28/03/2026
The news that Star Trek: Starfleet Academy won’t continue beyond the show’s already filmed second season has left a lot of fans in their feelings. Some (the worst kind) are rejoicing that a show they considered too young, too diverse, too q***r, or simply too “not Star Trek” is ending. Others are grieving the loss of a show that was trying to do something different, in a franchise that has, in recent years, relied on legacy and nostalgia to power the bulk of its hits. (And future projects, if the push for Star Trek: Year One is anything to go by.) Others, of course, simply didn’t like it that much!
But no matter how you feel about Starfleet Academy’s end — or that rumored cliffhanger season 2 may end on — its loss is an objectively bleak moment in a landmark anniversary year that has turned out to have precious little to celebrate. (At the moment, there is no new Trek in production or official development and that’s a real shame.)
Now, none other than James T. Kirk himself has weighed in on the matter. William Shatner took to X to react to the cancellation news, and had some surprisingly insightful comments to offer about Star Trek as a whole.
Shatner doesn’t really get into the specifics of Starfleet Academy, as a series, but rather took a moment to mourn the loss of the “continuing exploration — physically, mentally, and morally” that each show in this universe represents.
He also reflected on the franchise’s long legacy of moments that have pushed boundaries on television, such as the in*******al kiss between his character and Lieutenant Uhura that took place in the 1968 episode, “Plato’s Stepchildren.” Occurring just a year after in*******al marriage was legalized, it was a statement that challenged racial taboos for many viewers. And per Shatner, such a moment would likely be considered “woke” today.
“During the first airing of my Star Trek series, where a kiss was objectionable, many southern stations pulled the episode & condemned the show,” he said. “Using today’s vernacular, it would absolutely be called ‘woke DEI crap’ because it went against ‘norms’ of society for its time. Not a lot seems to have changed.”
Being “too woke” is a criticism that was frequently lobbed at Starfleet Academy, well before the series ever aired a single episode. The show features q***r characters, same s*x relationships, a female captain, and a generally inclusive focus.
In addition, Shatner also (quite rightly!) points out that virtually every Star Trek series that has ever existed has had to contend with a portion of the fanbase that insists it’s not being true to the spirit of what has come before.
“When the Next Gen came out, there was tons of hate because it ‘wasn’t Star Trek,’ and the cast probably was in fear from the fans,” he tweeted. “Again, when the series with Bakula came out, it too was panned by the fans because it ‘wasn’t Star Trek.’ Star Trek is different for everyone.”
In all honesty, that’s a lesson too few Trek fans seem to remember these days. It’s a good thing for this franchise to take risks, and the whole point of a shared universe is to tell different kinds of stories, some that may even be aimed at different kinds of audiences. After all, if we just make the same show over and over, what’s the point?
