The teaser trailer for Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is here and it’s a different vibe than traditional Trek.
The first live-action Star Trek project to focus on characters in their early 20s, Starfleet Academy features a largely Gen Z cast playing a class of cadets in San Francisco training for their debut space adventure. The show also stars Holly Hunter, who plays the Academy’s chancellor, and Paul Giamatti, who plays a recurring alien villain in the show.
The trailer (below) which debuted at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday is narrated by Hunter’s character giving a reception speech to the class, saying they will learn “the skills that shaped our greatest officers.” But what’s more interesting about the footage — and sure to be debated by longtime (read: old) Star Trek fans — are the visuals of the young cast as they bond, flirt, dance and look longingly at the stars.
The show — which has already been renewed for a second season — feels rather different than previous iterations of the franchise that launched in the post-World War II era and for decades focused on military-style teams with a mission. Trek crews had plenty of rules, followed a hierarchy and their dialogue was largely about solving problems, while interpersonal sentiments took a back seat.
That strictness has been considerably softened in recent years starting with 2017’s Star Trek: Discovery. But Starfleet Academy seems to focuses even more on personal fulfillment, romance and a sense of belonging. Hunter’s Chancellor urges the cadets to “dream without limitations” and the show’s official description says the cadets are “coming together to pursue a common dream of hope and optimism” and “navigate blossoming friendships, explosive rivalries, first loves and a new enemy.”
This “more dreams, less duty” focus is perhaps a smart calculation to adapt the Trek universe for a new generation by ramping up the aspiration and steering away from the “Aye, Sir”s of yesteryear — or it’s echoing media assumptions about Gen Z in way that strays from what fans like about Trek. And, to be fair, it’s likely even a 1990s Trek show about cadets would have incorporated some of the same ideas. It remains to be seen if Starfleet Academy feels like the “Oops! All Wesley Crushers” of the franchise.
The trailer comes at what feels like a transitional moment for Paramount+‘s Trek franchise as Discovery, Star Trek: Picard and animated series Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Prodigy have all ended. In February, the Paramount+ Trek team suffered a flop with the release of its effort to spin off Michelle Yeoh’s Discovery character into a streaming film titled Star Trek: Section 31. And last month, Paramount+ announced its popular flagship Trek show Strange New Worlds — which just returned for season three — has been renewed for a fifth and final season.
There are other projects in the works, as well, but as of right now Academy is clearly Paramount+s best hope the franchise’s future and luring, well, the next generation. The show also features Robert Picardo reprising his role as The Doctor and Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black) as a recurring special guest star in season one. Academy stars Sandro Rosta, Kerrice Brooks, Bella Shepard, George Hawkins, Karim Diané and Zoë Steiner. Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau serve as co-showrunners and executive producers alongside executive producers Gaia Violo, Aaron Baiers, Olatunde Osunsanmi, Jenny Lumet, Rod Roddenberry, Trevor Roth, Frank Siracusa and John Weber.
Starfleet Academy will premiere in early 2026.
