When Does ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Return for Season 3?
Fortunately, much of Season 3 of the sci-fi epic had already been filmed prior to the COVID-19 lockdown. Editing and sound-mixing continued remotely through the summer, and now we finally have an air date. The third installment of Star Trek: Discovery is set to return to our screens on October 15th, 2020.
Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 left us with Michael Burnham, along with the crew of the Discovery, flung 930 years into the future, leaving them scattered across the 32nd century.
This season of Discovery sends Star Trek into the future, lightyears beyond any other existing canon in the franchise. This change gives Discovery the space to continue expanding the Star Trek universe beyond our wildest imaginations.
During the show’s first season, in particular, Discovery was criticized for being too dark. Star Trek alum, Jonathan Frakes, who is a regular director on Discovery, says that Season 3 has “a big tonal shift.”
Burnham is “less driven by the pain and guilt of her past, and [it’s] more about the magical reunification of the Discovery crew and wherever she went off to,” Frakes said in an interview with comicbook.com. “It’s got a lot of action-adventure and not so much pain.”
The Season 3 trailer, which you can watch below, confirms the return of a quite a few beloved characters, including Mary Wiseman as Silvia Tilly, Doug Jones as Saru, Wilson Cruz as Dr. Hugh Culber, Anthony Rapp as Paul Stamets, Oyin Oladejo as Joann Owosekun, Emily Coutts as Keyla Detmer, and Michelle Yeoh as Emperor Philippa Georgiou.
The trailer also introduces a new cast member and partner in crime for Burnham in David Ajala as Cleveland Booker.
The return date also falls one week after the new animated series, Star Trek: Lower Decks, is set to end its first season, which sets up the potential for a crossover.
Star Trek: Lower Decks has already made references to both Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager in just the first two episodes.
This is also the first time since the 90’s that Star Trek has had so many series airing at once.
On top of that, Star Trek: Discovery has spawned two spinoffs: Section 31 which follows a black-ops division of Starfleet, and Strange New Worlds, lead by Christopher Pike, Number One, and Spock himself, both of which are currently in development.
Watch the trailer for Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 here:
What are you looking forward to most on Season 3 of Star Trek: Discovery? Let us know what you’re excited about in the comments below!
Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 begins on CBS All Access on October 15th.
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Samantha Coley
Samantha (she/her) is a social media specialist by day and a sci-fi junkie by night. As a freelance writer and podcaster, she also enjoys live-tweeting, blogging, good music, and better television. Her current favorite television shows include Star Trek (yes, all of them), Riverdale, and Stranger Things and there will always be a place in her heart for Battlestar Galactica, Leverage, and The West Wing.