'Star Trek: Discovery' Spinoffs Possible as CBS All Access Expands Programming
The newly announced Picard Star Trek series is the beginning of expansive new franchise plans for CBS's All Access streaming service, home to Star Trek: Discovery. "My goal is that there should be a Star Trek something on all the time on All Access," David Stapf, president of CBS TV Studios, told Deadline.
"We're looking at limited series for some Trek shows, and we are looking at ongoing series for some other Trek shows. We've obviously announced the one that's coming next with Sir Patrick Stewart, but we have more in development there," said Julie McNamara, original programming chief for All Access, elsewhere in the Deadline interview.
McNamara and Stapf avoided describing any specific shows in development, but did hint at some avenues explored, including a spinoff from Star Trek: Discovery.
"We've really talked about virtually all of the characters who popped in Discovery as potential spinoff shows," McNamara said, when asked about the possibility of a series following Michelle Yeoh's character, deposed Mirror Universe Emperor Georgiou, loose in the Star Trek galaxy. "It's obviously very much driven by our conversations with Alex Kurtzman's Secret Hideout and other creators involved. I wouldn't say at this point we are actively pursuing a Michelle Yeoh series, but it has been discussed."
McNamara also described Harry Mudd, played by Rainn Wilson, as in a similar category. "It could be interesting to build around this character. But, I will say, it hasn't progressed any further than that."
Every Star Trek project in development comes from Discovery showrunner Alex Kurtzman, under his CBS TV production banner, Secret Hideout, who already has four possible Star Trek shows in the works These include the Picard series as well as shows based on The Wrath of Khan's titular villain, a CW-style Starfleet Academy show and an unknown animated series. Stapf and McNamara didn't suggest additional shows had been greenlit.
"There's not a grand design of 'let's plant a Rainn idea and see how that does.' It's more Secret Hideout and the rest of the Trek brain trust coming to us and saying, 'we think this would be really cool, story-wise, character-wise."
Stapf was more concrete about the scope of their thinking when asked if CBS was considering revisiting any other past Trek series, he answered, "No." Sorry, Deep Space Nine fans, it looks like a "Tyranny of Gul Dukat" prequel will have to wait.
