Before Paramount+'s Star Trek streaming era, audiences did not have to endure years-long waits to resolve Star Trek TV cliffhangers. In the 1980s and 1990s, TV series reliably wrapped up a season in the spring and returned in the fall. Fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation only had to wait 4 months to find out what happened to Captain 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 Worlds season 3's trailer announced that new episodes will premiere on Paramount+ in "summer 2025." Depending on what "summer 2025" means and when Strange New Worlds season 3 will actually premiere, it could mean a full 2 years (or more) since the end of Strange New Worlds season 2, which was released August 10, 2023, on Paramount+. Any premiere date after August 10, 2025, would make Strange New Worlds season 3 the longest Star Trek fans have had to wait to resolve a cliffhanger.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 ended with 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 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 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 for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 is the reduced amount of new Star Trek content on Paramount+. Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Picard, and Star Trek: Lower Decks have all ended, with Star Trek: Prodigy warping to Netflix. After Paramount+ premiered the streaming movie Star Trek: Section 31 in January, Strange New Worlds season 3 is the only Star Trek they 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
If Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 premieres on Paramount+ after August 10, it would break the previous longest wait for a Star Trek cliffhanger resolution, which was the two years between Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Star Trek II premiered on June 4, 1982, and Star Trek III hit movie theaters on June 1, 1984 - just a tad under two full years later. Years-long gaps between Star Trek movies are typical, but Star Trek II was the only Star Trek movie cliffhanger.
It has been 9 years since the last Star Trek movie, Star Trek Beyond, was released in theaters in 2016, which is now officially the longest fans have waited for a new Star Trek theatrical movie. Star Trek: Section 31 was the first Star Trek streaming movie, and it premiered on January 24, 2025, about 8 1/2 years after Star Trek Beyond.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan ended 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 titling Star Trek III "The Search for Spock," which was directed by Leonard Nimoy. At the end of Star Trek III, Spock was indeed reunited with his USS Enterprise crew, 2 years after Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan's theatrical release.
Star Trek: Discovery Had The Second-Longest Wait To Resolve A Cliffhanger
Fans Had To Wait Extra Long For Discovery Season 3
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 has already eclipsed the second-longest wait to resolve a Star Trek TV series cliffhanger: the time period between Star Trek: Discovery seasons 2 and 3. Star Trek: Discovery season 2's finale premiered on April 18, 2019. Star Trek: Discovery season 3 didn't arrive on Paramount+ until October 15, 2020 - 17 months later. A change in showrunner with Michelle Paradise taking over fully from co-running Discovery with Alex Kurtzman and the reworking of Disco'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: Discovery season 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 of Star Trek: Discovery that required imagining and building the Star Trek universe of the 32nd century. Still, 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, which may break the all-time record for the longest wait to resolve a Star Trek cliffhanger.
