Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is widely regarded as the most successful modern Star Trek series. Across its three seasons so far, the series has explored the backstories of crewmembers we'd eventually meet in The Original Series, while telling stories that span just about every genre imaginable.
As the show gears up for its fourth season (and eventual fifth and final season), co-showrunner Akiva Goldsman has been reflecting on one of his biggest regrets — not being able to bring William Shatner back in some capacity.
Speaking to Polygon, Goldsman revealed they had plans to bring Shatner back to play a version of Kirk who chose to stay in Depression-era New York with Edith Keeler (Joan Collins), the soup kitchen operator he fell in love with in "The City on the Edge of Forever." They tried to make it happen every season and even worked through several scripts, but it never came together.
Now with Strange New Worlds confirmed to be ending after its fifth season, which has already been filmed, the showrunners are reflecting on the series as a whole, and what they've accomplished with it.
"I think if you get to the end and there's nothing left for you to want to do, then that's more of a disappointment," Alex Kurtzman said. "I'm proud of every episode we've done, but I feel like the best dinners you come to don't leave you feeling stuffed. They leave you wanting more."
Not much is known about the upcoming story arcs of Seasons 4 and 5 of Strange New Worlds, but it's safe to assume some episodes will serve as a passing of the torch from Captain Pike to Captain Kirk. While Pike has always been the heart of the show, Kirk has gotten increasingly more screen time as the series has gone on, with a focus on his growing relationships with several characters we see at the start of The Original Series. Seasons 4 and 5 will likely keep pushing those connections forward as we inch closer to the TOS timeline.
In terms of wanting more, no one knows whats next for Star Trek and its future on television. Paramount has not yet committed to any new series beyond whats left of Strange New Worlds and Starfleet Academy (which will end after its second season which has already been filmed).
There was hope for a Strange New Worlds spin-off, reportedly called "Year One," centered on Paul Wesley's Kirk during his first year commanding the Enterprise, but that one doesn't seem to be moving forward. It's a bit unfortunate as Wesley's take on Kirk has been one of the brightest spots of the whole series, and it would've been great to watch him grow further in the role. It also would've opened the door for a potential Shatner return down the line.
The last time Shatner played Kirk in canon was the 1994 film Star Trek Generations, which is where we see the legendary character die while teaming up with Picard to stop Dr. Soran. Shatner has repeatedly said he'd consider returning to the franchise if the story was worthwhile, and rumors like this do tend to surface every few years. So far though, it hasn't happened.