Lower Decks Season 5 Story, Cast, Release Date, Updates

Star Trek: Lower Decks will return for season 5, and showrunner Mike McMahan has already teased what viewers can expect from the animated comedy's final season. Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4's finale, "Old Friends, New Planets" ended on a cliffhanger, as Lieutenant D'Vana Tendi (Noël Wells) sacrificed her Starfleet career so that the USS Cerritos' crew could rescue Lt. Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome.) While Lt. Sam Rutherford (Eugene Cordero) was sad about Tendi's departure, the rest of the Lower Deckers were confident that the lovable Orion will return to Starfleet in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5.

The ending of Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4 resolved why Lieutenant Beckett Mariner is so intent on remaining a Lower Decker: the tragic death of her idol and friend from Starfleet Academy, Ensign Sito Jaxa (Shannon Fill) from Star Trek: The Next Generation, instilled a desire within Mariner to avoid a rank that could mean sending another Starfleet Officer to their death. The USS Cerritos crew worked together to save Mariner from disgraced ex-Starfleet Academy Cadet Nicholas Locarno (Robert Duncan McNeill), and Beckett remains a Starfleet true believer.

Related Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4 Ending Explained (In Detail) Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4 had an explosive finale pitting Lt. Mariner against her former Starfleet Academy classmate Nicholas Locarno.

Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5 Is Confirmed As The Final Season

Lower Decks season 5 is in production now

Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5 was confirmed as the final season by Paramount+. In April, Paramount+ announced the end of Star Trek: Lower Decks along with the simultaneous renewal of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds for season 4. Lower Decks' showrunner Mike McMahan expressed his fears in 2023 that Star Trek's first animated comedy could be coming to an end, although he still has years of stories he could do about the crew of the USS Cerritos. With the announcement, McMahan and Star Trek executive producer Alex Kurtzman issued a statement on social media about Lower Decks ending, and they thanked the fans:

Jack Quaid, who plays Lt. Brad Boimler, posted his own thanks to Star Trek: Lower Decks on Instagram, as did Noel Wells, who plays Lt. D'Vana Tendi. Check out Quaid's post below:

Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5 Premieres Fall 2024 On Paramount+

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Paramount+ has slotted Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5 for a fall 2024 premiere, although no specific release date has been announced. As an animated series, Lower Decks' scripting and production weren't affected by 2023's dual WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes and the show's actors like Tawny Newsome and Jack Quaid completed their voice-over work after the strikes were resolved. The actors have finished their ADR and additional dialogue, and Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5 is on track to be Paramount+'s featured Star Trek event in the fall.

Tawny Newsome is remaining in Star Trek as one of the writers of the next Star Trek series, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy.

Everyone Back For Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5

Lower Decks' cast got bigger in season 4

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Star Trek: Lower Decks' entire cast will be back for season 5. Although D'Vana Tendi left the USS Cerritos to rejoin Star Trek's Orions, the other Lower Deckers seem confident that she'll find a way back to Starfleet. Star Trek: Lower Decks' new addition, Lieutenant T'Lyn (Gabrielle Ruiz), fit like a glove with the Lower Deckers and will remain aboard the USS Cerritos in Lower Decks season 5.

After reconciling her issues with promotion, Lt. Mariner is back aboard the Cerritos, where she aims to be less self-destructive in Lower Decks season 5. Star Trek's Mark Twain-ing odd couple, Bradward Boimler and Sam Rutherford will also return alongside the rest of the Lower Decks supporting cast.

What Could Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5 Be About?

Mike McMahan has dropped Lower Decks season 5 hints

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A return to Orion to continue Tendi's story is a definite in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5, and there may be some potential "love" for Scott Bakula's Star Trek: Enterprise as well. After his brief stint as acting Captain, Boimler will likely be pursuing a career in command. However, his transporter clone William Boimler is still out there somewhere, potentially becoming Lower Decks season 5's big bad. Mike McMahan has also teased a wedding and a trip to a planet he has always wanted the Cerritos to visit. Meanwhile, the reformed hologram Goodgey (Jack McBrayer) could provide some interesting new storylines for Rutherford and the crew of the USS Cerritos in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5.

Star Trek: Lower Decks is available to stream on Paramount+