‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,’ ‘Lower Decks’ Renewed at Paramount+, Set Summer Premieres

Patrick Stewart can still remember the feedback he got in 1987 when he was offered the chance to first play Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer SPOILER ALERT: This story discusses major plot developments in Season 3, Episode 9 of “Star Trek: Picard,” currently streaming on Paramount+. Gates McFadden didn’t know what to expect when she first got on a Zoom call with “Star Trek: Picard” executive producers Terry Matalas and Akiva Goldsman. A few years earlier, Patrick Stewart had taken the cast of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” — Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton, Marina Sirtis, Michael Dorn, Brent Spiner and McFadden — to dinner to announce that he was going to star on the spinoff series without them. But for the show’s third and final season, Matalas wanted to bring the full cast back together. 

Jennifer Garner is making her return to television in “The Last Thing He Told Me”, a limited series based on the bestseller by Laura Dave.

“Star Trek: Picard” fans curious to see how the Paramount+ series comes to an end will have a chance to watch the final two episodes a day early, in a movie theater no less. 10 participating Imax theaters will showcase the last two episodes of the series on Wed, April 19, a day before the series finale is available to stream on Paramount+. The screenings will be free to attend and fans can sign up and register at http://startrekpicardfinalescreenings.com on Wed., April 12 at 10:00 a.m., PT/1:00 p.m.

McKinley Franklin author Paramount+ and CBS Studios have announced an Imax live screening opportunity for the final two episodes of their original series “Star Trek: Picard,” Variety can exclusively reveal. On Wednesday, April 19, ten participating Imax theaters in the U.S. will provide an early screening of the last two episodes of the third and final season, including the series finale, ahead of its Paramount+ debut on Thursday, April 20.  Tickets to the screenings are free and fans can sign up and register at http://startrekpicardfinalescreenings.com on Wednesday, April 12, at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET. The exclusive screening event will take place at 10 participating Imax theaters in Los Angeles, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, Orlando, Washington, D.C., Atlanta and Dallas.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer The past, present and future of Star Wars was on ample display on Friday at the Star Wars Celebration fan convention, as Lucasfilm unveiled the most robust look yet at the company’s plans for the hallowed franchise. As studio chief Kathleen Kennedy revealed three new feature films and first looks at four upcoming TV series, Lucasfilm made clear it aims to test just how far it can stretch the Star Wars galaxy: creatively, logistically and even historically. Starting with “The Phantom Menace” and concluding with “The Rise of Skywalker,” the previous nine “Star Wars” movies have all taken place within a roughly 70-year timeline, straddling the climactic Battle of Yavin in “A New Hope” that has served as the official fulcrum point for the franchise for six decades. Every live-action and animated spinoff TV series has unfolded within that timeframe, including the shows launched on Disney+: “The Mandalorian,” “The Book of Boba Fett,” “Andor,” “The Bad Batch” and the upcoming shows “Ahsoka” and “Skeleton Crew.” (“Visions,” an animated anthology series launched in 2021, exists outside of Star Wars canon.)

“Star Wars” fans are enjoying their first look at the latest Disney+ TV series from the franchise, with Rosario Dawson reprising the role of Ahsoka Tano, which she introduced in “The Mandalorian”.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter A series version of the comic book “Hellicious” is in development at TBS with “Red Hot Chili Peppers” frontman Anthony Kiedis attached to star and executive produce, Variety has learned exclusively. In addition to starring, Kiedis will executive produce along with Bob Forrest and Ron Burkle via their newly formed production company, Said and Done Entertainment. The series is inspired by the comic book series created by Mina Elwell, Alan C. Medina, Kit Wallis, and Simon Oré. Per the official logline, the show “follows Cherry, the Devil’s precocious 7-year-old granddaughter, who steals the Heaven-bound soul of rock-goth icon Briggy Bundy (Kiedis). The unlikely duo stumble upon forgotten realms of the afterlife while evading Cherry’s mother and an agent from heaven sent to reclaim Briggy’s soul.”

EXCLUSIVE: Robert De Niro is attached to star in a Billy Ray-penned crime drama series that is in the works at Paramount+.

Love Island star Millie Court has revealed she has moved on with a new man after her split from Liam Reardon. Speaking in a YouTube video as she tucked into a McDonalds in her car, Millie, 26, began to say: "'Am I dating?' is the next question.There have been a lot of rumours and a lot in the press. I am going to confirm that I am dating someone." Millie then admitted she isn't ready to speak about who she is dating as it is "early doors" in their romance.

Emmerdale fans were taken-aback when Lydia Dingle star Karen Blick unveiled an ultra glamorous new look on her Instagram page.The 48 year old actress, who has played loveable Lydia since she joined the ITV soap in 2016, swiftly became a firm favourite in the Yorkshire Dales. When Lydia fell in love with almost-original Sam Dingle (James Hooton), she became a firm fixture in the village. But outside of her understated, often makeup-free character, who is a cleaner in Emmerdale, Karen shares all sorts of snaps dolled up on her social media.This time though, the star teased there is something major ahead for Lydia herself.

EXCLUSIVE: Actor Laurence Fishburne will present a workshop of his new solo stage show Like They Do In The Movies this July as part of the New York Stage and Film Summer Season at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York.

return for its fifth and final season in 2024.Also ending is the currently airing “Star Trek: Picard,” touted as the final adventure of Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise D.“Strange New Worlds” is based on the years Captain Christopher Pike manned the helm of the U.S.S. Enterprise.

Paramount+ is doubling down on more Star Trek.

Last summer, it was announced that Flying Lotus would be returning with a new feature film, a sci-fi thriller titled “Ash.” At the time, names like Tessa Thompson and Joseph Gordon-Levitt were reported as starring in the film. Well, things have changed, months later, but have no fear, the filmmaker has found some great stars for “Ash.” According to XYZ Films and GFC Films, Flying Lotus is about to begin production on his new film, “Ash.” And set to star in the two leading roles are none other than Eiza Gonzalez and Aaron Paul.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic While most contemporary music documentaries fall into the realm of self-produced hagiography, no one will be making that charge about “Jason Isbell: Running With Our Eyes Closed,” a clear-eyes/hearts-full documentary coming from HBO Max documentary that had its world premiere at the Grammy Museum. At a Q&A with Isbell and director Sam Jones following the screening of the film, which begins streaming April 7, moderator Colin Hanks, a big Isbell fan, asked the doc’s star: “What was it about this that made you go, ‘Yeah, I’m gonna do a doc,’ and really make yourself a little bit more raw than maybe you had even in your songs?”

Robert Pattinson is gearing up to embody a serial killer in his next big role.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer SPOILER ALERT: This story discusses major plot developments in Season 3, Episode 6 of “Star Trek: Picard,” currently streaming on Paramount+. Of the many pleasures of the third season of “Star Trek: Picard,” the greatest has to be watching the cast of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” finally reunite on screen for the first time since the 2002 feature film “Star Trek: Nemesis.” That movie was a failure critically, commercially and with “Star Trek” fans, many of whom were especially upset that the beloved character of Data (Brent Spiner) was killed off. Except, it turns out, he wasn’t. In Season 1 of “Star Trek: Picard,” fans learned that Data’s android consciousness had been kept alive within an inanimate memory core by Altan Inigo Soong (Spiner), the brother of Data’s original creator, Noonien Soong — until Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) honored Data’s desire to finally perish from existence completely. 

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Los Angeles-based Italian director Andrea Pallaoro’s delicate drama “Monica” is finally set to open in U.S. theaters via IFC following its world premiere at last year’s Venice Film Festival. The film starring transgender actor Trace Lysette (“Transparent”) as a woman who returns home to the Midwest to care for her dying mother, played by Patricia Clarkson, marked the first time an openly-transgender actress headlined a Venice competition title. In “Monica” Lysette plays a woman who from Los Angeles goes back to her suburban midwest home for the first time since she was a teenager to care for her mom who had rejected her when she transitioned.

“Bridgerton” star Simone Ashley is confirming her romance on social media.