Every Confirmed & Rumored Star Trek: Discovery Spinoff

Premiering in September 2017, Star Trek: Discovery launched a new chapter for the iconic franchise after a twelve-year gap since Star Trek: Enterprise ended in 2005. The show centers on Michael Burnham, played by Sonequa Martin-Green, and follows her transformation from a Starfleet officer who committed a serious offense to the captain of the USS Discovery, providing the heart of the series’ five seasons of adventure. The show began ten years before the original Star Trek, and its look and feel were inspired by the Star Trek movies directed by J.J. Abrams, blending big-screen effects with the format of a continuing TV story. Later, the series jumped forward to the 32nd century to allow for new stories, but its early seasons were closely connected to the history of the USS Enterprise and the founding of the United Federation of Planets.

While Star Trek: Discovery found success on CBS All Access and Paramount+, it sparked a lot of debate among fans. Changes to the Klingons and the introduction of the Spore Drive were particularly controversial. Some critics felt the show’s darker themes and focus on one main character moved away from the hopeful, team-based spirit of the original Star Trek. Despite this, Discovery was important for Paramount+, helping to establish the streaming service and creating a connected universe of stories. This led to several spin-off shows expanding the Star Trek timeline, with more projects potentially on the way.

6) Star Trek: Short Treks

In 2018, Star Trek: Short Treks premiered as the first official spinoff of the modern Star Trek era. This anthology series was created to connect the seasons of Star Trek: Discovery, with each episode telling a standalone story. These stories often explored the backgrounds of existing characters like Saru and Tilly, or introduced ideas that would become important later on. The series experimented with different styles, including animation and comedy. The second season was especially significant because it successfully reintroduced Captain Pike and Spock. This format allowed writers to try out new ideas and stories that wouldn’t have fit into the main show’s ongoing plot, showcasing the flexibility of the Star Trek universe.

5) Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

Many fans and critics agree that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is the best of the recent Star Trek shows. It was created because of the popularity of the Enterprise crew first seen in 2019. The series follows Captain Christopher Pike and Number One as they explore the galaxy aboard the iconic starship, years before Captain Kirk takes command. Unlike other recent Star Trek shows, Strange New Worlds goes back to the classic format of visiting a new planet each week, which has pleased longtime fans while still looking and feeling modern. The show continues to receive excellent reviews by successfully blending familiar elements with new, engaging stories and characters. Currently, it’s considered the highlight of the entire Star Trek collection and is a key reason people subscribe to Paramount+.

4) Star Trek: Section 31

As a lifelong Trek fan, I was incredibly excited when Star Trek: Section 31 finally arrived in 2025 – it had a long and winding road to get here! It started as a TV show idea, but ended up as a full-blown movie starring Michelle Yeoh, who was fantastic revisiting her role as Philippa Georgiou. The story dives into the really shadowy side of Starfleet, with Georgiou getting pulled into this secret organization to save the Federation from a huge danger. Some fans weren’t thrilled with how different it looked from typical Star Trek, but it’s still a big deal as the first original movie made directly for Paramount+. And honestly, it’s got me thinking a lot about the tough choices Starfleet might have to make to keep the peace – and whether those choices are always justifiable. I’m really hoping we get to see more stories exploring this darker corner of the Star Trek universe.

3) Star Trek: Starfleet Academy

Premiering in January 2026, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy brings the franchise back to the 32nd-century timeline first explored in the later seasons of Discovery. The series follows a fresh group of cadets as they train and learn to lead at the rebuilt Starfleet Academy in San Francisco. Academy Award winner Holly Hunter stars as Chancellor Nahla Ake, and Paul Giamatti plays the villainous Nus Braka. The show continues the story started in the Discovery finale, featuring familiar faces like Sylvia Tilly and Jett Reno (Tig Notaro) to connect with longtime fans. By combining a story about growing up with the excitement and danger of space exploration, the series hopes to appeal to new viewers while still offering the thought-provoking themes that Star Trek is known for.

2) The Star Trek: Discovery Movie Finale

Many devoted viewers are still disappointed that a planned movie finale for Star Trek: Discovery never happened, despite strong interest from those involved in making the show. When Paramount+ cancelled the series during its fifth season, the showrunner Michelle Paradise and executive producer Alex Kurtzman tried to convince the studio to let them finish the story with a full-length film, focusing on Michael Burnham and her crew. Actress Sonequa Martin-Green has confirmed that these plans for a two-hour movie were turned down. Instead, a shorter, 16-minute epilogue was filmed after the season finished, intended to wrap up loose ends about the ship and the crew’s fate. While the epilogue offered some closure, fans still wonder what could have been, imagining a more complete resolution to the show’s biggest mysteries and the future of the Federation with a bigger budget and more time.

1) Rumored James T. Kirk Project

Because the current Star Trek shows are doing well, there’s a lot of talk about a new series that would focus on a young James T. Kirk. This show would depict Kirk’s first year as captain of the Enterprise, bridging the gap between Strange New Worlds and the original series. Paul Wesley, who plays the character, is eager to star in his own show and believes his portrayal offers a fresh look at Kirk’s more personal side. Although Paramount hasn’t officially approved the project as of January 2026, strong fan interest in classic adventure stories makes it the most probable next installment in the franchise.

Which Star Trek: Discovery spinoff do you want for the future?

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2026-01-25 23:14