Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is the latest Trek series for Paramount+ subscribers on the horizon, and there’s a lot of hype behind it. Many are excited to see the new show head back to the era in which Star Trek began, though after Discovery originally started the same way and made a lot of changes (especially to Klingons), fans may have concerns. Co-showrunner Henry Alonso Myers might’ve eased those concerns at Star Trek: Mission Chicago, when he talked about what new elements fans can expect to see.
Henry Alonso Myers was on hand with a good number of the main cast of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds for a panel and discussed how working in the era of the original series impacts the new show. Myers explained that while the show will observe canon, there will also be new, previously unseen species as well:
Well, we’re trying to be true to canon but also to introduce some interesting new creatures you’ve never seen before. We’ve been working with legacy VFX to do a bunch of really cool prosthetic creatures as well as some CG stuff. You will be meeting new aliens. There’s new aliens almost every week.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will use prosthetics to create alien species, but there are going to be some computer-generated creatures as well. In short, that’s more or less in line with what all the modern Star Trek shows are doing, so it’s not surprising to hear Strange New Worlds is doing the same.
Of course, with Strange New Worlds, there’s an added pressure to honor the franchise’s past. Many feel that the show’s commitment to an episodic format rather than serialization honored the series’ roots and is a return to what worked in the past. Henry Alonso Myers confirmed that in terms of adventures themselves, there will be similarities, and he broke down some adventures fans can expect:
We go on adventures that are very similar but also uniquely different than the adventures they went on in TOS and TNG. That means new worlds, that means time travel, that means sometimes superior beings who come in and do crazy things to us. That means all kinds of things.
It’s said that change is the only constant, though I’m sure there will be a community ready to gripe if Strange New Worlds isn’t a pinnacle of the ideals first laid out by the original Star Trek. Of course, ideals change and progress as decades pass, and as such, Trek evolves with it. For example, questions regarding Spock’s sexuality likely weren’t being asked as much in the 60's, but in the modern age, they are questions that fans are asking. Hopefully, the changes will be suitable for fans most looking forward to the series and better service the rich cast of characters appearing in the show.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds premieres on Paramount+ on Thursday, May 5. It’s one of many new Star Trek shows headed to the streamer in 2022, so be sure to keep an eye out for all that’s on the way.
