Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – 5 Big Mysteries It Could Solve From Past Series

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy can solve 5 big mysteries left behind by other Star Trek series. Executive produced by Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy premieres Thursday, January 15, 2026, with two episodes on Paramount+.

By virtue of being set after the end of Star Trek: Discovery in the late 32nd century, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy becomes the farthest continuous point in Star Trek‘s timeline. Starfleet Academy can reference the full thousand years of Star Trek‘s established canon.

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy has already teased that the cadets may learn about Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), and whether the Emissary of the Prophets ever returned, like he promised to at the end of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Of course, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is not Memory Alpha or Wikipedia; it’s a television show introducing a slew of new and legacy characters, as well as telling an original story of mysteries and the villainous Nus Braka (Paul Giamatti) threatening the United Federation of Planets.

However, ancient and recent Star Trek history could be studied by Starfleet Academy’s cadets, and Paramount+’s newest Star Trek series could deliver answers to questions from Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Lower Decks, Star Trek: Prodigy, and Star Trek: Section 31.

What Did Q Want With Jack Crusher At The End Of Star Trek: Picard?

Star Trek: Picard season 3 ended with an intriguing post-credits scene where Q (John de Lancie) returned and transferred his fascination from Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) to his son, Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers).

Q died at the end of Star Trek: Picard season 2, but the omnipotent being exists beyond mortal reason. Still, it’s an open question as to how Q returned and what Jack Crusher’s cosmic destiny is that involves Q.

Fans hold out hope that the answers to Star Trek: Picard’s Q’s cliffhanger, as well as the voyages of the USS Enterprise-G commanded by Captain Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), will still be depicted in Star Trek: Legacy, either as a TV series or a possible feature film greenlit by Paramount Skydance.

Star Trek: Legacy remains the most requested new Star Trek project since Star Trek: Picard season 3’s ending teased the future of the USS Enterprise-G. Of course, fans would prefer for Captain Seven’s adventures to be fully realized and not just referenced on another show.

Still, a callback to Star Trek: Legacy in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy would be welcome, even just to assure fans that Legacy did happen, and we just haven’t seen it yet.

A hint of what Q wanted with Jack Crusher would also pique the audience’s curiosity, be a tiny reward for our patience, and set the stage for Star Trek: Legacy, which fans hope is still to come.

What Happened To Emperor Georgiou After Star Trek: Section 31?

Star Trek: Section 31 ended with Emperor Philippa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh) becoming part of Alok Sahar’s (Omari Hardwick) Section 31 Alpha Team and being sent on a new mission by Control (Jamie Lee Curtis).

What happened next? What became of Emperor Georgiou in her new, permanent home in the early 24th century? Nothing is canonically known about Emperor Georgiou after Star Trek: Section 31.

Star Trek: Section 31 did respectable streaming numbers despite being rejected by critics and Star Trek fans, but Paramount Skydance’s new management isn’t interested in more streaming movies, which means no Star Trek: Section 31 sequel is coming.

Unfortunately, Star Trek: Section 31 marks the end of Emperor Georgiou’s adventures, as the Mirror Universe’s former ruler is now stranded in Star Trek‘s “lost era.” Nor can she return to the 32nd century, because Star Trek: Discovery established that Philippa will die if she time-travels again.

Whether by Academy Award-winner Michelle Yeoh making a surprise cameo, or some kind of update to Emperor Georgiou’s fate, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy can confirm what eventually happened to redeemed and reformed Philippa after the events of Star Trek: Section 31.

What Came Next For The USS Prodigy After Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2?

Star Trek: Prodigy season 2’s ending is tied to the backstory of Star Trek: Picard where, on First Contact Day in 2385, rogue synthetics attacked the Utopia Planetia Fleet Yards on Mars, and set the red planet on fire, killing 92,000 souls.

Star Trek‘s Mars Attack of 2385 was a devastating blow to the United Federation of Planets, which pulled back within its borders, canceled the mission to rescue the Romulan people from their sun going supernova, and ceased exploration of uncharted regions of the galaxy.

In response, Admiral Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) assigned the young former crew of the USS Protostar to the brand-new USS Prodigy. Captain Gwyndala (Ella Purnell) and her crew’s mission was to travel beyond the Federation’s borders and bring Starfleet’s light to strange new worlds.

Unfortunately, Netflix did not order Star Trek: Prodigy season 3, which leaves the voyages of the USS Prodigy an open question. Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, a kindred series to Star Trek: Prodigy, can deliver updates to what became of their 24th century predecessors.

What Became Of Star Trek: Lower Decks’ Starbase 80 Guarding The Multiverse Wormhole?

Image via Paramount+

Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5 opened up the exploration of the multiverse with aplomb. At the end of Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5, the USS Cerritos helped create a stable wormhole to the multiverse, not unlike the portal to the Gamma Quadrant in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Starbase 80, placed under the command of Captain Carol Freeman (Dawnn Lewis), docked to guard the multiverse wormhole, while the USS Anaxinar, led by Captain William Boimler (Jack Quaid), commenced the exploration of alternate realities.

Star Trek: Lower Decks‘ ending teased the infinite possibilities of the multiverse, but the tragic discontinuation of Mike McMahon’s genius animated comedy left what became of Starbase 80 and the multiverse an open question that Star Trek: Starfleet Academy can answer.

Meanwhile, the USS Cerritos resumed its mission of Second Contact under its new leader, Captain Jack Ransom (Jerry O’Connell), and co-First Officers, Lt. Bradward Boimler (Jack Quaid) and Lt. Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome).

Tawny Newsome is also developing Star Trek‘s first live-action workplace comedy set in the early 25th century.

Happily, Tawny Newsome joined Star Trek: Starfleet Academy as a writer and ‘continuity cop.’ Fingers are crossed Tawny worked in references to Star Trek: Lower Decks and what became of the USS Cerritos in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy season 1.

What Was The USS Discovery’s Next Mission In Star Trek: Discovery Season 6?

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is an immediate spinoff of Star Trek: Discovery, which introduced the 32nd century incarnation of Starfleet’s academic institution in Star Trek: Discovery season 4.

At the end of Star Trek: Discovery season 5, Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) reunited with her love, Cleveland Booker (David Ajala), at Ambassador Saru’s (Doug Jones) wedding to T’Rina (Tara Rosling), the Vulcan President of Ni’Var.

Book then joined Captain Burnham when she was called back to the USS Discovery, which then jumped to its next mission, Yet audiences never found out what that mission is because there is no Star Trek: Discovery season 6.

Presumably, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy season 1 happens concurrently or not long after the events of what would have been Star Trek: Discovery season 6. After all, USS Discovery crew members Lt. Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman) and Commander Jett Reno (Tig Notaro) teach at Starfleet Academy.

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is fans’ best chance to find out what happened in what would have been Star Trek: Discovery season 6, and the whereabouts of Captain Burnham and the USS Discovery.

In Star Trek: Starfleet Academy season 2, and potentially future seasons if the show is a hit, the possibility remains for other Star Trek: Discovery characters, like Admiral Saru or even Captain Burnham herself, to appear in Paramount+’s newest Star Trek series.

Network

Paramount+

Showrunner

Alex Kurtzman, Noga Landau

Directors

Alex Kurtzman

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  Karim Diane

  Jay-Den Kraag

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  Kerrice Brooks

  Series Acclimation Mil ‘Sam’