It might be hard to believe, but the Star Trek franchise will celebrate its 60th anniversary in 2026. Fortunately, fans won’t have to wait too long for new projects to mark the occasion. It had already been confirmed that the new TV series Star Trek: Starfleet Academy will premiere on Paramount+ in January with a special two-episode debut. About a month later, Star Trek fans will be treated to a new film. Obviously, this won’t be a full-length narrative feature (that’s still in the earliest stages of development following the Paramount/Skydance merger), but it’s still something that highlights why Star Trek has endured for several decades.
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According to The Hollywood Reporter, the documentary Beam Me Up, Sulu has been acquired by Tribeca Films and will be released on digital platforms on February 17, 2026. As the title of the film suggests, fan-favorite Sulu actor George Takei is a main focus; the documentary “unearths a lost 1985 student film” Takei participated in as part of its larger exploration of Star Trek’s penchant for being a trailblazer regarding representation in media and pop culture.
Beam Me Up, Sulu Is the Perfect Way to Celebrate Star Trek’s Milestone Anniversary
It’s a shame there won’t be a new narrative movie arriving in time for Star Trek’s 60th birthday (mirroring how Star Trek Beyond hit theaters to commemorate the 50th anniversary), but Beam Me Up, Sulu seems like the ideal project to celebrate the legendary franchise’s milestone anniversary. Star Trek: The Original Series was a groundbreaking production because it envisioned a harmonious future where people from all walks of life come together to solve problems. The diverse nature of the main cast was one of the show’s most notable elements, so it’s fitting that Beam Me Up, Sulu is coming out in a couple of months.
Takei explained how the documentary’s scope goes beyond the student film. “It’s about the importance of diversity and inclusion — something that Star Trek pioneered on television and has excelled at for nearly 60 years,” he said, illustrating how the documentary touches on the signature staples of the iconic sci-fi franchise. While it will undoubtedly be fun to see the student film Takei starred in, it sounds like Beam Me Up, Sulu will also be a poignant examination of Star Trek’s wide-ranging impact and the influence it’s had on generations of fans.
The releases of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy and Beam Me Up, Sulu should set the stage for what will likely be a big year for Star Trek. 2026 also sees the release of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4, as that series comes closer to its end. Hopefully, there will be some updates about the next Star Trek movie as well. Paramount has hired the dynamic duo of John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein (of Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Fame) to direct, and it would be great if that project gained some more momentum in 2026.
Star Trek has evolved in many ways since it originally debuted all those years ago, but the franchise has retained its core values through all of its iterations, which is why it continues to resonate with fans all around the world. As Star Trek begins another new era in the wake of the Paramount/Skydance merger, Beam Me Up, Sulu should serve as a powerful reminder of what makes the franchise so great, and hopefully those qualities will continue to shine through as more films and TV shows are made.
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Image courtesy of Netflix -
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