star trek

We’ve waited patiently for months, and CBS is finally rewarding us with a discovery. Star Trek: Discovery, that is, as the network at last confirms a September premiere date for the new TV iteration, along with word of a divided run.

Many things make up a hit TV show -- writing, premise, acting, chemistry -- but sometimes a few simple words can play a part.

Just as earlier today brought our first Star Trek: Discovery photo, the first trailer is out of this world. Yes, literally and figuratively. See for yourself, along with the latest details on the 15 (!) episode series!.

Star Trek fans’ crushing uncertainty has at last come to an end, as CBS finally reveals a first look at Star Trek: Discovery. Ahead of the network's Upfront presentation, CBS reveals two members of the Discovery crew, and a very strange location.

Despite being supported by a blindingly charismatic cast and some of the best action directors in the business, Paramount’s Star Trek franchise has somewhat been an exercise in diminishing returns after 2009’s big screen reboot. Last year’s Star Trek Beyond may have captured some of the fun of a standalone episode of the series, but it was a surprising disappointment with audiences: the film’s $158 million gross was nearly $100 million less than the first entry in the series and failed to break even on the studios $185 million investment. Those are the kind of numbers that make a studio think long and hard about investing in a sequel.

Star Trek: Discovery has been making plenty of progress with casting and production, though fans are still a bit unnerved by the change in schedule from January, to May, to fall. Even now, CBS brass won’t nail down a fall premiere window, saying “we’re not tied to any specific release date.”

You’d be forgiven not to realize CBS stayed mum on reports of Walking Dead star Sonequa Martin-Green leading the cast of Star Trek: Discovery, despite never directly contradicting it. Well, after Sunday’s fateful Dead finale, the cat is officially miles out of the bag, albeit with a surprising tweak.

Star Trek: Discovery will prove the first outing of the franchise without a Captain as its lead, but the Discovery’s ranking officer will nonetheless be a familiar face. Harry Potter and The OA star Jason Isaacs confirms his role in CBS’ Star Trek: Discovery, finding a nice comfy chair in the process.

The unveiling of Klingons in Star Trek Into Darkness gave further indication of how modern Trek might expand upon classic alien designs, so might CBS’ upcoming Star Trek: Discovery do the same? An apparent leak from the set purports to show Klingons looking very different than we’re used to, potentially shaking up continuity in the process.

The Walking Dead has a habit of telegraphing its punches when stars secure additional gigs outside of AMC, immediately placing targets on their character’s back. Corey Hawkins’ exit offered a surprising subversion, but stars and producers now weigh in on Sasha’s future, given Sonequa Martin-Green’s new Star Trek: Discovery role.

When we last checked in with the evolving lawsuit that Paramount and CBS filed against the creators of Star Trek fan film Axanar, things weren’t looking so hot for DIY producer Alec Peters. In a ruling chockablock with Trek puns, the judge declared that a jury of Peters’ peers would be responsible for determining whether his film infringed upon Paramount’s legal copyrights in terms of actual people, places, and things (“objective substantial similarity”) as well as overall spirit and feel of the Star Trek franchise (“subjective substantial similarity”). I’m no legal professional, but even this layman could see pretty plainly that Peters’ ass was legal grass, and Paramount was preparing to mow it.

Good news for one franchise might be grim for another, as CBS’ Star Trek: Discovery has found its lead on The Walking Dead. Sonequa Martin-Green will beam up as the central character of CBS’ new Trek venture, the first in the franchise to be led by an African-American woman.