Star Trek has been a hugely successful franchise over the years. Last year we had Star Trek: Beyond, the third film in the well-received prequel series. And soon we’ll be getting Star Trek: Discovery, a new TV series premiering on CBS Sunday, September 24. Here are five fast facts about this upcoming series.
It’s The First Star Trek Series on TV in Over 10 Years
The last time a Star Trek show was on TV was Star Trek: Enterprise. Enterprise premiered on the Scifi Channel back in 2001 and ended in 2005. So that’s over a decade since we’ve had a Star Trek show on TV screens across America and over 15 years since a new one premiered, according to IMDb.
It’s a Prequel
Like the recent J.J. Abrams film trilogy, this series will be a prequel, taking place 10 years before Star Trek: The Original Series. You’re not going to be seeing Spock or Kirk this time around, though. This one has a whole new cast of characters.
Star Trek Discovery Creator Alex Kurtzman Has Some Background with the Franchise
Kurtzman is no newcomer to Star Trek. Previously, he’s worked as an executive producer and screenwriter for Star Trek (2009) and as a producer and writer for its sequel Star Trek Into Darkness. He also wrote for a 2013 video game based on Star Trek Into Darkness.
First Time in Over 40 Years That a Star Trek Series Has Been on a ‘Big Three’ Network
The last time this happened was back in 1973, with, strangely enough, Star Trek: The Animated Series. This Emmy winning series ran for two seasons on NBC until it ended in 1974.
The Title Has Some Interesting Inspirations
The title of this show (and the name of the ship Discovery) comes from two different sources. The first was the spacecraft Discovery from the 1968 sci-fi classic film 2001: A Space Odyssey. The other is the real life NASA Space Shuttle Discovery. The show’s producers also felt that the title was a good representation of the general theme of the franchise, what they call the “Sense of Discovery.”
