Star Trek: Strange New Worlds delves further into James Kirk's backstory in its latest episode, "Orders of Magnitude," in which Kirk (Paul Wesley) is again handed command of the Enterprise during a crisis and clashes with a vengeful visiting Admiral determined to destroy a cloaked ship he blames for his family's death. The episode is significant for revealing that Kirk's absent father, George Kirk, was in fact a hero, a discovery that reshapes how Kirk views both his own future as a Starfleet officer and the possibility of one day becoming a father himself.

In an interview with Collider timed to Star Trek's 60th anniversary, Wesley explained that Kirk has long struggled with the pain of growing up with an absent father and fears repeating that pattern, believing he cannot pursue command and be a good parent simultaneously. Learning of his father's heroism, Wesley said, instead gives Kirk fresh motivation to become a hero in his own right. The episode also features Scandal actor Joe Morton as Admiral Reeger, whose morally ambiguous, vengeance-driven actions Wesley praised for their nuance, saying Morton brought empathy and vulnerability to a role that could easily have been played as a straightforward villain.