Big news: Justin Simien and Tawny Newsome will work together on a new Star Trek show! They can’t say much right now, but Newsome says it involves a clash of leadership, Simien says “People on a thing, shenanigans, uh-oh!” It will be set in the 25th century. Simien then adds “Vibes!” Kurtzman reveals it will be the first live-action Star Trek comedy.
“That news came during the lengthy panel. There’s a whole lot of Star Trek going around on Paramount+ these days, even as Discovery has ended. Naturally, the talk of the Star Trek Universe panel was the big new projects: the Section 31 movie and the upcoming Starfleet Academy TV series. First, however, it was time to check in with Strange New Worlds and Lower Decks, in a panel moderated by Justin Simien.
First, for Strange New Worlds, a season 3 sneak peek, in which the main crew all become Vulcan:
Alex Kurtzman, Akiva Goldsman, Henry Alonso Myers, Ethan Peck, and Rebecca Romijn were all in attendance.
“When you’re trapped in a small, or not so small spaceship with attractive people, shit happens!” — Myers, on the show’s romances. Dr. Roger Korby (Cillian O’Sullivan) will be a new character in the show, throwing a wrench into the Chapel-Spock situation, and Scotty will become a regular on the ship. Romijn says you’ll see a lighter side to Oona, and she’ll behave in a way that you’ve never seen before. “She’s freer.”
They showed the above clip, which Peck joked is the first time Spock has to worry about job security. He said it felt like being with family — everyone else had pointy ears, and they were all insulting.
Romijn “got to sit in the Captain’s chair quite a bit this season.” Goldsman says the musical episode was a test that worked as far as going into other genres. A Hollywood murder mystery episode is coming, and they’ll do any genre they fell the cast can work in.
A fan asks if Lower Decks can have a Borg Tribble. “Sure!” says Myers.
Another fan asks what the message is for the next generation in our divided world. Kurtzman says we can’t define ourselves by the things that we don’t want to be, but by the things we believe in and we want to become, and that’s what Star Trek has to say. Goldsman says the classic episode of the half-black, half-white — but on different sides — aliens is key to what Trek is, holding a mirror up to us.
Romijn praises the Lower Decks crossover, and would love Jack Ransom on their show.
They’re exploring whether they can bring a version of the musical episode to the stage.
Up next, Lower Decks, with a final season teaser trailer:
Kurtzman stayed as Lower Decks’ Mike McMahan, Tawny Newsome, Jack Quaid, Noel Wells, and Jerry O’Connell came out. Newsome jokes that this season is in her top five for sure; McMahan says it is the best. Because they knew it’d be the last, it’s a celebration of all things Trek.
Mariner is in her growth era, now having other Ensigns answer to her, and dealing with bratty youngsters like she was. Quaid says Boimler really took a lot of inspiration from being in the Captain’s chair — he’ll meet somebody he really wants to be like early in the season, and trying to be like him will lead to hijinks. they hint it’s a legacy character, but it’s not Khan or Kirk.
Wells reveals there will be blue Orions (pronounced ORRY-uns) from the original animated series meeting green Orions (Oh-Ryans), and Tendi will return to Starfleet. O’Connell says Ransom has a growth season, “and not just in his pecs.”
Kurtzman says the rule has always been “never punch down on Star Trek.” You can laugh with it, but not at it, and it shows there’s room for comedy in Star Trek. McMahan promises “amazing legacy guest stars” in season 5.
A fan asks the cast who their most inspirational Trek characters are. Newsome says Ben Sisko, and doesn’t elaborate. Wells says the Lower Decks cast. O’Connell says Ransom is just California Riker, and it’s Jonathan Frakes for him. Quaid agrees it’s Frakes. McMahan says getting to direct George Takei was awesome.
McMahan says the season will have closure on this chapter, but it will not close the book on the Cerritos or Lower Decks. Kurtzman and McMahan urge fans to watch, and watch multiple times, and the more views things get, the more likely any kind of continuation in the future becomes.
Starfleet Academy, the show fans have long wanted in the 23rd or 24th century, is now happening, but in the 31st instead. Legacy actors Oded Fehr, Mary Wiseman, Tig Notaro, and Robert Picardo join the show, along with some new cadets, who react to their casting in this video:
Kurtzman says we will see disabled characters on the show. Tawny Newsome will be a writer on Starfleet Academy, and Kurtzman says she’s a “stone cold assassin.” That’s when they announced the new show.
Co-showrunner Noga Landau came out for this one, and they will start shooting soon. Kurtzman praised Holly Hunter’s work as “a different kind of chancellor and Captain.” Paul Giamatti is the villain, because during The Holdovers press, he said the role he wanted most was to be a Klingon on Star Trek. They offered him multiple roles, and he chose the one he liked, committing to the whole season.
Now it was finally time to see what Section 31 is all about. Star Trek’s Federation Black Ops, effectively, have been around for a while, and ever since Michelle Yeoh’s Mirror Empress Georgiou left Discovery as a regular, there’s been talk of a spinoff. Then she won an Oscar, and the spinoff became a movie. Miku Martineau will play young Georgiou; here’s a teaser:
Omari Kardwick, Kacey Rohl, Sam Richardson, and Olatunde Osunsami came out for this panel, as Yeoh called in remotely to debut the trailer. Kurtzman calls it “spy-fi.” Says the tone is different and “very fun.” He wants to do more one-off movies and more Section 31. The cast members praised Yeoh as “always present” and gave her credit for ensuring the movie actually finally happened. Richardson praised the “amazing” stunt team. Osunsami says that because of all Georgiou has now gone through, this is essentially a third version. Kacey Rohl plays Rachel Garrett from “Yesterday’s Enterprise,” tying the movie to canon. Hardwick calls the movie “Guardians of the Galaxy on steroids…a messy version of the Star Trek world…a beautiful mess!” Richardson plays a Cameloid, the shape-shifting species played by Iman in Star Trek VI.
A fan asks if Doctor Who and Star Trek could cross over — Kurtzman says come to the next panel later and ask again.
The panel concluded with the panelists taking photos of the audience.
