Will ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ S3 Include a Time Jump?

Star Trek fans have been eagerly awaiting new developments since the dramatic Strange New Worlds Season 2 finale, which left the USS Enterprise under assault by the reptilian Gorn. While the exact return date for the third season on Paramount+ remains unknown, showrunner Akiva Goldsman confirmed to Steve Weintraub from Collider that the season will pick up immediately where it left off. “No time jump at all. So, just almost an instantaneous pickup,” Goldsman clarified.

During the last episode titled “Hegemony,” Captain Pike (Anson Mount) ventured into Gorn-controlled space to save the crew of the USS Cayuga, captained by his recurring love interest, Marie Batel (Melanie Scrofano). The Cayuga was found destroyed, with Batel infected with Gorn eggs but still alive. The Gorn launched an attack and captured several Enterprise crew members, including La’an Noonien Singh (Christina Chong), Joseph M’Benga (Babs Olusanmokun), Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia), and Sam Kirk (Dan Jeannotte). Facing pressure from Starfleet to withdraw, Pike found himself torn between his duty and saving his crew. The next episode promises to reveal his choice.

Star Trek has a long history of season-ending cliffhangers. Perhaps the most famous of these was the 1990 cliffhanger, “The Best of Both Worlds,” where Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) was captured and assimilated by the Borg. In a suspenseful moment, acting captain Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) decided to fire on Picard’s ship, leaving fans in suspense for months.

Season-ending cliffhangers soon became a regular feature for The Next Generation, presenting threats ranging from a Klingon-Romulan alliance in “Redemption” to life-force-stealing aliens in “Time’s Arrow” and a rogue Borg faction led by Data’s amoral brother Lore (Brent Spiner). Deep Space Nine largely opted out of this practice, but Voyager continued the tradition with episodes like “Basics,” “Scorpion,” “Equinox,” and “Unimatrix Zero.”

Enterprise also dipped into the pool of cliffhangers, stranding Captain Archer (Scott Bakula) in a bleak future in “Shockwave” and sending the ship back in time to battle Nazi aliens in “Zero Hour.” More recent Star Trek series on Paramount+ have generally avoided cliffhangers, making “Hegemony” an exception.

Though the immediate outcome of the Enterprise‘s battle with the Gorn remains unknown, a first clip from the new season has been released. In it, several crew members must transform into Vulcans for a mission, leading to comedic results. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds‘ third season has wrapped filming in Toronto, but no release date has been announced yet.

Fans are advised to stay tuned for more updates as the excitement around Star Trek: Strange New Worlds continues to build.

Watch on Paramount+

Source: Collider