Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Has Found Its Captain Kirk

The captain is on the bridge.

The second season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will feature the return of James Tiberius Kirk, according to Paramount+. The star of The Vampire Diaries, Amira and Sam, and Medal of Honor will be entering the captain's chair for the second season of the Star Trek spinoff series.

Paul is an accomplished actor, an astonishing presence and a welcome key addition to the show, according to a statement attributed to Strange New Worlds executive producer Alex Kurtzman.

There was no further information about Kirk's involvement in the series, but from the image above alone, it seems that he was in a seat of command and with a captain's rank insignia on his uniform. If the latter is the case, there will be a timeskip between seasons.

The second season of Star Trek: Discovery takes place just eight years after the events of the first season, and Strange New Worlds is set just after that. The famous five-year mission that was the purpose behind the original Star Trek TV series was already known. Unless we're going to start following two Starfleet ships in Strange New Worlds, it seems the earliest days of Kirk's captaincy will play out on screen, brushing up on the very edges of bringing the original Star Trek.

The first season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will begin on May 5.