How & Where To Watch Star Trek: Discovery

It’s been over a decade since Star Trek has graced the world of television. Since 2005, the franchise has been seen on the big screen via the three films set in the J.J. Abrams-led reboot universe, but on Sunday, September 24, Star Trek fans will get their beloved franchise back on the small screen, supposedly in the original timeline, but not on regular TV. No, Star Trek: Discovery is about to debut, but you’re going to have to hunt it down and stream it online.

Star Trek: Discovery is set a decade before the adventures of Captain Kirk, Spock and the rest of the crew of the Enterprise. In the new series, the crew of the Discovery gets pulled into the beginnings of what will become a war between the Klingons and the United Federation of Planets. Discovery has an amazing cast that includes The Walking Dead’s Sonequa Martin-Green, Michelle Yeoh, Doug Jones and Jason Isaacs. Sounds awesome, right? Well, if you’re in any country other than Canada, get ready to download an app and fork over some cash in order to watch it.

HOW TO WATCH IN THE UNITED STATES

Sorry, American Star Trek fans, you’re going to have to pay for a whole new subscription to watch the series. Star Trek: Discovery was developed for the fledgling CBS streaming service, CBS All Access. For $5.99 per month ($9.99 per month, if you don’t want pesky commercials), All Access will stream new Discovery episodes each Sunday, starting September 24 at 8:30PM ET.

Now, as a subscriber to CBS All Access, you not only get Star Trek: Discovery, you also get access to thousands of episodes of CBS shows on demand. This means you can stream current and classic television series, including every episode of every Star Trek TV series. If you’re a big Star Trek fan, that might be incentive enough to subscribe.

Since it’s 2017 and all, you can use the CBS All Access service on your computer, mobile device, gaming system and other streaming devices. So yeah, it won’t be on network television, but you can still watch it on your home TV, if you have the right technology.

SPECIAL NOTE: CBS is teasing the series on its network with a special premiere of Part 1 of the Pilot episode on Sunday, September 24 at 8:30PM ET/PT. However, if you want to see Part 2, and any subsequent episodes, you have to purchase the CBS All Access Service.

HOW TO WATCH IN CANADA

Lucky Canadians. While the rest of the world has to figure out the right app to download and how to stream it to their TV, Canadians are just chilling. If you live in Canada, you can watch Star Trek: Discovery on the Space Channel, starting Sunday, September 24 at 8:30PM ET. Each episode will air on subsequent Sundays at 8:30PM ET.

If you can’t catch Discovery at its regular date and time, each episode can be found through participating On Demand channels, as well as the Space Go app. If you are anti-Space Channel, you can stream the series through the CraveTV streaming service starting Monday, September 25 at 10PM ET. Of course, access to Discovery on the CraveTV app requires a monthly subscription fee to the service.

Finally, if you prefer the French-language version of the series, Canadian viewers can watch Discovery on Z channel every Sunday, starting on September 24 at 9PM ET.

HOW TO WATCH OUTSIDE THE US AND CANADA

Like many American shows, Netflix has secured the rights to stream Star Trek: Discovery each week around the world. That means each Monday, Netflix users outside the US and Canada will have access to the current episode. So, if you already have a Netflix account, and you probably do, then just stay away from Sunday night spoilers and enjoy the show on Monday.

FOR THOSE THAT DON’T WANT TO PAY FOR A SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE

Sorry, you’re out of luck.

Seriously though -- in the States, you're going to get the first episode for free, but don’t hold your breath for a proper US network run. CBS has said multiple times that it has no interest in airing the show on its network, or sister networks, anytime soon.

Of course, we know how the Internet works, and episodes will be found, well, elsewhere. However, if you’re a Star Trek fan, and enjoy the show, then make sure you sign up, pay the fee and watch the series. Otherwise, CBS won’t see it as a success and cancel the show. Then we’ll have to wait another decade, or longer, to see Star Trek return to the TV screen again.