CBS renews ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ for a second season

CBS seems to be happy with its bet on a new Star Trek series — the network just announced that it’s renewing Star Trek: Discovery for a second season.

Discovery premiered on CBS, but subsequent episodes aired on the paid streaming service CBS All Access. The network says this led to a record — though unspecified — number of sign-ups. (Along with The Good Fight, a spinoff of The Good Wife, Discovery is one of the first dramas created for All Access.)

The show is a prequel to the original Star Trek, focusing on Sonequa Martin-Green’s Michael Burnham, a human raised by Vulcans. Over the course of the first few episodes, Burnham is court martialed and ends up aboard the Discovery, where she’s recruited to help develop new technology for the Federation’s war against Klingons.

Discovery has seen some behind-the-scenes turmoil, with delays and the departure of showrunner Bryan Fuller, but reviews have been positiveI liked the premiere and we praised it on TechCrunch’s Original Content podcast. Subsequent episodes have been even stronger and more fun.

The show’s first season is divided into two parts, with the first half wrapping up on November 12, followed by a pause until new episodes resume in January. CBS has not announced a premiere date for season two.

“In just six episodes, Star Trek: Discovery has driven subscriber growth, critical acclaim and huge global fan interest for the first premium version of this great franchise,” said Marc DeBevoise, president and chief operating officer of CBS Interactive, in the announcement. “This series has a remarkable creative team and cast who have demonstrated their ability to carry on the ‘Star Trek’ legacy. We are extremely proud of what they’ve accomplished and are thrilled to be bringing fans a second season of this tremendous series.”