The fifth and final season of Star Trek: Discovery premieres on Paramount Plus Thursday, April 4. Two episodes drop on premiere day, and new ones come out on subsequent Thursdays. Episodes one and two are called “Red Directive” and “Under the Twin Moons.”

There are 10 episodes. 

The final season sees Capt. Michael Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery uncovering a mystery that will send them on an adventure across the galaxy to find an ancient power whose existence has been hidden for centuries. But there are others on the hunt for it as well. 

Sonequa Martin-Green plays Burnham. Doug Jones is Saru, Anthony Rapp plays Paul Stamets, Mary Wiseman portrays Sylvia Tilly and Wilson Cruz plays Dr. Hugh Culber.  

Star Trek: Discovery debuted on Paramount Plus pre-cursor CBS All Access in 2017, the network’s first original series developed specifically for U.S. audiences. When the show was announced, CBS All Access said it would introduce characters “seeking imaginative new worlds and new civilizations, while exploring the dramatic contemporary themes that have been a signature of the franchise since its inception in 1966.”

The series is produced by CBS Studios in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment. Alex Kurtzman, Michelle Paradise, Heather Kadin, Aaron Baiers, Olatunde Osunsanmi, Sonequa Martin-Green, Frank Siracusa, John Weber, Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth are executive producers. Kurtzman and Michelle Paradise are the showrunners. 

Kurtzman’s credits include the films Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013). 

Paradise worked on The CW show The Originals before coming on board at Star Trek: Discovery. 

A review of the new season on Space.com says: “The opening episode of the final season [of] Star Trek: Discovery is a far, far cry from strong openings that this show has demonstrated it's capable of in the past. And that's a sentence we've had to write far too many times.”

Another, in the Star-Tribune, says, “The plot in the final episodes seems like a rip-off from The Avengers, with the rather bland crew racing across the galaxy to locate puzzle pieces.”

A more favorable write-up on IndieWire says the final season “hits the ground running with a fun, Indiana Jones-inspired chase plot that doesn’t require you to open Memory Alpha to remember what came before. The MacGuffin is taken straight from a Next Generation episode. We won’t say which one, but it’s a plot point that’ll inspire a good number of nods from the audience: ‘Yeah, why didn’t they ever follow up on that before now?’ It’s a good example of internal continuity for the franchise organically inspiring a cool plotline, not just a callback for the sake of nostalgia.”

Star Trek: Discovery aired on CBS in 2020, when the pandemic delayed scripted production. 

Star Trek shows on Paramount Plus include Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.  

Paramount Plus has ordered a fifth season for Star Trek: Discovery, while Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has been renewed for a second season ahead of the series premiere May 5.

“Four years ago, we made a promise to grow Star Trek into something it had never been before, and thanks to the incredibly hard work done by our many talented showrunners, writers and directors, along with the extraordinary support of CBS Studios and Paramount Plus, we’re keeping our word,” said Alex Kurtzman, architect and executive producer, Star Trek. “Now our current shows are set up for the future as we work to build Trek’s next phase of programming for years to come.”

Season four of Star Trek: Discovery returns February 10. Star Trek: Picard starts season two on Paramount Plus March 3.

Among the animated Star Trek shows on Paramount Plus, Star Trek: Lower Decks returns with season three in summer 2022. The network has ordered a fourth season. Season one of Star Trek: Prodigy returned January 6. ■

Season four of Star Trek: Discovery premieres on Paramount Plus Nov. 18, the network announced on Star Trek Day (Sept. 8). The show was featured in a panel that included cast members Wilson Cruz, Blu del Barrio and Ian Alexander, and showrunner/executive producer Michelle Paradise.

Season four finds Captain Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery facing a serious threat. With Federation and non-Federation worlds alike feeling the impact, they must confront the unknown and work together to ensure a hopeful future for all.

Sonequa Martin-Green plays Burnham. 

Also part of Star Trek Day, Paramount Plus shared the official trailer for kids series Star Trek: Prodigy, starring Kate Mulgrew. The show will premiere Oct. 28.

A Prodigy panel featured cast members Brett Gray and Dee Bradley Baker, executive producers Kevin and Dan Hageman, and director and co-executive producer Ben Hibon. 

Paramount Plus also premiered the season two trailer for Star Trek: Picard, which debuts in February. Star Trek: Picard has been renewed for a third season. 

Patrick Stewart plays Jean-Luc Picard. Alison Pill, Isa Briones, Evan Evagora, Michelle Hurd, Santiago Cabrera, Jeri Ryan and Orla Brady are also in the cast. 

Paramount Plus also shared information on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, starring Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn and Ethan Peck. Jess Bush will play Nurse Christine Chapel, Christina Chong is La’an Noonien-Singh, Celia Rose Gooding is Cadet Nyota Uhura and Melissa Navia is Lt. Erica Ortegas.

CBS All Access has greenlit season four of Star Trek: Discovery. A video featuring co-showrunners and executive producers Michelle Paradise and Alex Kurtzman, and cast members Sonequa Martin-Green and Doug Jones, made the announcement. 

“It’s official,” said Paradise. 

“We are back,” said Kurtzman. 

Production begins November 2. 

Season three of Star Trek: Discovery began October 15. It sees the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery landing in an unknown future far from home. Living in a time of uncertainty, the crew must work together to restore hope for the Federation.

Martin-Green plays Commander Michael Burnham and Jones plays Commander Saru. Anthony Rapp, Mary Wiseman and Wilson Cruz are also in the cast.  

The Halloween season is in full swing as several horror-themed content make their debut this week.

Prime Video will debut its original movie Evil Eye on Oct. 13 while Hulu will deliver its Marvel Comics-based series Helstrom (pictured) on Oct. 16.

Also on the docket this week is the Oct. 15 debut of the third season of CBS All Access drama series Star Trek: Discovery.

Below are video trailers and premiere dates for several shows debuting the week of Oct. 12 to Oct. 18 on cable networks and streaming services (for some videos, viewer discretion is advised):

Oct. 12 -- Mystery Road (drama) -- Acorn TV

Oct. 15 -- Des (miniseries) -- Sundance Now

Oct. 15 -- Lennox Lewis: The Untold Story (documentary) -- Crackle

Oct. 15 -- Social Distance (drama) -- Netflix

Oct. 16 -- Grand Army (drama) -- Netflix

Oct. 16 -- The Trial of the Chicago 7 (movie) -- Netflix

Oct. 17 --David Byrne’s American Utopia (documentary) -- HBO

CBS has shared its premiere dates for September and October. With the pandemic delaying production for all networks, they’ve had to get creative to put together a fall season. Season one of Star Trek: Discovery makes its broadcast debut on CBS Sept. 24, while season four of One Day at a Time starts on CBS Oct. 12. Star Trek: Discovery airs on CBS All Access. One Day at a Time runs on Pop TV, which is part of ViacomCBS. 

Season three of Star Trek: Discovery is on CBS All Access Oct. 15. The fourth season of One Day at a Time premiered on Pop March 24.

“This is hardly a traditional fall season, but we are prepared with a strong slate of original content while our regular scripted series begin production,” said Kelly Kahl, president, CBS Entertainment. “Based on our current timeline, we hope to start rolling out our previously announced fall series as they become available in November.”

48 Hours premieres on CBS Sept. 12. 60 Minutes begins Sept. 20, starting season 53. Manhunt: Deadly Games, from Lionsgate and Spectrum Originals, debuts on CBS Sept. 21. It is a scripted true-crime anthology series. 

The Greatest #AtHome Videos, hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, begins Sept. 25. Undercover Boss premieres Oct. 2. The FBI Declassified debuts Oct. 13, giving viewers “unprecedented access to some of the biggest cases handled by real-life FBI agents and analysts,” said CBS. There are six episodes. 

The Amazing Race starts Oct. 14. 

Love Island concludes Sept. 29 and Big Brother wraps Oct. 28. 

Season three of Star Trek: Discovery turns up on CBS All Access Oct. 15. There are 13 episodes and they will premiere weekly on Thursdays. 

After following Commander Burnham into the wormhole in the second season finale, season three finds the U.S.S. Discovery crew landing into an unknown future far from the home they once knew. Now living in a time filled with uncertainty, the U.S.S. Discovery crew, along with the help of some new friends, must work together to restore hope to the Federation. 

The cast includes Sonequa Martin-Green (Commander Michael Burnham), Doug Jones (Commander Saru), Anthony Rapp (Lt. Commander Paul Stamets), Mary Wiseman (Ensign Sylvia Tilly), Wilson Cruz (Dr. Hugh Culber), David Ajala (Cleveland “Book” Booker) and Michelle Yeoh (Philippa Georgiou).

Seasons one and two of Star Trek: Discovery are available to CBS All Access subscribers. 

The series is produced by CBS Television Studios in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment.

Animated comedy Star Trek: Lower Decks premieres Aug. 6. 

CBS All-Access Friday announced the development on a new live-action series based on the iconic Star Trek sci-fi franchise, the streaming service said Friday.  

The new series, Star Trek-Strange New Worlds,follows current CBS-All Access series Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard, and will feature iconic Star Trek characters Spock, Captain Pike and Number One played by Ethan Peck, Anson Mount and Rebecca Romijn, respectively, said the streaming service. 

The new series will follow the characters, which were introduced during the second season of Star Trek: Discovery, as they explore new worlds around the galaxy in the decade before Captain Kirk boarded the U.S.S. Enterprise, said the service.

“Fans fell in love with Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn and Ethan Peck’s portrayals of these iconic characters when they were first introduced on Star Trek: Discovery last season,” said Julie McNamara, executive VP and head of programming for CBS All Access in a statement. “This new series will be a perfect complement to the franchise, bringing a whole new perspective and series of adventures to Star Trek.”

Also in development at CBS All Access is an animated series, Star Trek: Lower Decks and a Section 31-based series starring Michelle Yeoh. 

CBS All-Access Friday announced the development on a new live-action series based on the iconic Star Trek sci-fi franchise, the streaming service said Friday.  

The series, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, follows current CBS-All Access series Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard, and will feature iconic Star Trek characters Spock, Captain Pike and Number One played by Ethan Peck, Anson Mount and Rebecca Romijn, respectively, said the streaming service. 

The new series will follow the characters, which were introduced during the second season of Star Trek: Discovery, as they explore new worlds around the galaxy in the decade before Captain Kirk boarded the U.S.S. Enterprise, said the service.

“Fans fell in love with Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn and Ethan Peck’s portrayals of these iconic characters when they were first introduced on Star Trek: Discovery last season,” said Julie McNamara, Executive VP and Head of Programming for CBS All Access in a statement. “This new series will be a perfect complement to the franchise, bringing a whole new perspective and series of adventures to Star Trek."

Also in development at CBS All Access is an animated series, Star Trek: Lower Decks and a Section 31-based series starring Michelle Yeoh. 

CBS said the premiere ofStar Trek: Discoverypushed its CBS All Access over-the-top subscription service to a record for most subscriber sign ups in a single day.

Star Trek: Discoveryhad its premiere on CBS in primetime Sunday (September 24). Episode 2 is available exclusively on CBS All Access. Future episodes ofStar Trek: Discoverywill be made available on Sunday nights after 8:30 p.m. ET.

CBS said previously it had the most signups for CBS All Access the day CBS aired the 2017 Grammy Awards.

The company said CBS All Access also had its best week and month with the launch ofStar Trek, the kick off of the NFL on CBS on its local live feeds and the season finale ofBig Brother.

CBS All Access viewers can also watch a post-Star Trektalk show discussing the episodes,After Trek.

CBS has not been specific about how many subscribers it has for CBS All Access and for its direct-to-consumer version of Showtime.

Readt more at B&C.

A bevy of cable networks and streaming video services gravitated to San Diego this past week to showcase the TV industry's top shows during the annual Comic-Con International show.

Networks such as AMC, History, HBO and TNT, as well as streaming services like CBS All Access and Netflix, presented to an estimated 100,000 Comic-Con attendees numerous panels featuring writers, directors and stars of major hit shows such as The Walking Dead, Vikings, Westworld, The Last Ship, Star Trek Discovery and Stranger Things.

Along with the panels, content providers also released video trailers from several series and specials, a sample of which appears below.


Twice Upon A Time (Doctor Who) -- BBC America 

Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency -- BBC America 

Stranger Things – Netflix

The Last Ship – TNT

Star Trek Discovery – CBS All Access

Vikings – History

The Defenders – Netflix

American Horror Story – FX

Westworld – HBO

Stargate – MGM

Krypton -- Syfy

Get complete coverage of #TCA16.

Beverly Hills, Calif. -- Bryan Fuller, executive producer of the Star Trek: Discovery series headed for CBS All Access, promised a very diverse cast for the hotly anticipated show.

The day had started with CBS entertainment president Glenn Geller relentlessly grilled about his efforts to make the network’s shows more diverse.

At the Star Trek presentation, an ebullient Fuller noted the “wonderful expression of diversity” in the show’s original cast those many decades ago and noted that the Star Trek franchise “is the reason why I became a writer.”

“We are absolutely continuing that tradition,” he said.

Casting has not yet happened, but he said a woman will be cast as the lead, and suggested the character may be racially diverse as well. He's also creating a gay character.

The 13-episode first season of Star Trek: Discovery debuts in January and is the “crown jewel” of the All Access programming slate, Marc DeBevoise, CBS Interactive president/COO, said. That slate includes spinoffs of The Good Wife and Big Brother, and a fourth series to be announced. Last month, CBS Corp. chairman, president and CEO Les Moonves revealed during the company's earnings call that CBS All Access and Showtime's OTT service have a combined 2 million subs.

Since Star Trek: Discovery will be on a digital platform, Fuller acknowledged some freedom from traditional network standards. When asked about sex in the new series, he quipped, “There’s a reason we call [it] STD.”

Read more at broadcastingcable.com.