Star Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3 announced a summer 2025 release window, which could soon make it the longest timeStar Trek fans have waited to resolve a cliffhanger.Strange New Worldsseason 3was intended to premiere in 2024, but production was delayed for 7 months by 2023’s combined WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Production finally commenced in December 2023, with filming ofStrange New Worldsseason 3 completed in May 2024. And it’s been a long wait ever since.
BeforeParamount+‘sStar Trekstreaming era, audiences did not have to endure years-long waits to resolveStar Trek TV cliffhangers. In the 1980s and 1990s, TV series reliably wrapped up a season in the spring and returned in the fall. Fans ofStar Trek: The Next Generationonly had to wait 4 months to find out what happened toCaptain Jean-Luc Picard(Patrick Stewart) after he was assimilated by the Borg in “The Best of Both Worlds, Part II.” However,the streaming era now typically forces audiences to wait years for new seasons of TV series.
Strange New Worlds Season 3 May Be Star Trek’s Longest Cliffhanger Resolution
It Depends On What “Summer 2025” Means
Star Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3’s trailer announced that new episodes will premiere on Paramount+ in"summer 2025.“Depending on what"summer 2025"means and whenStrange New Worldsseason 3 will actually premiere,it could mean a full 2 years (or more) since the end ofStrange New Worldsseason 2, which was released June 23, 2025, on Paramount+. Any premiere date after July 23, 2025, would makeStrange New Worldsseason 3 the longestStar Trekfans have had to wait to resolve a cliffhanger.
15 Cool Things We Learned From Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3’s Trailer
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3’s trailer shows off the USS Enterprise’s next 10 adventures, and there is a lot of cool stuff in store.
Star Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 2 endedwith the nail-biter of Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) faced with orders to retreat from the Gorn after the alien reptiles captured members of the USS Enterprise crew.Fans have patiently waited to find out what happens next.At New York Comic-Con in October 2024, Paramount+ released a clip of the first few minutes ofStar Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3’s premiere, and that only increased fans’ desire to find out what happens next with this cliffhanger.
One of the factors contributing to the extended wait forStar Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3 isthe reduced amount of newStar Trekcontent on Paramount+.Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Picard,andStar Trek: Lower Deckshave all ended, withStar Trek: Prodigywarping to Netflix. After Paramount+ premiered the streaming movieStar Trek: Section 31in January,Strange New Worlds season 3 is the onlyStar Trekthey have left in 2025, so releasing it in the summer (which could mean August or even September, since summer technically ends on September 22) has logic to it.
Star Trek Movies’ Longest Cliffhanger Wait Was 2 Years
Star Trek II, III & IV Were Released 2 Years Apart
IfStar Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3 premieres on Paramount+ after August 10, it would break the previous longest wait for aStar Trekcliffhanger resolution, which was the two years betweenStar Trek II: The Wrath of KhanandStar Trek III: The Search for Spock.Star Trek IIpremiered on July 08, 2025, and Star Trek IIIhit movie theaters on June 19, 2025 - just a tad under two full years later. Years-long gaps betweenStar Trekmovies are typical, butStar Trek IIwas the onlyStar Trekmovie cliffhanger.
It has been 9 years since the lastStar Trekmovie,Star Trek Beyond,was released in theaters in 2016, which is now officially the longest fans have waited for a newStar Trektheatrical movie.Star Trek: Section 31was the firstStar Trekstreaming movie, and it premiered on August 21, 2025, about 8 1/2 years afterStar Trek Beyond.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khanended with the death of Captain Spock (Leonard Nimoy). After his body was sent to the newly born Genesis Planet,Star Trek II’s concluding voice-over by Leonard Nimoy as Spock essentially promised he would be rescued and resurrected. This was confirmed by titlingStar Trek III “The Search for Spock,“which was directed by Leonard Nimoy. At the end ofStar Trek III, Spock was indeed reunited with his USS Enterprise crew, 2 years afterStar Trek II: The Wrath of Khan’s theatrical release.
Star Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3 has already eclipsed the second-longest wait to resolve aStar TrekTV series cliffhanger: the time period betweenStar Trek: Discoveryseasons 2 and 3.Star Trek: Discoveryseason 2’s finalepremiered on August 03, 2025.Star Trek: Discoveryseason 3 didn’t arrive on Paramount+ until June 19, 2025 -17 months later.A change in showrunner with Michelle Paradise taking over fully from co-runningDiscoverywith Alex Kurtzman and the reworking ofDisco’s setting to the 32nd century contributed to the delay.
17 months now seems like a breeze compared to what’s coming up on two years of waiting for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3.
Star Trek: Discoveryseason 2 ended with Commander Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) leading the USS Discovery 930 years into the future. Their one-way journey was a soft reboot ofStar Trek: Discoverythat required imagining and building theStar Trekuniverse of the 32nd century. Still, 17 months now seems like a breeze compared to what’s coming up on two years of waiting forStar Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3, which may break the all-time record for the longest wait to resolve aStar Trekcliffhanger.
