Summary
- The Starfleet Academy show won't be a feel-good series; first villain already cast
- Show aims to explore themes for hardcore Trek fans and has received an early renewal before its premiere
- Villain played by Paul Giamatti will be an old-school, classic antagonist.
Starfleet Academy won’t be a meandering feel-good follow-up to the cataclysmic storyline that birthed it, as the show’s villain has already been cast, and it doesn’t sound like he’ll be taking it easy on any of the show’s protagonists.
The Star Trek franchise has seen a lot of important events and lore develop over its current Paramount+ era between mainline films, and some very important events from Star Trek: Discovery were so impactful that the show spawned another series, Starfleet Academy, to explore the aftermath. Despite having a fairly young cast by Trek’s in-universe standards, longtime franchise star and creative Jonathan Frakes revealed that Starfleet Academy will be for hardcore Trek fans, meaning that the show would explore the ramifications of its premise to a satisfactory degree. Despite the ten-episode first season still far off from its premiere, the show garnered enough confidence behind the scenes to warrant an out of season renewal from Paramount.
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It’s still early days for Starfleet Academy, but Frakes’ comments do mean that longtime viewers can set some expectations ahead of more details. One thing that hardcore Trek fans expect is a solid antagonist for each Star Trek series, and Starfleet Academy doesn’t plan to be an exception. The series has already cast its first villain in star Paul Giamatti, who was recently probed for information by Collider editor-in-chief Steven Weintraub and let fans in on a fascinating detail about his character. "He takes great pleasure in being the villain,” Giamatti revealed. “He likes it. And it's very much a part of his thing that he's all 'Oh yeah, I'm the bad guy.'" This is a pretty clear indicator of what sort of villain Giamatti will be bringing to the new series and could be the best choice for a story eager to attract longtime fans.
It certainly seems like fans are in for a real mustache-twirling antagonist in Starfleet Academy, in the style of older villains of the franchise. While modern media tends to favor antagonists with complex (and often badly written) motivations and goals, there’s always been a lot to be said for simpler villains. Having an antagonist who is well aware of the moral deluge of his actions has unironically often led to much better-written foes with a unique appeal to fans. Giamatti certainly seems to approve of the concept, and he’s more than qualified to play the part. The actor most recently appeared in the 2023 Christmas comedy flick The Holdovers, which he credits for giving him the opportunity to finally net a Star Trek role, a longtime wish that, according to the actor, he ‘put it out in the universe and it came back’. In addition to The Holdovers and myriad other roles across film, television and theater, Rick and Morty fans might also recognize his voice as that of the villainous Story Lord, who first appeared in the standout sixth episode of season four before returning in the show’s sixth season for another swipe at the titular protagonists.
There’ll certainly be a lot more out about the characters as things progress at Starfleet Academy, but the first few titbits released so far should be encouraging for fans eager to explore the fallout of the Star Trek: Discovery events that spun off into the upcoming series. Frakes has confirmed that the action won’t be earthbound throughout the show, and that means a lot more potential for Giamatti’s antagonist to work some good old-fashioned villainy across space.
The Star Trek Franchise is available to stream on Paramount+, with Star Trek: Starfleet Academy set for a late 2025/early 2026 release window.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- January 15, 2026
- Network
- Paramount+
- Showrunner
- Alex Kurtzman, Noga Landau
- Cast
- Holly Hunter, Sandro Rosta, Karim Diane, Kerrice Brooks, George Hawkins, Bella Shepard, Zoë Steiner, Robert Picardo, Tig Notaro, Oded Fehr
- Directors
- Alex Kurtzman
- Writers
- Gaia Violo, Gene Roddenberry
- Franchise(s)
- Star Trek
- Seasons
- 1
- Franchise
- Star Trek
- Producers
- Alex Kurtzman, Frank Siracusa, Jenny Lumet, Olatunde Osunsanmi, John Weber, Rod Roddenberry, Aaron Baiers, Noga Landau, Gaia Violo
- Story By
- Gaia Violo
- Number of Episodes
- 10
- Streaming Service(s)
- Paramount Plus
- Where To Watch
- Paramount Plus
Star Trek: A 1987 Production Memo Reveals Alternate TNG Casting Options
A 1987 memo from the production of Star Trek: The Next Generation reveals an alternate cast that nearly changed the course of Starfleet history.
Source: Collider