Star Trek: Discovery may have a different type of main villain for season four according to executive producer Alex Kurtzman.
Star Trek is known for its villains. From Khanoonian Singh to the Borgh to Michael Eddington, the villains play a huge role in not just the heroes story, but the overall story of Star Trek. So when co-showrunners Alex Kurtzman and Michelle Paradise joined Sonequa Martin-Green for a digital panel with Deadline, Kurtzman hinted at the idea of a new type of villain for the fourth season.
While Star Trek has a history of alien based villains and technology-based villains, Kurtzman may be going in a different or rare direction, going on to say;
"There have been many kinds of villains over the course of Star Trek. What happens when the villain is not actually any kind of living, breathing entity, but something else? How do you solve that problem?"
This feels like they could be doing some sort of internet virus or even a real viral disease for season four. If they do go the viral disease route, that could be a huge point of contention with fans not wanting to live through yet another pandemic in what is supposed to be their escapism.
If it’s some type of living, digital virus, that could be interesting. We’ve seen technology take on a physical form more than a few times, especially on Voyager who used the Borg and other formers of robotics. Yet, to have a sentient virus that lives and moves around ships and computers could be interesting.
Though it could prove to a hard idea to keep going if not done right.
There’s not a lot of ways for Kurtzman’s idea to go, and honestly, if he’s hinting at something so drastic from the norm of Star Trek, you have to hope that he has an idea of what it is and what it could be.
Depending on your view of his Trek, that may give you all the hope or fear you can muster.