Star Trek: Lower Decks is an animated series created by Mike McMahan and executive produced by Alex Kurtzman for CBS All Access. It follows the support crew of the USS Cerritos, a Starfleet ship in the year 2380. The series is set in the same timeline as the long-running Star Trek franchise, taking place after the events of the film Star Trek: Nemesis. The show follows the adventures of four junior officers, including Ensigns Mariner, Boimler, Rutherford, and Tendi, as they navigate their way through the rarely mentioned but important tasks and scenarios that occur on a lower-deck starship. The series is the first animated show from the franchise since the 1973 Paramount Television Special, Star Trek: The Animated Series. The show is being executive-produced by Kurtzman alongside McMahan, Heather Kadin, Rod Roddenberry, Trevor Roth, and Katie Krentz. Besides McMahan and Kurtzman, the series is also staffed with veteran Trek writers such as Chris Silvestri, Masi Oka, and Jenny Lumet. The show stars Tawny Newsome, Jack Quaid, Noël Wells, and Eugene Cordero, as well as Dawnn Lewis, Jerry O’Connell, Fred Tatasciore, Gillian Vigman, and Paul Scheer, in the roles of the bridge crew. Other actors voicing characters include Jim Rash, Debra Wilson, and Paget Brewster, among others. McMahan described the show as “a workplace comedy, where the workplace is a spaceship”. The show is meant to explore the part of Starfleet that is usually given little to no attention, and explore what happens on the lower decks of a starship. It is meant to address various social issues that have become prominent within the Star Trek universe, as well as pay tribute to Star Treks long history. The first season of Star Trek: Lower Decks aired in 2020 and was well-received by critics, receiving praise for its writing, humor, and its unique take on the Trek universe. The series has been renewed for a second season.