A whole load of new Star Trek TV projects are in the works!

Exciting times trekkies, CBS have announced they have signed up Alex Kurtzman and his fellow Discovery producers Heather Kadin and Aaron Baiers to have their production company Secret Hideout continue to work on TV projects for CBS through to 2023, including specifically expanding the production Star Trek beyond Discovery.

CBS are officially keeping things vague, noting the the deal:

...calls for him to extend the Star Trek franchise for television, developing new series, mini-series and other content opportunities, including animation

But the trade press are already abuzz with what those projects could be. Variety have identified four different projects:

• A series set at Starfleet Academy, which is being work on by Stephanie Savage and Josh Schwartz, writers and producers known for their work on The O.C., Gossip Girl, Dynasty, and Runaways.
• A miniseries based on The Wrath of Khan, which one assumes would be the Nick Meyer led project we've already had rumour of.
• Another miniseries of unspecified focus.
• And an animated series.

The Hollywood Reporter meanwhile are suggesting that Patrick Stewart might return to play Captain Picard for one of these:

The new deal comes as rumblings about another Star Trek series, featuring Patrick Stewart reprising his role as Star Trek: The Next Generation's Capt. Jean-Luc Picard, have been heating up. Sources say Kurtzman and Akiva Goldsman, who left Discovery after season one, are attached to the Stewart-led reboot. CBS TV Studios declined to confirm the Stewart project as sources say a deal is far from completed and may not happen despite the fact that the actor recently teased his potential return to the franchise.

New Star Trek series coming in 2017!

Star Trek is returning to the small-screen in January 2017! NuTrek writer and producer (for the first two films) Alex Kurtzman will executive produce, along with Heather Kadin - The pair have worked on several TV series together previously, including Scorpion, Limetless, and Sleepy Hollow.

Aside from an interesting distribution arrangement, little is known about the series at this point. The press release does specify that "The new television series is not related to the upcoming feature film Star Trek Beyond", although given Kurtzman's involvement, and the obvious marketing advantages of tying the two ventures together, I feel inclined to not take that statement too literally (are we talking "not related" in so much as nuTrek is distant to the prime timeline, or more like TNG's relationship to TOS, or DS9 to TNG...). The press release does offer a general Star Trek premise for the series:

The brand-new “Star Trek” will introduce new characters seeking imaginative new worlds and new civilizations, while exploring the dramatic contemporary themes that have been a signature of the franchise since its inception in 1966.

Aside from Star Trek returning to TV after what will by then almost twelve years (!), the most interesting thing is the way CBS is going to distribute it. The first episode will air on the CBS Television Network, but subsequent episodes will be available exclusively via CBS's streaming service, CBS All Access, the first original production for the service. CBS are obviously hoping to give their streaming service a bit of a jump-start, to compete with the likes of Netflix, by matching the model of creating original content, and it seems it is down to us trekkies to make that happen for them! Internationally the series will be distributed for TV and other services.

You can read the full press release after the jump: