Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is an American television series created by Gaia Violo for the streaming service Paramount+. It is the 12th Star Trek series and part of executive producer Alex Kurtzman's expanded Star Trek Universe. Set in the 32nd century, the far-future time period that was introduced in the later seasons of the series ' (2017âÂÂ2024), Starfleet Academy follows the first new class of Starfleet cadets in over a century as they come of age and train to be officers.
Sandro Rosta, Karim Diané, Kerrice Brooks, George Hawkins, and Bella Shepard portray Starfleet Academy cadets, starring alongside Holly Hunter and Zoë Steiner, as well as Tig Notaro and Oded Fehr, who are reprising their roles from Discovery, and Robert Picardo returning as the character of the Doctor from Star Trek: Voyager. Versions of a Starfleet Academy-based series were in development for years before it received an official series order in March 2023, with Kurtzman and Noga Landau as showrunners. Production on the first season took place from August 2024 to February 2025 at Pinewood Toronto Studios in Toronto, Canada, with production of the second season following from August 2025 to February 2026.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy premiered on the streaming service Paramount+ on January 15, 2026, with its first two episodes. The other eight episodes of the first season were released weekly through March 12. Receiving generally favorable critic reviews, the series was reportedly the subject of review bombing upon its initial release. On March 23, 2026, CBS and Paramount+ announced that the upcoming second season would be the series' last.
The series is set in the 32nd century, the far-future of the Star Trek franchise where Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets are recovering from a cataclysmic event, as depicted in ' (2017âÂÂ2024). Starfleet Academy follows the first new class of Starfleet cadets in over a century as they come of age and train to be officers. They are taught aboard the USS Athena, a starship that docks at the Starfleet Academy campus in San Francisco but can also be deployed with the rest of the fleet.
Ideas for a Star Trek production centering on cadets at Starfleet Academy have circulated for decades, taking two main forms: prequel concepts featuring younger, recast versions of established main characters, and spinâÂÂoffs with new protagonists.
Star Trek II (1982) had already foregrounded younger Starfleet trainees, especially Saavik, in a supervised exercise with the . After ' (1984), William Shatner was initially reluctant to return as Kirk. In response, writer-director Leonard Nimoy and producer Harve Bennett explored alternative . Among the proposals considered by Paramount was a Starfleet Academy prequel developed by Bennett and Ralph Winter, chronicling the early years of Kirk, Spock, and other established ' characters, thereby recasting the core crew while allowing for Nimoy's Spock to appear either as narrator in a frame story or through a time-travel device. After seven to eight months, the issue with Shatner was settled and the prequel idea was set aside.
In the mid-1980s, as Paramount developed a new Star Trek TV series set a century after TOS, the studio initially commissioned Sam and Gregory Strangis. Greg Strangis later recalled envisioning a "Starfleet Academy on a ship", combining younger trainees with senior officer instructors. Gene Roddenberry and Rick Berman likewise mentioned a cadet-crewed starship among the early concepts for what became '.
Finalizing ' (1989), Bennett â encouraged by Paramount executive Ned Tanen â commissioned David Loughery to write a Starfleet Academy-centered script , planned for release in 1991. The storyline would have brought the young Kirk, Spock, and McCoy together at the academy for their first space adventure, involving a new struggle against slavery. One draft framed the prequel within a sequel narrative in which Shatner's Kirk considered a teaching appointment at the academy and reflected on his past while speaking with new cadets, later joined by Nimoy's Spock. The prequel was again not realized.
With TNG unfolding a storyline about Wesley's Starfleet Academy career, the concept briefly resurfaced as one of several spin-off options discussed in the early 1990s, along with the space-station premise that ultimately became '.
As the concept shifted largely to tie-in media, several youngâÂÂadult novel series in the 1990s explored prequel stories for TV-series regular characters, such as Star Trek: Starfleet Academy (for TOS), Star Trek: The Next Generation â Starfleet Academy, and '. A comic book spinâÂÂoff titled ', set within the DS9 continuity, followed recurring character Nog and his new group of cadets known as 'Omega Squad'. The concept also appeared in interactive media, including Interplay's 1997 FMV computer game ' (a follow-up to the similarly named ). Featuring original Enterprise crew members â Kirk, Sulu, and Chekov, played by Shatner, George Takei, and Walter Koenig â in instructional roles, the story introduces Cadet David Forrester and his diverse classmates as they confront tensions over suspected Klingon attacks and uncover a clandestine xenophobic faction within the Federation named 'Vanguard'. A tie-in novelization was published by Diane Carey the same year.
In the 2000s, Shatner, together with writers Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens, developed a pitch for a TV series titled Star Trek: The Academy, following teenage versions of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. It was reportedly proposed in 2003 and rejected by Paramount's Sumner Redstone. The concept was reworked and partially realized within Shatner's Star Trek novel line. According to a 2006 UGO interview, Bennett in 2004 again proposed a Starfleet Academy feature film to Paramount's Sherry Lansing. She responded positively and supported the idea, although it was declined at the television division's request shortly before her departure. (In a 2010 interview, Bennett recalled a similar exchange with Lansing in the 1990s.) The 2009 Star Trek reboot partially touched on the characters' time at the academy, echoing themes from the early concept. Following the Kelvin timeline established with this film, a series of Starfleet Academy novels and comics was released in the 2010s.
In June 2018, after becoming sole showrunner of the series ' (2017âÂÂ2024), Alex Kurtzman signed a five-year overall deal with CBS Television Studios to expand the Star Trek franchise beyond Discovery to several new series, miniseries, and animated series. One series that was being planned as part of this deal was a "younger-skewing" project set at Starfleet Academy. It was being developed by Stephanie Savage and Josh Schwartz, who were known for creating other young adult-focused television series. The project was still in development in January 2020, but production was not expected to begin until 2021 at the earliest.
In February 2021, Kurtzman said a new series was unlikely to be added to streaming service Paramount+'s Star Trek Universe slate until one of the existing five series came to an end. Development on the Starfleet Academy series was re-confirmed that August, and a month later Kurtzman gave it as an example of a future Star Trek series that he was excited to make and that he had seen "a lot of conversations" about. In February 2022, Kurtzman said his team was planning Star Trek projects that would be released two or three years later, including a series based on Section 31 and another that he did not give details on. Soon after, a new version of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy was reported to be in development with writer Gaia Violo. It was expected to be pitched to Paramount+ shortly, with production planned to begin within a year as the next Star Trek series after Section 31. In May, Kurtzman confirmed that Section 31 and Starfleet Academy were the two projects in development that he and his team were focusing on.
Kevin and Dan Hageman, showrunners of the animated series ' (2021âÂÂ2024), revealed in December 2022 that they wanted the young protagonists of their series to join Starfleet Academy, but this was changed in part to avoid covering the same ground as the planned Starfleet Academy series. In March 2023, after revealing that Discovery would be ending with its , Kurtzman expressed interest in making more limited event series and television films for the franchise rather than just traditional ongoing television series; ' was re-developed into a streaming "event film" that was released in January 2025. At the end of March 2023, Paramount+ announced that Starfleet Academy had been ordered to series. Kurtzman and Noga Landau were set as showrunners and executive producers alongside Violo, Aaron Baiers, Jenny Lumet, Rod Roddenberry, Trevor Roth, Frank Siracusa, and John Weber. A year later, Kurtzman confirmed that there would be 10 episodes as with previous Star Trek series. Olatunde Osunsanmi returned from Discovery as producing director and was added as another executive producer by August 2024. In October, Kurtzman announced that a second season had been ordered. That season completed filming on February 24, 2026, though with the acquisition of Paramount by Skydance Media, this raised a question as to the future of Trek beyond 2027, when ' would air its fifth and final season. As this was the first time in nine years that no new Trek was in production, that future would be decided by the newly merged company, Paramount Skydance.
The writers' room was based at Kurtzman's Secret Hideout offices in Santa Monica. By the time of the series' official announcement, Violo had written the first episode, and Tawny Newsome had been hired as a writer. Newsome, the voice of Beckett Mariner on the animated series ' (2020âÂÂ2024), was the first Star Trek actor to be hired for a staff writing position on a Star Trek series. Kurtzman approached Newsome about joining the series after being impressed with her improvisation skills during the filming of the ' crossover episode "Those Old Scientists" (2023). Other writers included Jane Maggs, Alex Taub, Kiley Rossetter, Eric Anthony Glover, Kirsten Beyer, and Kenneth Lin. The writers were expected to finish work by the end of 2023, but this was delayed by the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. They returned to work in mid-October after the strike ended in late September, and were halfway through the first season by March 2024. The writers were working on the second season by January 2025.
The series is set in the 32nd century, the far-future era of the Star Trek franchise that was introduced in Discovery. It follows the first new class of Starfleet cadets in over a century as they come of age and train to be officers. Kurtzman felt the characters, who are a new generation of cadets that are inheriting "massive, massive challenges", were relatable to the "generation now" who would be watching. He said the cadets' mission is to "reinstate the original vision of Star Trek"; the series champions the Star Trek ideals of empathy, unity, and peacemaking over intolerance and hate. In addition to serving as a metaphor for real world challenges, the 32nd century setting gave the writers some freedom from the existing Star Trek canon and helped them introduce new young fans to the franchise without needing to have seen past projects. Despite this, Newsome said there were writers on staff who were "real canon hound dogs" and wanted to ensure the series remained true to the franchise for long-time fans. Characters from previous Star Trek projects are referenced as famous Starfleet officers.
Kurtzman said the series would follow some cadets through graduation and beyond while also introducing new students in later seasons. He said it had "kind of a hybrid format". Previous attempts to develop Starfleet Academy struggled with not being able to use traditional Star Trek ideas of adventure and space exploration in a classroom-based series. Their solution was to set the series on the USS Athena, a starship that docks at the Starfleet Academy campus in San Francisco but can also be deployed with the rest of the fleet. Kurtzman compared this to teaching hospitals, with the cadets able to learn in the field with real Starfleet officers, allowing for episodes where the cadets meet new species, learn about diplomacy, and find their place within Starfleet. Landau said each episode also explores a different coming of age aspect, combining pranks and romance with alien encounters and conflicts. She wanted the audience's takeaway from each episode to be a feeling of wanting to attend Starfleet Academy. Kurtzman said the writers had a rule that the instructors needed to be as interesting and fun as the cadets, similar to the teachers at Hogwarts in the Harry Potter franchise. He encouraged the writers to ground the series in science and have the main characters use science to solve their problems.
In the (2021âÂÂ2022), Mary Wiseman's Sylvia Tilly becomes a teacher at Starfleet Academy. This storyline led to speculation about whether Wiseman would be reprising her role in Starfleet Academy. There was also speculation about other Discovery stars making guest appearances in the series. In March 2024, Doug Jones expressed interest in reprising his Discovery role of Saru as a "guest speaker" at Starfleet Academy. In May, Tig Notaro expressed interest in reprising her Discovery role of Jett Reno in the series, saying she was "hoping that I can continue on somewhere, somehow" in the Star Trek franchise after Discovery conclusion. Notaro first joined Discovery due to being long-time friends with Kurtzman.
In March 2024, Kurtzman said casting for the cadets was yet to begin but some of the adult roles had been filled. Holly Hunter was revealed in May to be cast in the lead role of the chancellor of Starfleet Academy. The character was written with Hunter in mind, but the writers did not expect her to be interested and were surprised when she "signed on right away". Kerrice Brooks, Bella Shepard, George Hawkins, Karim Diané, and Zoë Steiner were set to star as cadets in July, when Notaro and Oded Fehr were announced to be reprising their respective roles of Jett Reno and Admiral Charles Vance from Discovery. Robert Picardo was also announced to be starring in the series, reprising his role as the Doctor from ' (1995âÂÂ2001) and other Star Trek media. Sandro Rosta was cast as another cadet a month later, while attending drama school. Roles for the main cast were revealed in July 2025: Hunter as Captain Nahla Ake; Rosta as Caleb Mir, Diané as Jay-Den Kraag, Brooks as Sam (Series Acclimation Mil), Hawkins as Darem Reymi, and Shepard as Genesis Lythe, all cadets; and Steiner as Tarima Sadal.
Paul Giamatti was cast in the recurring guest role of the season's main villain in June 2024, later revealed to be named Nus Braka. Kurtzman contacted Giamatti about joining the series after the actor expressed his love for Star Trek and wish to portray a Klingon while promoting his film The Holdovers (2023). Giamatti was given the first five scripts and his choice of five different guest roles, and chose the villain. Kurtzman was surprised by the choice, assuming that Giamatti would only want a one-episode role due to his busy schedule. In July, Gina Yashere was cast in the recurring role of an instructor, revealed to be cadet master Lura Thok, and Wiseman was confirmed to be returning as Tilly for a guest role. Tatiana Maslany was revealed in October to have a recurring guest role in the season, and Becky Lynch said in December that she had been cast as a member of a Starfleet bridge crew. In October 2025, Stephen Colbert was revealed to be the voice of Starfleet Academy's Digital Dean of Students. The next month, Brit Marling was revealed to be the voice of the Athena computer.
Matthew Davies was working as production designer for the series by March 2024. The set for the atrium of Starfleet Academy is the largest ever built for a Star Trek series and fills the biggest soundstage in Canada, which is . The atrium set is two stories and features a mess hall, amphitheater, multiple classrooms, catwalks, trees, and a view of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. Gersha Phillips returned from Discovery as a costume designer and was joined by Avery Plewes. Phillips said Kurtzman directed them to make the Starfleet uniforms feel "hip and cool and appeal[ing] to the young audience".
Filming was expected to begin in early 2024, before production was delayed by the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. In March 2024, Kurtzman said filming would begin later that year, at Pinewood Toronto Studios in Toronto, Canada, where Discovery and Section 31 were filmed. Filming began on August 26, 2024, with Kurtzman directing the first two episodes. Philip Lanyon returned from Discovery as a cinematographer. Location filming took place that week in the Uptown area of Waterloo, Ontario, under the working title Ivory Tower. Kurtzman was still filming his episodes in late October. Osunsanmi also directed for the first season, as did frequent Star Trek director Jonathan Frakes, who directed the penultimate episode. Frakes previously said he was unable to direct an episode of the season because the schedule clashed with his son's wedding. In late January 2025, Kurtzman said there was two weeks of production left for the first season and he expected filming for the second season to begin in the middle of that year. Filming for the first season officially wrapped in the week of February 10. Pre-production on the second season began that June, with filming beginning on August 27 at Pinewood. On February 24, 2026, the production completed filming of season 2.
Jeff Russo was hired to compose the score for the series by December 2024, returning from Discovery, Section 31, and other Star Trek series. Additional music is by Dan the Automator.
Kurtzman and Landau promoted the series during a "Star Trek Universe" panel at San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) in July 2024, where cast members returning from previous Star Trek series were announced. They released a video during the panel which shows the young cadet actors learning that they had been cast in the series. Picardo made a surprise appearance at a different "Star Trek Universe" panel that October, at New York Comic Con (NYCC), and introduced a livestream from the set featuring Kurtzman, Rosta, Brooks, Shepard, Hawkins, Diané, and Steiner. They announced the second-season order and Maslany's casting.
Picardo moderated another SDCC "Star Trek Universe" panel in July 2025, where Kurtzman, Landau, Hunter, Rosta, Diané, Brooks, Hawkins, and Shepard revealed character and story details. The first trailer was shown, before being released online. Borys Kit at The Hollywood Reporter said the producers would have to "work on building enthusiasm" for the series based on reactions to the trailer from fans at the panel, while his colleague James Hibberd said online responses to the trailer were divided. Another trailer was shown at an NYCC "Star Trek Universe" panel in October, where the series was promoted by Kurtzman, Landau, Hunter, Rosta, Diané, Brooks, Hawkins, Shepard, Steiner, and Giamatti. Hibberd and Gizmodo James Whitbrook both found that the second trailer put more emphasis on drama and intensity over the classroom and youth-focused elements seen in the first trailer. The website StarfleetAcademy.com was also launched at that time, allowing fans to sign up for updates and explore information about Starfleet Academy's campus, academics, and faculty.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy premiered on the streaming service Paramount+ on January 15, 2026, with its first two episodes. The other eight episodes of the first season were released weekly through March 12. On March 23, 2026, CBS/Paramount announced that the ten-episode second season in post-production would be the series' last.
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 87% of 61 critics' reviews are positive. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the series a score of 66 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
In January 2026, audience scores for the series on Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb were review bombed after the release of the first two episodes. Jake Hodges of Collider noted an audience rating of 43% on Rotten Tomatoes on January 26, 2026, under half of the critic rating of 88% at the time. Forbes staff writer Conor Murray noted a user rating of 4.9 out of a possible 10 on IMDb on January 16, 2026, detailing anti-"woke" criticisms from Stephen Miller, End Wokeness and The Babylon Bee, and comparing the review bombing to that of ' in 2024.
Following the announcement of the end of the series, William Shatner wrote on X, "I for one would love to see its continuity. It's with sorrow that I hear about the cancellation of the new Star Trek series."
A five-issue tie-in comic series titled Star Trek: Starfleet Academy â Lost Contact was announced by IDW Publishing in January 2026, with publication beginning in April 2026. The series follows the cadets from the television series and is written by Layne Morgan, with artwork by CoralàEspuña and Nora Serrano.