'Strange New Worlds' Season 4 Must Succeed for Star Trek's Future

Star Trek reaches its 60th year in 2026, yet the franchise's current state is cause for concern. Since The Original Series premiered in 1966 the property has grown into one of the biggest sci‑fi franchises, split between classic and modern eras; after Enterprise ended in 2005 to near‑universal negative reaction, the franchise took a 12‑year break from television.

The revival that began with Discovery in 2017 has made it hard to judge new projects until they arrive. When Strange New Worlds premiered in 2022 it returned to Star Trek's classic episodic formula and was widely praised. Seasons 2 and 3 then experimented more and attracted criticism for gimmicky storytelling and inaccurate portrayals of established characters; the show did not necessarily get worse, it simply tried new things.

Although the series now cannot be canceled because the final two seasons are already shot, a poor reception for Season 4 would still be damaging for Season 5 and other future projects.

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