Star Trek: A Vast Universe of Content

So, here’s the deal: if you’re a Star Trek fan, you’ve got roughly 947 episodes at your fingertips. Yep, that’s right! From the classic vibes of Star Trek: The Original Series to the fresh escapades in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, binge-watching these bad boys could take 820 hours of your life. And let’s not forget the 13 Star Trek movies (plus one directly for streaming) which add about 27 extra hours to your sci-fi binge-watching marathon. Talk about a galaxy far, far away!

Who’s Driving the Movie Starship Now?

Now, David Ellison, the new captain of Paramount Skydance, recently declared that bringing Star Trek back to theaters (where it hasn’t beamed down for nearly ten years) is high on his priority list. Hot tip: he’s not alone on this quest. Two new Trek movies are in development but keep hitting the brakes. One is a fourth installment with the rebooted gang from 2009, and the other features a brand-new crew. But let’s pause and reflect: does Paramount really need to churn out another Star Trek film?

Small Screen vs. Big Screen: The Ultimate Showdown

Flashback to this year when Star Trek: Section 31 launched on Paramount+ and critics weren’t exactly throwing flowers (seriously, it was widely panned). But guess what? Since 2016’s Star Trek Beyond, we haven’t seen any Star Trek flicks in theaters. Despite being released during Star Trek’s big 50th anniversary bash, it underperformed with a lame $343 million at the box office. Ouch! Attempts to develop a fourth movie featuring our favorite rebooted crew seem to have vanished into the cosmic void, and even a Quentin Tarantino-directed film couldn’t escape development hell!

Resurgence on the Small Screen

After being MIA from TV since 2005, Star Trek magically teleported back as the flagship series for Paramount’s streaming service. Since 2017, we’ve been blessed with five new shows (six if you count those Short Treks). Although shows like Star Trek: Discovery have caused heated debates among fans, new concepts such as Starfleet Academy are on the horizon too!

The Star Trek Dilemma: Can it Compete?

Here’s where it gets tricky: Star Trek has always been a niche, almost a quirky little subgenre within the sci-fi universe. While the films did okay business over the years (remember when Star Trek Into Darkness grossed $467 million?), none of them ever hit the billion-dollar jackpot like other blockbuster titans such as Marvel or Star Wars. Production budgets for Star Trek films have skyrocketed, with Into Darkness costing a whopping $190 million. Can Star Trek even compete at that level? Lowering budgets might lead to movies that look less impressive when compared to the jaw-dropping blockbusters in theaters.

What is Star Trek About, Anyway?

Let’s not forget what makes Star Trek, well, Star Trek. It’s about diving into the cosmos and tackling real-world issues with a sprinkle of futuristic goodness. Early movies stayed pretty close to this idea, but when J.J. Abrams took over in 2009, the focus shifted dramatically toward action-packed plots with revenge-fueled villains. And let’s face it, those changes didn’t win the hearts of every Trekkie out there.

The Two-Hour Dilemma

Here’s where it gets even trickier. With weekly TV episodes, you can mix it up a bit. One episode might have epic space battles, while the next could be an emotional tale of Spock’s latest mind-meld. But in a two-hour film, you’re supposed to please everyone, and let’s be real: Star Trek never aimed at casting the widest net. That’s likely why the recent films lost touch with lifelong fans, and even the beloved original cast films wouldn’t really cut it today.

What Lies Ahead for Star Trek?

Despite the potential problems in the galaxy ahead, the small-screen Trek universe is facing its own set of challenges. After a promising first season, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has hit some bumps in the road and is muddling through season three with inconsistent tones and rehashed nostalgia. Will the upcoming Starfleet Academy turn out to be a teen soap opera set in space? Only time will tell! For now, it looks like Star Trek might be better off rooted in the cozy embrace of TV, which has served it well for decades, before launching back into the bold unknown of theaters. And let’s be honest, who wouldn’t want to kick back and binge-watch some Trek while munching on popcorn?