When Rebecca Sugar was told in 2016 that Steven Universe would be cancelled after season 5, she convinced Cartoon Network to let her produce a follow-up film, Steven Universe: The Movie.

Cartoon Network greenlit 26 additional episodes to accompany the movie; 6 of them were used to extend season 5 to properly conclude the original series, while the remaining 20 became Steven Universe Future.

At New York Comic Con in October 2019, Rebecca Sugar confirmed there would be no sixth season of Steven Universe, retroactively making 'Change Your Mind' the series finale, while also announcing Future as an epilogue series; several media outlets mistakenly reported this as a confirmation of a new season.

The opening theme 'Steven Universe Future' is a new arrangement of 'Happily Ever After' from Steven Universe: The Movie, replacing the original series' theme 'We Are the Crystal Gems'.

The new opening theme is performed by the show's main voice actors Zach Callison, Estelle, Michaela Dietz and Deedee Magno Hall, joined by additional cast members Jennifer Paz, Shelby Rabara, Uzo Aduba and Grace Rolek.

Non-binary actor Indya Moore voices Shep, the show's first fully human non-binary character, introduced in the episode 'Little Graduation'.

Storyboarder Maya Peterson stated in 2020 that Peridot's disinterest in fusion was intended to represent asexuality and aromanticism, a reveal that pleased many fans who had long shipped Peridot with other characters like Lapis Lazuli.

When asked if Peridot might be autistic, creator Rebecca Sugar said she doesn't think of any of the Gems as neurotypical and is glad autistic viewers can relate to the character.

The episode 'Fragments' was nominated for the 2020 Primetime Emmy Award for Short Form Animated Program.

On Rotten Tomatoes, 100% of 7 critic reviews for the series are positive, with an average rating of 10/10.

Rebecca Sugar has stated that although Future is the series finale with no continuation currently in development, she knows what happens next to the characters and might revisit the world if public demand is high; a spin-off titled Steven Universe: Lars of the Stars was later announced in June 2025.