'Star Trek: Discovery' Adds New Executive Producer, Promotes 2 More

The changes in Star Trek: Discovery's leadership continue as a new executive producer comes onboard the CBS All Access series.

James Duff, best known for creating The Closer, has joined the series as an executive producer after signing an overall deal with CBS TV Studios. Duff will help co-creator and executive producer Alex Kurtzman run the show's writers room.

Two producers also received promotions to become executive producers. Jenny Lumet has been promoted to be an executive producer after joining Star Trek: Discovery as a consulting producer at the beginning of the second season's production.

Olatunde Osunsanmi has been upped from co-executive producer to full executive producer. Osunsanmi directed two episodes of Discovery's first season, "The Butcher's Knife Cares Not for the Lamb's Cry" and "What's Past is Prologue." He will now serve as the series' on-site producer/director in Toronto.

Kurtzman was recently made Discovery's new showrunner after previous showrunners Gretchen J. Berg and Aaron Harberts were fired over their behavior in the writers' room. Kurtzman also just extended his deal with CBS TV Studios and will supervise the expansion of the Star Trek television franchise in addition to other projects.

"There is a very short list of writer-producer-directors that every film and television studio wants to be associated with, and Alex and his Secret Hideout team are always at the top," said David Stapf, President, CBS Television Studios, in a press release when Kurtzman's new deal was announced. "His talent, taste and ability to shepherd a successful project is unparalleled. Alex has done remarkable work for our Studio, dating back seven years to the launch of Hawaii Five-0, and we are thrilled that he, Heather and their team will be partnering with us for a long time to come."

"Heather, Aaron and I are thrilled to continue Secret Hideout's amazing partnership with CBS Television Studios," said Kurtzman. "Since our first collaboration with Hawaii Five-0 almost a decade ago, Les, David and the full team at CBS Studios have been our foremost collaborators and champions, treating each project with integrity, supporting the creative visions and working breathlessly to make each episode of every show the best it can be. CBS has also allowed us the great pleasure of reintroducing the world of Star Trek audiences new and old, and we are very excited to keep working alongside them to expand that world."

What do you think of all of these creative shakeups behind-the-scenes of Star Trek: Discovery? Let us know what you think in the comments!

The first season of Star Trek: Discovery is available to stream in its entirety on CBS All Access in the United States, through CraveTV in Canada, and through Netflix in other international markets. Star Trek: Discovery Season Two is now filming in Toronto.