'The Orville' Season 2 Begins Production, Adds Classic Star Trek Writer

Production has officially gotten underway on the second season of FOX's The Orville.

Several members of the show's cast and crew shared posts on social media from the show's first table read of the season, including creator Seth MacFarlane, who tweeted out to thank the cast and crew for a great first table read.

Assistant costume designer Ivy Thaide shared a photo to Instagram of the call sheet for the show's first episode. TrekMovie noticed that the sheet's header lists Star Trek alum Joe Menosky as a co-executive producer.

Menosky was a prolific Star Trek franchise writer in the 1990s, with over 50 credits across Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Voyager. He is probably best known for writing "Darmok," one of the most memorable episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation. More recently he worked on Star Trek: Discovery, co-writing the episode "Lethe" with Ted Sullivan. Menonsky has apparently jumped over to The Orville since then.

The Orville is Fox's science fiction dramedy created by Family Guy's Seth MacFarlane. The show is inspired by MacFarlane's love of the Star Trek franchise. MacFarlane already executive produces The Orville alongside two Star Trek alumni: Brannon Braga, who worked on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise, and David A. Goodman, a longtime fan who wrote the popular Futurama tribute episode "Where No Fan Has Gone Before" before moving on to write for Star Trek: Enterprise. The addition of Menonsky only adds to the show's classic Star Trek credentials.

The Orville recently made some new casting announcements, adding Jessica Szohr as a new series regular and Chris Johnson in a recurring role.

The Orville was Fox's biggest premiere since Empire and was soon renewed for a second season.

"Once again Seth has struck a powerful chord with viewers," said Michael Thorn, President, Entertainment, Fox Broadcasting Company in a statement when the renewal was announced. "He has delivered a series full of optimism, drama and his trademark humor. We want to thank him and the rest of the talented cast, as well as the producers and crew, for an incredible first season. We can't wait to see where The Orville travels in the second."

Fox reported that The Orville had an audience of approximately 14 million viewers across all platforms.

The new season of The Orville will consist of 14 episodes and will premiere on Fox in late 2018.