Paramount+ hosted the world premiere of the upcoming new original series Star Trek: Starfleet Academy at the iconic American Museum of Natural History earlier this week, in New York City. The show premieres on the streamer on Thursday 15th January 2026.
Advance reviews of the new series are mixed, described by John Kirk as “Beverly Hills, 90210 in Space” for Original CIN, while on Inverse, Ryan Britt feels “Starfleet Academy Really Isn’t Your Parents’ Star Trek” and “radical and wholesome”. Given the now 60 years of the Star Trek franchise, it’s inevitable any new series will generate a mix of opinions. We’d suggest you make up your own mind, and avoid spoilers!
The star-studded red carpet included Academy Award winner Holly Hunter, Academy Award nominee Paul Giamatti, Tig Notaro, Robert Picardo, Gina Yashere, Sandro Rosta, Kerrice Brooks, George Hawkins, Bella Shepard, Karim Diané and Zoë Steiner.
Plus, series co-showrunners/executive producers Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau; executive producers Olatunde Osunsanmi, Gaia Violo, Aaron Baiers and Trevor Roth.
Also in attendance were supporting cast members Stephen Colbert, Becky Lynch, Tawny Newsome and Mary Wiseman, as well as additional Star Trek family members Kate Mulgrew, Celia Rose Gooding, Melissa Navia, David Ajala, Michelle Hurd, Ethan Phillips and Akiva Goldsman.
Following a screening of the premiere episode in Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos at the LeFrak Theater, guests enjoyed an evening under the stars at the museum’s Cullman Hall of the Universe.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy introduces viewers to a young group of cadets who come together to pursue a common dream of hope and optimism. Under the watchful and demanding eyes of their instructors, they discover what it takes to become Starfleet officers as they navigate blossoming friendships, explosive rivalries, first loves and a new enemy that threatens both the Academy and the Federation itself.
The series stars Holly Hunter as the Chancellor of Starfleet Academy, the Starfleet cadets played by Sandro Rosta, Karim Diané Kerrice Brooks, George Hawkins and Bella Shepard, plus Zoë Steiner, Tig Notaro, Robert Picardo, and guest stars Oded Fehr, Mary Wiseman, as well as recurring guest stars Gina Yashere and Paul Giamatti, who plays the season’s villain.
Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau serve as co-showrunners and executive produce the series alongside executive producers Gaia Violo, Aaron Baiers, Olatunde Osunsanmi, Jenny Lumet, Rod Roddenberry, Trevor Roth, Frank Siracusa and John Weber. The series’ premiere episode is written by Gaia Violo and directed by Alex Kurtzman.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is produced by CBS Studios in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment.
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John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.
He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: downthetubes News, Events, Other Worlds, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Television
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