How to watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
Here’s how you can follow the latest voyages of the USS Enterprise, no matter what galaxy you find yourself in
It’s an exciting time to be a Star Trek fan. Whether it’s watching Patrick Stewart reprise his role as Picard, eagerly awaiting the fourth JJ Abrams film, or charting the adventures of the Starship Discovery, there’s plenty to get stuck into. Paramount has really upped its Star Trek game in the last few years, thanks to strong leadership from Alex Kurtzman and an influx of funding for the studio’s streaming service, Paramount Plus.
And if all that wasn’t enough, a brand-new Discovery spin-off called Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is set to release alongside the launch of Paramount Plus in Europe in late June. Before the service is formally launched in the coming weeks, let’s get you up to speed with what the new Star Trek series will cover, and how you can watch it.
What is Star Trek: Strange New Worlds about?
Stark Trek: Strange New Worlds follows the famous USS Enterprise on its voyages through the final frontier. Set after the most recent seasons of Discovery, but before Captain Kirk’s tenure at the helm, Strange New Worlds tells the story of Captain Pike’s crew aboard the Starfleet flagship.
What’s extremely exciting about this new series is that it picks up some of the original stories from the very first Star Trek pilot back in the 60s. Recognisable characters such as Spock, Nyota Uhura and Dr. M’Benga will play pivotal roles in the show, despite being played by younger actors. While some crew members aboard the Enterprise have been newly cast, others including Anson Mount’s James Pike, Rebecca Romijn’s Number One, and Ethan Peck’s science officer Spock will be reprised from their runs in Star Trek: Discovery.
The spin-off will pick up from the Enterprise’s last appearance in the Discovery series, and will tie together the stories of this crew with the one featured in the original show, and JJ Abram’s films. In particular, Anson Mount’s character arc looks to be a truly compelling one. Despite being known as a heroic and optimistic leader, personal conflicts from his recent outing in Discovery have teed up a very interesting character exploration indeed.
What is Paramount Plus?
Paramount Plus originally launched in 2014 in the US and has since become a bit of a behemoth. Thanks to Paramount’s huge back catalogue, the platform now has over 8,000 hours of on-demand streaming content.
Until now, Paramount Plus has only been available in the US, with Amazon Prime Video subscribers here in the UK reaping the benefits of its absence. As of 22 June, however, Paramount Plus will be officially available in the UK, and will be reclaiming ownership of shows like Halo, The Good Fight and Yellowstone. Of course, that also includes all the latest Star Trek instalments, which will cease to be free to Prime Video users in due course.
Paramount Plus will be available on app stores for phones and tablets as you might expect, and as an app on dedicated streaming sticks such as Fire TV and Roku. However, some older Smart TVs may not support newer apps, which is why Paramount Plus is also launching as a new channel on Prime Video for an additional cost.
Luckily, those with a Sky subscription may get off cheaply. Thanks to a multi-year distribution agreement, Sky Cinema subscribers will get a free Paramount Plus subscription at no extra cost.
How can I watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds in the UK?
As of 22 June, you can watch the new Star Trek series on the Paramount Plus UK streaming service. A subscription will cost either £7 a month or £70 per year, after a free seven-day trial.
For those with slightly older Smart TVs or devices that don’t support the new Paramount Plus app, you can use an Amazon Prime Video membership to access Star Trek content if you pay an additional £7 a month.
At the time of the UK launch, seven episodes will have already aired in the US, due to a staggered global release. On launch day, Paramount Plus UK will have three Strange New Worlds episodes available for immediate streaming, with the following seven episodes releasing on a weekly basis.
How can I watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds in the US?
If you’re across the pond, Paramount Plus has always been the way to keep up with all things Starfleet. The release date for Strange New Worlds in the US was back in May, so for you, the season is already well underway.
The ten episode run is being added to the streaming service on a weekly basis, and at the time of writing, episodes one through five are already available for your bingeing pleasure.
How to watch Star Trek: Strange New Worlds with a VPN
If you’re an avid Trekkie who just can’t wait for Paramount Plus to get started here in the UK, you may be able to access the first five episodes using some VPN wizardry. VPNs are a great way to maintain your privacy and data while surfing the web, and on a more practical level, they can help you avoid geoblockers when using streaming services. We’ve selected two of the best ones below, allowing you to set your location to the US and access the whole library of Paramount Plus before its UK launch.
Express VPN sets itself apart from its competition thanks to its independently audited privacy policy and extreme versatility when using streaming services. In our review, there wasn’t a single streaming service where it didn’t fail to mask our location. ExpressVPN is available through a monthly subscription, or through six-month or annual commitments. You may be able to find similar VPNs for cheaper, but if you want to know more about why Express stands out from the rest, you can read our full five-star review here.
We can also recommend NordVPN for its super-fast speeds and excellent security. If you’re looking to avoid geoblockers without compromising on speed or streaming quality, this is a great option. NordVPN uses more than 5,500 servers in 59 countries worldwide, and it supplies its subscribers with 24/7 customer support for any issues they may run into. Again, it’s not the cheapest option, but as a wise man once said: if you buy cheap, you’ll buy twice.