With the first season of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy now finished, attention is starting to shift toward what comes next for the Star Trek franchise. Two more seasons of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds are already on the way, along with at least one more season of Starfleet Academy. Beyond those projects, the long-term direction of the franchise is less certain.
As previously reported, there are currently no additional Star Trek television series in production or officially greenlit, marking the first time in more than a decade that the franchise does not have a newly announced show moving forward. That said, it does not necessarily mean new ideas are not being explored behind the scenes.
Speaking with TrekMovie, Strange New Worlds co-showrunner Henry Alonso Myers shared an update on the potential series Star Trek: Year One. The proposed show would follow James T. Kirk, played by Paul Wesley, during his first year as captain of the USS Enterprise.
Despite the lack of concrete updates on the proposed series, which was first talked about last year, Myers said he and executive producer Akiva Goldsman remain fully committed to the idea.
“We think it would be a great show. It feels like the natural next chapter for Star Trek and the story we have been telling,” Myers said. “But the decision is out of our hands.”
The concept for Star Trek: Year One was first discussed publicly last July during San Diego Comic-Con. At the time, Goldsman explained the idea to fans, though it had not yet been pitched to Paramount Skydance.
“We started thinking about those lost years that exist in our head canon and in the extended canon but have rarely been shown on screen,” Goldsman told the audience last year. “Our goal was to build from Pike’s Enterprise, tell stories with the sensibilities we have today, and lead right up to Kirk’s first day in command. That’s the hope and the plan. If you like the idea, maybe write to Skydance and Paramount and remind them they still have the sets and should make Star Trek: Year One.”
According to Myers’ latest comments over the weekend, the project has now been formally pitched.
“We’ve brought them a lot of material,” Myers said. “We’ve done a lot of work and shared it with them. Now it’s in their hands. They’re looking it over and deciding what they want to do. There’s a lot of love for our show there, and of course a lot of love for Star Trek.”
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has been gradually introducing characters from Star Trek: The Original Series as the timeline moves closer to Kirk’s era. Along with James T. Kirk, played by Paul Wesley, the series already features younger versions of several familiar faces, including Spock (Ethan Peck), Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding), and Christine Chapel (Jess Bush).
Kirk himself has appeared in several episodes, and Season 3 finally showed him taking the captain’s chair when he temporarily commanded the USS Farragut during a crisis. He is still far from the confident captain audiences know from The Original Series, but the moment offered a glimpse of the leader he is becoming and how the support of those around him helps shape that future.
Would you be interested in a Year One series that follows James T. Kirk in his first year as captain of the USS Enterprise?