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Those looking for the new Star Trek show that returns the beloved Starfleet Captain Picard to screens were treated to a new trailer (below) at New York Comic Con 2019, as well as confirmation that Star Trek: Picard premieres on January 23 on CBS All Access.

Patrick Stewart offered his appreciated to fans and introduced the new trailer, saying “You are wonderful. As you are going to shortly discover, well maybe sometime next year… Some of you may have heard that in San Diego several months ago that we showed a trailer of some of the work we have been doing. It was a beautiful trailer and it seemed to do its job very successfully. Now, we have another one! It is quite unseen, but publicly, you are the first audience.”

The trailer started with Picard walking through what looks to be his vineyard, where he has spent his time since leaving Starfleet.

He approaches Data, who is painting a rather haunting picture of a lady in a white dress. Data offers his brush to Picard and asks him if he’d like to finish the piece, but Picard is reluctant and, as he reaches for the brush, flashbacks of an event quickly cut in and out. The event shows ships firing lasers and, given the tone of the music, could be a reference to a traumatic event that Picard experienced in the past.

In the next shot, Picard wakes up and greets his dog, Number One. He wanders around on his vineyard before being approached by a person in need; a person that digs up Picard’s past. This leads to him returning to Starfleet and emploring the Federation to help the mysterious woman that has approached him and investigate what is transpiring around her but is rejected.

It seems Picard takes it upon himself to get it done, however, as he’s shown to be putting together a team to go on a new mission. Of course, some members of that team will be familiar to fans, as Picard recruits old friends as well as new on his mission. One such friend is William Riker, another Starfleet Captain. The two then sit on a dock and share a nice moment. Deanna Troi is also shown and Picard embraces her warmly.

The panel for Picard was made up of Hanelle Culpepper (executive producer), Kirsten Beyer (supervising producer), Heather Kadin (executive producer), Akiva Goldsman (executive producer), Michael Chabon (executive producer), Alex Kurtzman (executive producer). Representing the cast was Patrick Stewart (Picard), Isa Briones (Dahj), Santiago Cabrera (Chris Rios), Michelle Hurd (Raffi), Alison Phill (Dr. Jurati), Harry Treadway (Narek), and Evan Evagora (Elnor).

“We’re doing our best not to fail it, which I think we’ve done pretty well,” said Goldsman. “You’re surrounded by a lot of people who love Star Trek and love Captain Picard. It went from job to opportunity, and we’re pretty blessed.”

The panelists went on to recount how the series came about. According to Kurtzman, it all started as a Short Trek, one of the mini-stories that explore specific characters. “I called [Stewart’s] agent and asked to set up a meeting, knowing he probably didn’t want to bring him back … We pitched him and he said it was lovely, but no. We walked out and said well, we gave it our best shot.” According to Goldsman, they decided not to push further but Stewart reached back out having read a document written by Short Trek’s Chabon.

“A big concern [was] Patrick didn’t want it to be a TNG reunion show,” said Kadin. “We only brought people back if their story really mattered. We give them something significant to do and each of them has something pivotal to tell. The way Tilly is as a new character in Discovery, that’s they way Isa’s character will be in this show.”

Goldsman continued: “We wanted it to be a real-time follow up to where last we saw Picard in Nemesis. We wanted the ensuing time that has passed for us, also pass for Jean-Luc. We know pretty much everything that happened in those 20 years. Patrick is the singular expert on Picard found his way there.”

Chabon was approached to do a short film, which would end up being the first round of Short Treks. He loved Discovery and agreed, and over time this project evolved. “I’ve lived in these imaginative worlds since I was 10 years old,” he said, “From that moment, I’ve never stopped living in these imaginative worlds. All my books have a hidden Star Trek reference. It comes very naturally to think in terms of Star Trek.”

Isa Briones provided more color for the character Dahj: “When Dahj and Picard first meet, it’s this really special moment of two lost souls in a way colliding in this crazy circumstance born out of tragedy and starts with me asking for help, but we help each other. Complicated is a good word. I can’t say much, but I am seeking help because of a horrible tragedy that I have just gone through, and I feel I have to ask Picard for help.”

Santiago’s character Rios, meanwhile, is ex-Starfleet. “We’re sort of a band of misfits, a motley crew,” he explained. “He comes on board and many things ensue. Different relationships come out of it. The pieces all start to come together.”

Raffi, who is played by Michelle Hurd, is another character that has a complicated history with Picard. “We had a falling out. She’s also very complicated in general. She’s sarcastic, she has vices that she leans on. She’s also a genius hacker and systems analyst. She has a history with Picard.” In relation to Rios, Raffi has history there too, but the duo is described as having a “very unique, strong bond.”

Dr. Jurati, played by Alison Pill, is a character that relishes the opportunity Picard presents. “Picard’s mission ends up being exactly what she’s spent her entire life dreaming about,” Pill revealed, “So they have the same goal in mind.”

Narek and Elnor are described as an odd couple by Evan Evagora. “They’re both very different,” he said. “We’re both Romulans raised very differently. He’s more secretive, lying. My character was raised to always tell the truth, speak his mind.”

Hanelle, who directed the first three episodes, offered some insight on the pressures of working on Picard. “I became a Star Trek fan because of The Next Generation. When I got the job, it was an incredible honor but it was also terrifying. I didn’t want to let you guys down. I want to make sure we honor this character we all love but are authentic to who he is at this time.”

Story details for Picard were also revealed by way of a display at the Star Trek Universe booth at NYCC. The placard for the titular character reads, “Since resigning from Starfleet, Admiral Jean-Luc Picard has lived a somewhat reclusive life on his family estate in La Barre, France. All of that changes when he receives an unexpected visitor and is once more drawn back to the galactic stage.”

The booth also provided further information on Jeri Ryan’s Seven of Nine, who returns for the show. “Seven of Nine is the former Borg drone separated from the Collective by Captain Kathryn Janeway and the USS Voyager,” reads the description. “Returned from the Delta Quadrant and freed from the collective for over 20 years, Seven continues to see Starfleet in a different light as she crosses paths with Admiral Jean-Luc Picard.”

For more on the show, make sure to check out our roundup of everything we know about Picard. The panel also delivered a new trailer for Star Trek: Discovery Season 3, which takes the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery 930 years into the future. Cast and crew of the show offered a whole lot of new information about what’s in store for Burnham and the other members of Starfleet.

Disclosure: CBS All Access is owned by CBS, GameSpot’s parent company.

Star Trek Discovery Season 3 opened the franchise’s panel at New York Comic Con 2019, with showrunner Michelle Paradise, and executive producers Heather Kadin and Alex Kurtzman appearing on-stage, alongside a number of members from its cast. The panel delivered a new trailer (below) for the third season, as well as some fresh info on what fans can expect.

The trailer shows Michael Burnham in the future, with multiple changes in her look to mark the passing of time. Book, Saru, and Tilly also appear, and the crew of the Discovery are marked as being “930 years from home” where “their fight begins.” Book says, “Do you believe in ghosts? That patch on your shirt [referring to the Starfleet patch].” There’s a look at some action sequences, along with a question being asked: “Where will you go?” The answer, it seems, is “Wherever the answers are.”

The producers were joined by cast members Sonequa Martin-Green, who plays Michael Burnham, Saru actor Doug Jones, Mary Wiseman, who plays Tilly, and Anthony Rapp, who portrays Stamets, Wilson Cruz, who plays Culber, and David Ajala, who plays a new character, Cleveland Booker, aka Book.

Following the trailer, Martin-Green said, “Everything is handled with such courage and respect and gentleness. What’s interesting now is that in the very title of our show, it’s all about discovery. You get to be on that journey with us.”

“It’s super exciting, we are married to canon. We honor and respect all of that. We are looking for ways to push the show and push our characters,” added Michelle Paradise. “We know going 930 years into the future, the audience has high expectations for what that might look like, what that might feel like. Every episode feeling like a mini-movie.”

Heather Kadin noted that the new season is also welcoming to newcomers. “You didn’t have to know canon to go into the show. You can just come in and you don’t need to know what came before. You as the audience will experience the newness as the cast experiences it for the first time.”

Picking up on these comments, Kurtzman said the show reflects the world, which is why it’s so interesting and enduring. “One of the great joys of this is taking everything you know about Trek, and you put it in a blender,” he explained. “Trek is a mirror that holds itself up to the world as it is.

“Many of the things that we long for, hope and passion and empathy, those things seem to be wanting more and more. Trek is always the anchor to bring you back to what’s possible. We’re looking to have something to say about the world as it is now, reflected in the future that we present on screen.”

Ajala offered more details on his character, Book, who is introduced in the first episode through a slightly unorthodox interaction with Burnham. “Getting to share that journey with Burnham is great. You’ll be seeing this journey through Book’s eyes and Burnham’s eyes.”

Wilson Cruz’s Culber and Anthony Rapp’s character, Stamets, reflected on their relationship through the series. “It’s been quite a wild ride,” Cruz said. “We’ve spanned life and death, have been through a lot. What he’s discovered is that this presents an opportunity for him. This trip into the future is a clean slate. For him, for their relationship. And to live up to his potential. Part of that is being a better partner, a better doctor, being there for his crew and their friends in this uncharted and unknowable future. That’s what Season 3 is about for me.”

Rapp added: “I think Stamets is tougher to please than I am. He’s really good at boundaries. It’s cool that we’re in the future, but they’re also really allowing on a personal level, what it’s like to leave everyone behind. Saying goodbye to everything.”

Mary Wiseman provided perspective on her character, Tilly. “She does a lot of work for these people as an ensign. This moment in our narrative, we are going to start driving without a roadmap. We jump to the future, it’s a leap of faith, where you have to make big decisions and a big move. This season she will step more into her power in the ways that she can. It’s not a time to wilt or step back. It’s time to move forward. I think you’re going to see why she has gravitated towards these people and why they have gravitated toward her.”

Previously, Kurtzman said the crew was going 1000 years into the future, but as noted above, it’s actually 930. Kurtzman said, “If we don’t give you something that is completely surprising, we feel we have failed. There are no timeline adjustments, Canon has informed what happens.”

Saru has now moved past his adolescence in Season 3, according to Doug Jones. “[Season 2] I think that was very reflective for me, [of] fear in general. I think that’s a lesson for people who deal with fear and anxiety–what we fear might not be real. It might be made up. He’s had to step up as acting captain a couple of times in this series. It’s discussed between [Saru and Burnham] already [about who will be captain]. Will they respect either of us as captain? Will we self govern?”

“[Saru and Burnham are] kind of like chosen brother and sister, and go through all the evolution that brother and sister go through. In season 2 we become so close. The evolution continues in Season 3 as well. How do we all deal with all of those changes? We all help guide each other through all of those changes.”

“One of the things that’s most fascinating to me is that one of the definitions of duty is that it is this binding force,” said Martin-Green. “Duty called for us to go to the future. We fight for the present and we fight for the future. That act bound us together and bound us to everything we believe in Starfleet. What these writers do is show that fight for identity, the fight for personal and collective identity. You’ve seen all these revolutions in each person.”

“Nothing can compare to all of the genius that has come before us, it’s about what our writers are willing to explore. The ugly truths of fighting for this utopian future, what that duty does to you when we jump to this future that’s full of uncertainty, how we’re going to navigate this. Sometimes it’s ugly, but duty calls.”

Season 3 of Discovery will debut in 2020 on CBS All Access in the US. Thus far, the show has been available to watch on Netflix in other territories.

In addition to Star Trek Discovery Season 3, there are a number of other TV shows on the way for Trekkies. Star Trek: Picard is coming in January, 2020. Another is a Discovery spin-off that stars Michelle Yeoh as Terran Emperor and Section 31 agent Philippa Georgiou. There’s also a teen-orientated show called Starfleet Academy. If that wasn’t enough, an animated Star Trek comedy show called Lower Decks in development from Rick and Morty’s Mike McMahan.

Disclosure: CBS All Access is owned by CBS, GameSpot’s parent company.

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