Trek’s’ legacy of ‘infinite diversity in infinite combinations,’ representing the best of what we could be as humans when we celebrate our differences. I’d like to thank Alex Kurtzman and Michelle Paradise, who have led this show with heart, passion, and as fans themselves with vivid storytelling – always ready to push boundaries like those before them. And finally, I’d like to thank this talented cast, led by the brilliant Sonequa Martin-Green, whose leadership both onscreen and off has helped guide the way from day one.”
The series is produced by CBS Studios in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment. Kurtzman, Paradise, Osunsanmi, Heather Kadin, Aaron Baiers, Frank Siracusa, John Weber, Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth serve as executive producers.
