Star Trek: Discovery coming to an end.
The Paramount+ sci-fi drama will embark on its final journey with its upcoming fifth season.
Sources claim that principal filming for the season is nearly complete. But with this decision to end the show, there will be additional filming to help craft a conclusion for the series. The fifth and final season will air in early 2024.
Launched in 2017, Discovery is credited with successfully launching a new era of Trek TV. The series, starring Sonequa Martin-Green, was announced as the first hiking show led by a black female lead, as well as other firsts along the way in LGBTQIA+ representation, as well as pioneering a more serialized storytelling format for the 50-year-old franchise. Discovery also helped launch CBS’ streaming service (then called CBS All Access) and is currently Paramount+’s longest-running drama. The success of Discovery leads to a multitude of other hiking projects in development, including animated shows Lower decks And Prodigy.
“When we first started talking about the return of Star Trek eight years ago, we could never have imagined the indelible impact Star Trek: Discovery would have,” said David Stapf, president of CBS Studios. “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 who we could be as humans when we celebrate our differences.
The move follows Paramount+’s announcement of another member of its Trek team, Star Trek: Picardwill end with its current third season.
The Discovery team released statements about the decision. Executive producers and co-showrunners Alex Kurtzman and Michelle Paradise wrote, “As lifelong Star Trek fans, it’s been a huge honor and privilege to help bring Star Trek: Discovery in the world. The Trek universe means so much to so many people – including us – and we couldn’t be prouder of it all. Discovery contributed to his legacy, particularly through his representation. If a single person sees themselves, or the possibilities of their future, in a new way because of Discovery, then we think we would have made Gene Roddenberry very proud. Of course there would be no Discovery without Sonequa Martin-Green and the extraordinary team of artists, in front of and behind the camera, who brought this show to life. Their passion and determination to make each episode special has been deeply inspiring; so is their love and support for each other and their true 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 fans around the world, thank you for joining us on this incredible journey. Your love for these characters and your enthusiasm 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 past season; we appreciate your patience in the meantime and trust us when we say it will be worth it. We all love you! LLAP »
Martin-Green wrote, “I find it hard to believe that this breathtaking journey with Discovery end. I am incredibly blessed by God to have played Captain Michael Burnham and to have been part of a legacy alongside an extraordinary cast, a phenomenal crew, and a remarkable writing team. To our most supportive partners at CBS Studios and Paramount+, who insisted on making television history, I am deeply grateful. I am 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. I’ll never forget what it was like to stick together as a show family, cradling Trek’s legacy with everyone in the franchise at large and with fans. Fans welcomed us into their hearts as we launched a new iteration of Trek and a comprehensive entertainment platform, and we’ll never forget that. 65 episodes later, here’s to the whole company of Star Trek: Discovery, to the series and its fifth and final season, to its beloved fans, and to all who look forward to a brighter future. Let’s fly…”
And Tanya Giles, Director of Programming at Paramount Streaming, added: “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+. The series and its incredible cast and creators ushered in a new era for Star Trek when it debuted over six years ago, embracing the future of streaming with serialized storytelling, bringing deep and complex characters to life. that honor Gene Roddenberry’s legacy of representing diversity and inclusion. , and push the boundaries with award-winning global construction. This final season will see our beloved team embark on a new adventure and we look forward to celebrating the series’ impact on the franchise ahead of its final season early next year.
The decision follows Naveen Chopra, chief financial officer of Paramount Global, who said at an investor conference on February 28 that the company may spend less on streaming content in 2024 than expected due to the integration of Paramount + and Showtime.
The departure of Discovery secures its spin-off Star Trek: Strange New Worlds the undisputed new captain of the fleet in Paramount+’s Star Trek series. Strange new worlds adopted the more planet style of the week from The original series and launched last May with a 99% positive score on Rotten Tomatoes. Paramount + said Strange new worlds was the most watched news hiking series on the services in its first 90 days and the company touted the series in a Super Bowl ad last month. The show returns for Season 2 this year.
Kurtzman also teased the development of another potential spin-off, Star Trek: Academy, which would focus on a new generation of young cadets. Nothing has been officially announced on that front yet, however. Kurtzman is one of Paramount Global’s most prominent producers and has delivered hits outside of the Trek franchise for Paramount_ through his deal with CBS Studios. He signed his second overall nine-figure contract with David Stapf-led CBS Studios in 2021.