''Star Trek'' is an American
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...
media franchise
A media franchise, also known as a multimedia franchise, is a collection of related media in which several derivative works have been produced from an original creative work of fiction, such as a film, a work of literature, a television program ...
created by
Gene Roddenberry, which began with the
eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide
pop-culture
Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...
phenomenon
A phenomenon (plural, : phenomena) is an observable event. The term came into its modern Philosophy, philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be directly observed. Kant was heavily influe ...
. The franchise has expanded into
various films,
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed ...
,
video games
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedb ...
,
novels, and
comic books. With an estimated $10.6 billion in revenue, it is one of the most recognizable and
highest-grossing media franchises of all time.
The franchise began with ''
Star Trek: The Original Series'', which debuted in the US on September 8, 1966 and aired for three seasons on
NBC. It was first broadcast on September 6, 1966 on Canada's
CTV
CTV may refer to:
Television
* Connected TV, or Smart TV, a TV set with integrated internet
North America and South America
* CTV Television Network, a Canadian television network owned by Bell Media
** CTV 2, a secondary Canadian televisio ...
network. It followed the voyages of the crew of the
starship USS ''Enterprise'', a space exploration vessel built by the
United Federation of Planets in the 23rd century, on a mission "to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before". In creating ''Star Trek'', Roddenberry was inspired by
C. S. Forester's
Horatio Hornblower
Horatio Hornblower is a fictional officer in the British Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, the protagonist of a series of novels and stories by C. S. Forester. He later became the subject of films, radio and television programmes, a ...
series of novels,
Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, ...
1726 novel ''
Gulliver's Travels'', the 1956 film ''
Forbidden Planet'', and television
westerns such as ''
Wagon Train''.
The
''Star Trek'' canon includes the ''Original Series'', nine spin-off television series, and
a film franchise; further adaptations also exist in several media. After the conclusion of the ''Original Series'', the adventures of its characters continued in the 22-episode ''
Star Trek: The Animated Series
''Star Trek: The Animated Series'' (''TAS''), is an American animated science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry. It originally aired under the title simply as ''Star Trek'', subtitled ''Created by Gene Roddenberry'', on Satu ...
'' and six feature films. A television revival beginning in the 1980s saw three sequel series and a prequel: ''
The Next Generation'', following the crew of a new starship ''Enterprise'' a century after the original series; ''
Deep Space Nine'' and ''
Voyager
Voyager may refer to:
Computing and communications
* LG Voyager, a mobile phone model manufactured by LG Electronics
* NCR Voyager, a computer platform produced by NCR Corporation
* Voyager (computer worm), a computer worm affecting Oracle ...
'', set in the same era as the ''Next Generation''; and ''
Enterprise'', set before the original series in the early days of human interstellar travel. The adventures of the ''Next Generation'' crew continued in four additional feature films. In 2009, the film franchise underwent a
reboot
In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is phys ...
, creating an alternate continuity known as the ''Kelvin'' timeline; three films have been set in this continuity. The newest ''Star Trek'' television revival, beginning in 2017, includes the series ''
Discovery'', ''
Picard'', ''
Short Treks
''Star Trek: Short Treks'' is an American anthology television series created by Bryan Fuller and Alex Kurtzman for the streaming service CBS All Access. Originating as a companion series to '' Star Trek: Discovery'', it consists of several sho ...
'', ''
Lower Decks'', ''
Prodigy
Prodigy, Prodigies or The Prodigy may refer to:
* Child prodigy, a child who produces meaningful output to the level of an adult expert performer
** Chess prodigy, a child who can beat experienced adult players at chess
Arts, entertainment, and ...
'', and ''
Strange New Worlds'',
streaming exclusively on digital platforms.
''Star Trek'' has been a
cult phenomenon for decades. Fans of the franchise are called "
Trekkies" or "Trekkers". The franchise spans a wide range of
spin-offs including
games, figurines,
novels, toys, and
comics. From 1998 to 2008, there was
a ''Star Trek''–themed attraction in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the List of United States cities by population, 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the U.S. state, state of Neva ...
. At least two museum exhibits of props travel the world. The
constructed language
A constructed language (sometimes called a conlang) is a language whose phonology, grammar, and vocabulary, instead of having developed naturally, are consciously devised for some purpose, which may include being devised for a work of fiction ...
Klingon was created for the franchise. Several ''Star Trek'' parodies have been made, and viewers have produced several
fan productions.
''Star Trek'' is noted for
its cultural influence beyond works of science fiction. The franchise is also notable for its progressive civil-rights stances.
''The Original Series'' included one of the first multiracial casts on US television.
Conception and setting

As early as 1964,
Gene Roddenberry drafted a proposal for the science fiction series that would become ''Star Trek''. Although he publicly marketed it as a
Western in outer space—a so-called "''
Wagon Train'' to the stars"—he privately told friends that he was modeling it on
Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, ...
's ''
Gulliver's Travels'', intending each episode to act on two levels: as a suspenseful adventure story and as a morality tale.
Most ''Star Trek'' stories depict the adventures of humans and aliens who serve in
Starfleet, the space-borne humanitarian and peacekeeping armada of the
United Federation of Planets. The protagonists have
altruistic values, and must apply these ideals to difficult dilemmas.
Many of the conflicts and political dimensions of ''Star Trek'' are
allegories of contemporary cultural realities. ''The Original Series'' addressed issues of the 1960s, just as later spin-offs have tackled issues of their respective decades. Issues depicted in the various series include war and peace, the value of personal loyalty,
authoritarianism
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic vo ...
,
imperialism
Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas, often through employing hard power ( economic and ...
, class warfare, economics, racism, religion, human rights,
sexism, feminism, and the role of technology.
Roddenberry stated: "
y creatinga new world with new rules, I could make statements about sex, religion,
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...
, politics, and intercontinental missiles. Indeed, we did make them on ''Star Trek'': we were sending messages and fortunately they all got by the network.
If you talked about purple people on a far off planet, they (the television network) never really caught on. They were more concerned about cleavage. They actually would send a censor down to the set to measure a woman's cleavage to make sure too much of her breast wasn't showing."
Roddenberry intended the show to have a progressive political agenda reflective of the emerging counter-culture of the youth movement, though he was not fully forthcoming to the networks about this. He wanted ''Star Trek'' to show what humanity might develop into, if it would learn from the lessons of the past, most specifically by ending violence. An extreme example is the alien species known as the
Vulcans, who had a violent past but learned to control their emotions. Roddenberry also gave ''Star Trek'' an anti-war message and depicted the United Federation of Planets as an ideal, optimistic version of the United Nations. His efforts were opposed by the network because of concerns over marketability, e.g., they opposed Roddenberry's insistence that ''Enterprise'' have a racially diverse crew.
History and production
Timeline
The ''Original Series'' era (1965–1969)

In early 1964, Roddenberry presented a brief
treatment for a television series to
Desilu Productions, calling it "a ''
Wagon Train'' to the stars." Desilu studio head
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedienne and producer. She was nominated for 13 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning five times, and was the recipient of several other accolades, such as the Gold ...
was instrumental in approving production of the series.
The studio worked with Roddenberry to develop the treatment into a
script
Script may refer to:
Writing systems
* Script, a distinctive writing system, based on a repertoire of specific elements or symbols, or that repertoire
* Script (styles of handwriting)
** Script typeface, a typeface with characteristics of ha ...
, which was then pitched to NBC.
NBC paid to make a pilot, "
The Cage", starring
Jeffrey Hunter as ''Enterprise''
Captain Christopher Pike
Christopher Pike is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' science fiction franchise. He is the immediate predecessor to James T. Kirk as captain of the starship .
Pike first appeared as the main character of the original unaired pilot episo ...
. NBC rejected "The Cage", but the executives were still impressed with the concept, and made the unusual decision to commission a second pilot: "
Where No Man Has Gone Before".
While the show initially enjoyed high ratings, the average rating of the show at the end of its first season dropped to 52nd out of 94 programs. Unhappy with the show's ratings, NBC threatened to cancel the show during its second season.
The show's
fan base, led by
Bjo Trimble, conducted an unprecedented letter-writing campaign, petitioning the network to keep the show on the air.
NBC renewed the show, but moved it from primetime to the "
Friday night death slot", and substantially reduced its budget. In protest, Roddenberry resigned as producer and reduced his direct involvement in ''Star Trek'', which led to
Fred Freiberger becoming producer for the show's third and final season. Despite another letter-writing campaign, NBC canceled the series after three seasons and 79 episodes.
Post–''Original Series'' rebirth (1969–1991)
After the original series was canceled, Desilu, which by then had been renamed
Paramount Television, licensed the
broadcast syndication rights to help recoup the production losses. Reruns began in late 1969, and by the late 1970s the series aired in over 150 domestic and 60 international markets. This helped ''Star Trek'' develop a
cult following
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic ...
greater than its popularity during its original run.
One sign of the series' growing popularity was the first
''Star Trek'' convention, which occurred on January 21–23, 1972 in New York City. Although the original expectation was that only a few hundred fans would attend, several thousand turned up. ''Star Trek'' fans continue to attend similar conventions worldwide.
The series' newfound success led to the idea of reviving the franchise.
Filmation with
Paramount Television produced the first post–original series show, ''
Star Trek: The Animated Series
''Star Trek: The Animated Series'' (''TAS''), is an American animated science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry. It originally aired under the title simply as ''Star Trek'', subtitled ''Created by Gene Roddenberry'', on Satu ...
'', featuring the cast of the original series reprising their roles. It ran on NBC for 22 half-hour episodes over two seasons on Saturday mornings from 1973 to 1974.
Although short-lived, typical for animated productions in that time slot during that period, the series garnered the franchise's only
Emmy Award in a "Best Series" category—specifically
Outstanding Entertainment Children's Series; later Emmy awards for the franchise would be in technical categories.
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
and Roddenberry began developing a new series, ''
Star Trek: Phase II'', in May 1975 in response to the franchise's newfound popularity. Work on the series ended when the proposed
Paramount Television Service
The Paramount Television Service (or PTVS for short and also known as Paramount Programming Service) was the name of a proposed but ultimately unrealized " fourth television network" from the U.S. film studio Paramount Pictures (then a unit of ...
folded.
Following the success of the science fiction movies ''
Star Wars'' and ''
Close Encounters of the Third Kind'', Paramount adapted the planned pilot episode of ''Phase II'' into the feature film ''
Star Trek: The Motion Picture''. The film opened in North America on December 7, 1979, with mixed reviews from critics. The film earned $139 million worldwide, below expectations but enough for Paramount to create a sequel. The studio forced Roddenberry to relinquish creative control of future sequels.
The success of the sequel, ''
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'', reversed the fortunes of the franchise. While the sequel grossed less than the first movie, ''The Wrath of Khan''s lower production costs made it net more profit. Paramount produced six ''Star Trek'' feature films between 1979 and 1991, each featuring the ''Original Series'' cast in their original roles.
In response to the popularity of ''Star Trek'' feature films, the franchise returned to television with ''
Star Trek: The Next Generation'' in 1987. Paramount chose to distribute it as a
first-run syndication show rather than a network show.
''The Next Generation'' was set a century after the original series, following the adventures of a new starship ''Enterprise'' with a new crew.
Post-Roddenberry television era (1991–2005)

Following ''Star Trek: The Motion Picture'', Roddenberry's role was changed from producer to creative consultant with minimal input to the films while being heavily involved with the creation of ''
The Next Generation''. Roddenberry died on October 24, 1991, giving executive producer
Rick Berman control of the franchise.
''Star Trek'' had become known to those within Paramount as "the franchise", because of its great success and recurring role as a
tent pole for the studio when other projects failed.
''The Next Generation'' had the highest ratings of any ''Star Trek'' series and became the most syndicated show during the last years of its original seven-season run.
In response to the ''Next Generation'' success, Paramount released a spin-off series, ''
Deep Space Nine'', in 1993. While never as popular as the ''Next Generation'', the series had sufficient ratings for it to last seven seasons.
In January 1995, a few months after the ''Next Generation'' ended, Paramount released a fourth television series, ''
Voyager
Voyager may refer to:
Computing and communications
* LG Voyager, a mobile phone model manufactured by LG Electronics
* NCR Voyager, a computer platform produced by NCR Corporation
* Voyager (computer worm), a computer worm affecting Oracle ...
''. ''Star Trek'' production reached a peak in the mid-1990s with ''Deep Space Nine'' and ''Voyager'' airing concurrently and three of the four ''Next Generation''-based feature films released in 1994, 1996, and 1998. By 1998, ''Star Trek'' was Paramount's most important property and the profits of "the franchise" funded a significant portion of the studio's operations.
''Voyager'' became the flagship show of the new
United Paramount Network (UPN) and thus the first major network ''Star Trek'' series since the original.
After ''Voyager'' ended, UPN produced ''
Enterprise'', a prequel series. ''Enterprise'' did not enjoy the high ratings of its predecessors and UPN threatened to cancel it after the series' third season. Fans launched a campaign reminiscent of the one that saved the third season of the ''Original Series''. Paramount renewed ''Enterprise'' for a fourth season, but moved it to the
Friday night death slot. Like the ''Original Series'', ''Enterprise''s ratings dropped during this time slot, and UPN cancelled ''Enterprise'' at the end of its fourth season. ''Enterprise'' aired its final episode on May 13, 2005. A fan group, "Save ''Enterprise''", attempted to save the series and tried to raise $30 million to privately finance a fifth season of ''Enterprise''.
Though the effort garnered considerable press, the fan drive failed to save the series. The cancellation of ''Enterprise'' ended an eighteen-year continuous production run of ''Star Trek'' programming on television. The poor box office performance in 2002 of the film ''
Nemesis'' cast an uncertain light upon the future of the franchise. Paramount relieved Berman, the franchise producer, of control of ''Star Trek''.
Reboot (''Kelvin timeline'') film series (2009–2016)
Paramount hired a new creative team, in 2007, to reinvigorate the franchise on the big screen. Writers
Roberto Orci and
Alex Kurtzman and producer
J. J. Abrams had the freedom to reinvent the feel of the franchise. The team created the franchise's eleventh film, ''
Star Trek'', releasing it in May 2009. The film featured a new cast portraying the crew of the original show. ''Star Trek'' was a prequel of the original series set in an
alternate timeline, later named the ''Kelvin'' Timeline. This gave the film and sequels freedom from the need to conform to the franchise's canonical timeline and minimized the impact these films would have on CBS's portion of the franchise. The eleventh ''Star Trek'' film's marketing campaign targeted non-fans, stating in the film's advertisements that "this is not your father's ''Star Trek''".
The film earned considerable critical and financial success, grossing (in inflation-adjusted dollars) more box office sales than any previous ''Star Trek'' film. The plaudits include the franchise's first
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment in ...
(for
makeup). Two sequels were released. The first sequel, ''
Star Trek Into Darkness'', premiered in the spring of 2013. While the film did not earn as much in the North American box office as its predecessor, internationally, in terms of box office receipts, ''Into Darkness'' is the most successful of the franchise. The thirteenth film, ''
Star Trek Beyond'', was released on July 22, 2016. The film had many pre-production problems and its script went through several rewrites. While receiving positive reviews, ''Star Trek Beyond'' disappointed in the box office.
Expansion of the Star Trek Universe (2017–present)
CBS turned down several proposals in the mid-2000s to restart the franchise on the small screen. Proposals included pitches from film director
Bryan Singer, ''
Babylon 5
''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Televi ...
'' creator
J. Michael Straczynski
Joseph Michael Straczynski (; born July 17, 1954) is an American filmmaker and comic book writer. He is the founder of Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Studio JMS and is best known as the creator of the science fiction television series ''Babylon 5'' ...
, and ''Trek'' actors Jonathan Frakes and William Shatner. While CBS was not creating new ''Star Trek'' for network television, the ease of access to ''Star Trek'' content on new streaming services such as
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...
and
Amazon Prime Video introduced a new set of fans to the franchise. CBS eventually sought to capitalize on this trend, and brought the franchise back to the small screen with the series ''
Star Trek: Discovery'' to help launch and draw subscribers to its streaming service
CBS All Access. ''Discovery's''
first season premiered on September 24, 2017.
While ''Discovery'' is shown in the United States exclusively on
Paramount+ (formerly CBS All Access), for its first three seasons, Netflix, in exchange for funding the production costs of the show, owned the international screening rights for the show. This Netflix distribution and production deal ended right before the fourth season premiere of ''Discovery'' in November 2021. ''Discovery'' has since been exclusive to Paramount Global owned platforms.
In June 2018, after becoming sole showrunner of ''Discovery'', Kurtzman signed a five-year overall deal with CBS Television Studios to expand the ''Star Trek'' franchise beyond ''Discovery'' to several new series, miniseries, and animated series.
Kurtzman wanted to "open this world up" and create multiple series set in the same universe but with their own "unique storytelling and distinct cinematic feel",
an approach that he compared to the
Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published ...
. However, the franchise would not tell a single story across multiple series, allowing audiences to watch each series without having to see all of the others.
CBS and Kurtzman refer to this expanded franchise as the ''Star Trek'' Universe.
In October 2020, Kurtzman stated that ''Star Trek'' series have been planned through 2027. Kurtzman cautioned that this was a preliminary plan, but it was necessary to plan so far out due to the long production schedules for each series.
The second series of the expansion of the ''Star Trek'' Universe, ''
Star Trek: Picard'', features
Patrick Stewart reprising the character
Jean-Luc Picard from ''The Next Generation''. ''Picard'' premiered on CBS All Access on January 23, 2020. Unlike ''Discovery'', Amazon Prime Video streams ''Picard'' internationally. CBS has also released two seasons of ''
Star Trek: Short Treks'', a series of standalone mini-episodes which air between ''Discovery'' and ''Picard'' seasons. A new live-action series, ''
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds'', a spinoff of the second season of ''Discovery'' and prequel to the original series, premiered on May 5, 2022. ''
Lower Decks'', an animated adult comedy series, was released on August 6, 2020 on CBS All Access. Another animated series, ''
Star Trek: Prodigy'', premiered on the rebranded service
Paramount+ first on October 28, 2021, and on December 17, 2021 on
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
. ''Prodigy'' is the first Star Trek series to specifically target younger audiences, and is the franchise's first fully
computer animated series.
Paramount Global
Paramount Global (Trade name, doing business as Paramount) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media and entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate owned and operated by National Amusements (79.4%) and headquar ...
announced in February 2021 that the ''Star Trek'' Universe would be available on Paramount+, including ''Discovery'', ''Picard'', ''Lower Decks'', ''Prodigy'', and ''Strange New Worlds''. The service's Executive Vice President of Development and Programming, Julie McNamara, said they were unlikely to expand the slate of Star Trek series until one of these five shows ended, which could happen when a series' story runs its course or a lead actor's contract expires. McNamara hoped to release a new season of ''Star Trek'' each quarter.
Discussing the next phase of the franchise, Kurtzman said several projects were in development and the success of ''Prodigy'' could lead to more young audience-focused series. He added that future live-action series would likely explore new parts of the ''Star Trek'' franchise's timeline in a similar way to ''Discovery''s jump to the far future in its
third season. Kurtzman also felt there would be opportunities for future series to be associated to other Paramount Global brands such as
BET and
Showtime
Showtime or Show Time may refer to:
Film
* ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film
* ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur
Television Networks and channels
* Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global ...
, similar to ''Prodigy'' being developed for Nickelodeon.
Monthly meetings with the showrunners of each new series are held to allow coordination between the different series and ensure that "they're not stepping on each other's toes" by using the same elements of the universe, according to Kurtzman.
Television
Eight live-action television series, three animated series and one short-form companion series make up the bulk of the ''Star Trek'' mythos: ''The Original Series'', ''The Animated Series'', ''The Next Generation'', ''Deep Space Nine'', ''Voyager'', ''Enterprise'', ''Discovery'', ''Short Treks'', ''Picard'', ''Lower Decks'', ''Prodigy'' and ''Strange New Worlds''. All the series in total amount to episodes across seasons of television.
''The Original Series'' (1966–1969)

''Star Trek: The Original Series'', frequently abbreviated as ''TOS'', debuted on NBC on September 8, 1966.
The show tells the tale of the crew of the
starship and its five-year mission "to boldly go where no man has gone before", under the command of Captain
James T. Kirk. During the series's initial run, it was nominated for
Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation multiple times, and won twice.
Cast included:
NBC canceled the show after three seasons; the last original episode aired on June 3, 1969.
A petition near the end of the second season to save the show signed by many
Caltech
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
students and its multiple Hugo nominations would, however, indicate that despite low
Nielsen ratings, it was highly popular with science fiction fans and engineering students.
The series later became popular in reruns and found a
cult following
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic ...
.
''The Animated Series'' (1973–1974)

''Star Trek: The Animated Series'', produced by
Filmation, ran for two seasons from 1973 to 1974. Most of the original cast performed the voices of their characters from the ''Original Series'', and some of the writers who worked on the ''Original Series'' returned. While the animated format allowed the producers to create more exotic alien landscapes and life forms, animation errors and liberal reuse of shots and musical cues have tarnished the series' reputation. Gene Roddenberry often spoke of it as
non-canon, though more recent productions have treated it as canonical.
The cast included:
''The Animated Series'' won ''Star Trek''s first
Emmy Award on May 15, 1975. The series briefly returned to television in the mid-1980s on the children's cable network
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
, and again on
Sci-Fi Channel in the mid-90s. The complete series was released on
LaserDisc during the 1980s. The complete series was first released in the U.S. on eleven volumes of VHS tapes in 1989. All 22 episodes were released on DVD in 2006.
''The Next Generation'' (1987–1994)

''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', frequently abbreviated as ''TNG'', takes place about a century after the ''Original Series'' (2364–2370). It features a new starship, , and a new crew:
The series premiered on September 28, 1987, and ran for seven seasons. It had the highest ratings of any of the ''Star Trek'' series and became the highest rated syndicated show near the end of its run, allowing it to act as a springboard for other series. Many relationships and races introduced in the ''Next Generation'' became the basis for episodes in ''Deep Space Nine'' and ''Voyager''.
The series earned several
Emmy awards and nominations—including Best Dramatic Series for its final season—two
Hugo Awards, and a
Peabody Award for Outstanding Television Programming for one episode.
''Deep Space Nine'' (1993–1999)

''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'', frequently abbreviated as ''DS9'', takes place during the last years of and immediately after the ''Next Generation'' (2369–2375). It debuted the week of January 3, 1993, and ran for seven seasons. Unlike the other ''Star Trek'' series, ''Deep Space Nine'' was set primarily on a
space station
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a human crew in orbit for an extended period of time, and is therefore a type of space habitat. It lacks major propulsion or landing systems. An orbital station or an orbital space station ...
of the same name rather than aboard a starship. The cast included:
The show begins after the conclusion of the brutal
Cardassian occupation of the planet
Bajor, introduced in ''The Next Generation''. The liberated Bajoran people ask the United Federation of Planets to help run
a space station near Bajor. After the Federation takes control of the station, the protagonists of the show discover a uniquely stable
wormhole that provides immediate access to the distant
Gamma Quadrant, making Bajor and the station a strategically important location. The show chronicles the events of the station's crew, led by Commander
Benjamin Sisko (
Avery Brooks), and Major
Kira Nerys (
Nana Visitor
Nana Tucker ( ; born July 26, 1957), known professionally as Nana Visitor, is an American actress, best known for playing Kira Nerys in the television series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' and Jean Ritter in the television series ''Wildfire''.
...
).
''Deep Space Nine'' stands apart from earlier ''Trek'' series for its lengthy serialized storytelling, character conflicts, and religious themes—all elements praised by critics and audiences, but which Roddenberry had forbidden as a producer of the original series and the ''Next Generation''.
''Voyager'' (1995–2001)

''Star Trek: Voyager'' ran for seven seasons, airing from January 16, 1995 to May 23, 2001. It features
Kate Mulgrew as Captain
Kathryn Janeway, the first female commanding officer in a leading role of a ''Star Trek'' series. Cast included:
''Voyager'' takes place during the same time period as ''Deep Space Nine'' and the years immediately following (2371–2378). The militant renegade movement known as the
Maquis, introduced on ''Deep Space Nine'', is part of the premise of ''Voyager''. The premiere episode has the
USS ''Voyager'' and its crew pursuing a Maquis ship; both ships become stranded in the
Delta Quadrant about 70,000
light-years from Earth. Faced with a 75-year voyage to Earth, the crews must work together to overcome challenges and shorten the voyage on their long and perilous journey home.
Like ''Deep Space Nine'', early seasons of ''Voyager'' feature more conflict between its crew members than seen in ''The Next Generation''. Such conflict often arose from friction between "by-the-book" Starfleet crew and rebellious Maquis fugitives forced by circumstance to work together. The starship ''Voyager'', isolated from its home, faced new cultures and dilemmas not possible in shows based in the Alpha Quadrant. Later seasons brought in an influx of characters and cultures from prior shows, such as the
Borg,
Q, the
Ferengi,
Romulans,
Klingons,
Cardassians and cast members of the ''Next Generation''.
''Enterprise'' (2001–2005)

''Star Trek: Enterprise'', originally titled ''Enterprise'', is a prequel to the original ''Star Trek'' series. It aired from September 26, 2001 to May 13, 2005 on
UPN. ''Enterprise'' is set about a century earlier than ''The Original Series'', early in the fictional history of humanity's space exploration and shortly before the creation of the United Federation of Planets. The show follows the crew of an earlier starship on Earth's first deep-space exploration mission. The cast included:
Initially, ''Enterprise'' featured self-contained episodes, much like the ''Original Series'', ''Next Generation'' and ''Voyager''. The
third season comprised a single narrative arc. The fourth and final season consisted of several three- and four-episode arcs, which explored the origins of some elements of previous series, and resolved some continuity errors with ''The Original Series''.
Ratings for ''Enterprise'' started strong but declined rapidly. Although critics received the fourth season well, both fans and the cast reviled
the series finale, partly because of the episode's focus on the guest appearance of members of the ''Next Generation'' cast. The cancellation of ''Enterprise'' ended an 18-year run of new ''Star Trek'' series, which began with the ''Next Generation'' in 1987.
''Discovery'' (2017–present)

''Star Trek: Discovery'' is the first series of the
streaming television ''Star Trek'' revival; it begins as a prequel to the ''Original Series'', set roughly ten years prior. It premiered September 24, 2017 in the United States and Canada on
CBS.
The series is shown on
Paramount+ in the United States; elsewhere, Netflix distributes the series worldwide, except for Canada. The cast includes:
''Discovery'' is a
serialized drama in which each season follows a single overarching narrative. In a departure from previous ''Star Trek'' series, the primary protagonist,
Michael Burnham (portrayed by
Martin-Green), is not the captain of the titular ship for the first few seasons. The first season follows a war between the
United Federation of Planets and the
Klingon Empire, instigated by Burnham, who is court-martialed, demoted, and assigned to the starship ''Discovery''; later seasons follow the crew of ''Discovery'' on other adventures.
''Short Treks'' (2018–2020)
''Star Trek: Short Treks'' is a short film anthology companion series initially exploring settings and characters from ''Discovery''. Later episodes feature the crew of the ''Enterprise'' under the command of Christopher Pike. The final episode of the second season serves as a teaser for ''
Picard.''
''Picard'' (2020–present)

''Star Trek: Picard'', like ''Discovery'', is a serialized drama created for CBS All Access; it premiered on January 23, 2020. Set about 30 years after ''The Next Generation'', the series sees
Patrick Stewart reprise his ''TNG'' role of
Jean-Luc Picard. The first season follows Picard in his retirement, seeking redemption for what he sees as his past failings, as he goes on an adventure to save the daughter of his late crewmate
Data
In the pursuit of knowledge, data (; ) is a collection of discrete values that convey information, describing quantity, quality, fact, statistics, other basic units of meaning, or simply sequences of symbols that may be further interpret ...
. The cast includes:
''Lower Decks'' (2020–present)

''Star Trek: Lower Decks'' is an animated adult comedy series created by the ''
Rick and Morty'' writer
Mike McMahan. The series follows the support crew of "one of Starfleet's least important ships." The series premiered on August 6, 2020 on CBS All Access.
The cast includes:
''Prodigy'' (2021–present)

''Star Trek: Prodigy'' is an animated series created by
Kevin and Dan Hageman for Paramount+, and the cable channel
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
. The series follows a group of teenagers who use an abandoned starship to search for adventure.
The series premiered on October 28, 2021.
The cast includes:
''Strange New Worlds'' (2022–present)

''Star Trek: Strange New Worlds'' is a spinoff of ''Discovery'' and a
prequel
A prequel is a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative. A prequel is a work that forms part of a backstory to the preceding work.
The term ...
to the Original Series, created by Akiva Goldsman, Alex Kurtzman, and Jenny Lumet for Paramount+. It premiered in May 2022. It portrays the adventures of the U.S.S. ''Enterprise'' prior to James Kirk's captaincy, and focuses on episodic storytelling in contrast to the serialized narratives of ''Discovery''.
The ''Enterprises crew in this series features several characters who were first introduced in the Original Series, now played by new actors, including
Ethan Peck,
Anson Mount and
Rebecca Romijn reprising their
''Discovery'' season 2 roles as Spock, Captain Pike and Number One respectively.
The cast includes:
In development
CBS and ''Star Trek'' producers Alex Kurtzman and Heather Kadin have announced that further animated and live-action television series are currently in development.
In February 2021, it was announced that further series would only move forward once at least one of the current slate of series (''Discovery'', ''Picard'', ''Lower Decks'', ''Prodigy'', and ''Strange New Worlds'') concludes its run. One such series includes
Michelle Yeoh reprising her role as the mirror universe's Philippa Georgiou of
Section 31 Section 31 may refer to:
* Section 31 (''Star Trek''), a fictional organization
** '' Star Trek: Section 31'', a novel series about the organization
** '' ''Star Trek: Section 31'' (TV series)'', an upcoming television series
* Section 31 of the ...
from ''Discovery''. The expanded franchise reportedly also includes several series, including a series being developed by
Stephanie Savage and
Josh Schwartz that is set at
Starfleet Academy,
as well as ''Ceti Alpha V'', a limited series based on the character
Khan Noonien Singh and his ''The Wrath of Khan'' storyline, written by
Nicholas Meyer.
Film

Paramount Pictures has produced thirteen ''Star Trek'' feature films, the most recent being released in July 2016. The first six films continue the adventures of the cast of the ''Original Series''; the seventh film, ''Generations'', was intended as a transition from original cast to the cast of the ''Next Generation''; the next three films focused completely on the ''Next Generation'' cast.
The eleventh film and its sequels occur in an alternate timeline with a new cast portraying the ''Original Series'' characters. Leonard Nimoy portrayed an elderly Spock in the films, providing a narrative link to what became known as the Prime Timeline. The alternate timeline was named "The ''Kelvin'' Timeline" by ''
Star Trek Encyclopedia'' writers
Michael and
Denise Okuda
Denise Lynn Okuda is a computer, scenic and video supervisor, and a writer known for her work on several ''Star Trek'' film and television productions, as well as other science fiction television. She also co-authored the ''Star Trek Encycloped ...
, in honor of the starship USS ''Kelvin'' which was first seen in the 2009 film.
Films in development
Though initially reported as being placed on hold, Paramount confirmed in September 2020 that they haven't cancelled any of the ''Star Trek'' films that are currently in development. This includes the Tarantino film, ''Star Trek 4'' with the ''Kelvin'' Timeline cast, and Noah Hawley's film
* Untitled Mark L. Smith film: In December 2017, an
R-rated ''Star Trek'' film was announced as in-development with a script written by
Mark L. Smith
Mark L. Smith is an American screenwriter.
Career
He wrote and directed the 2006 film ''Séance'', which won the Festival Prize at the Eureka Springs Digital Film Festival and the Horror Genre Award at ShockFest. Since then he has work ...
, from an original story pitch by
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, dark humor, non-linear storylines, cameos, ensemb ...
and
J. J. Abrams. Though the studio was courting Tarantino to serve as director, the filmmaker decided to pass on the project. The plot takes place primarily on Earth during the
'30s in a
mobster
A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from ''mob'' and the suffix ''-ster''. Gangs provide a level of organization and r ...
setting, and was based on an episode from the original ''Star Trek'' television series.
The studio is open to adapting the script with another director.
* ''Star Trek 4'': In April 2018, a fourth film in ''The Kelvin Timeline'' was announced to be in development with
S. J. Clarkson hired as director. The script co-written by
J. D. Payne and Patrick McKay
John D. Payne (born 1979/1980) and Patrick McKay (born 1980/1981) are an American screenwriting duo best known for developing the Amazon Prime Video series ''The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power''.
Early life
The two are originally from ...
, focused on Captain Kirk and his deceased father, George Kirk.
The project was delayed due to scheduling conflicts and additional work on the script was required. In July 2021, it was announced that the next film would be directed by
Matt Shakman, using a script by Lindsey Beer and
Geneva Robertson-Dworet. In February 2022, at the Paramount Global Investors' Day event, it was officially announced that ''Star Trek 4'' will begin production in Spring of 2022. The main cast is in negotiations to return in their respective roles.
Josh Friedman and Cameron Squires were hired to do a rewrite of the previous draft of the script. The project will be a joint-venture production between Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot Productions, with J. J. Abrams and Lindsey Weber signed on as producers.
* Untitled Noah Hawley film: In November 2019, an additional film was announced as being in-development with
Noah Hawley signed onto the project as writer/director.
By August 2020, the project was placed on hold, while studio executives decide which project will be
green-lit first.
* Untitled Kalinda Vasquez film: In March 2021, it was announced that another film is in development. Kalinda Vasquez, who previously worked on ''Star Trek: Discovery'', will serve as screenwriter. The project will be a joint-venture production between Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot Productions, with J. J. Abrams serving as producer.
* Untitled Nicholas Meyer film project: In March 2021,
Nicholas Meyer announced that he and
Steven Charles-Jaffe had written a
treatment for a ''Star Trek'' film that takes place between ''The Motion Picture'' and ''Wrath of Khan''. The duo had proposed the project within the prior year to Alex Kurtzman, J. J. Abrams, and Paramount Pictures' Emma Watts.
Merchandise
Many licensed products are based on the ''Star Trek'' franchise. Merchandising is very lucrative for both studio and actors; by 1986 Nimoy had earned more than $500,000 from royalties. Products include novels, comic books, video games, and other materials, which are generally considered
non-canon. ''Star Trek'' merchandise generated $4 billion for Paramount by 2002.
Books
Since 1967, hundreds of original novels, short stories, and television and movie adaptations have been published. The first original ''Star Trek'' novel was ''
Mission to Horatius'' by
Mack Reynolds, which was published in hardcover by
Whitman Books Whitman could refer to:
People
* Whitman (surname): includes a list of people with the name
Places
In the United States:
* Whitman, Massachusetts
** Whitman (MBTA station)
* Whitman, Minnesota
* Whitman, Nebraska
* Whitman, Philadelphia, Pennsy ...
in 1968.
In 1968, Gene Roddenberry cooperated with Stephen Edward Poe, writing as Stephen Whitfield, on the nonfiction book ''The Making of Star Trek'' for
Ballantine Books
Ballantine Books is a major book publisher located in the United States, founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. It was acquired by Random House in 1973, which in turn was acquired by Bertelsmann in 1998 and remain ...
.
Among the most recent is th
Star Trek Collection of Little Golden Books Three titles were published by Random House in 2019, a fourth is scheduled for July 2020.
The first publisher of ''Star Trek'' fiction aimed at adult readers was
Bantam Books.
James Blish
James Benjamin Blish () was an American science fiction and fantasy writer. He is best known for his '' Cities in Flight'' novels and his series of ''Star Trek'' novelizations written with his wife, J. A. Lawrence. His novel '' A Case of Consc ...
wrote
adaptations of episodes of the original series in twelve volumes from 1967 to 1977; in 1970, he wrote the first original Star Trek novel published by Bantam, ''
Spock Must Die!
''Spock Must Die!'' is an American science fiction novel written by James Blish, published February 1970 by Bantam Books. It was the first original novel based on the ''Star Trek'' television series intended for adult readers. It was preceded ...
''.
Pocket Books
Pocket Books is a division of Simon & Schuster that primarily publishes paperback books.
History
Pocket Books produced the first mass-market, pocket-sized paperback books in the United States in early 1939 and revolutionized the publishin ...
published subsequent ''Star Trek'' novels. Prolific ''Star Trek'' novelists include
Peter David,
Diane Carey,
Keith DeCandido
Keith Robert Andreassi DeCandido (born April 18, 1969) is an American science fiction and fantasy writer and musician, who works on comic books, novels, role-playing games and video games, including numerous media tie-in books for properties su ...
,
J.M. Dillard,
Diane Duane,
Michael Jan Friedman
Michael Jan Friedman (born March 7, 1955) is a New York City born American author of nearly sixty books of fiction and nonfiction, more than half of which are in licensed tie-in products of the ''Star Trek'' franchise. Ten of his titles have app ...
, and
Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens. Several actors from the television series have also written or co-written books featuring their respective characters:
William Shatner,
John de Lancie,
Andrew J. Robinson,
J. G. Hertzler
John Garman Hertzler Jr. (born March 18, 1950) is an American actor, author, screenwriter, and activist best known for his role on ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' as the Klingon General (later Chancellor) Martok, whom he portrayed from 1995 un ...
and
Armin Shimerman
Armin Shimerman (born November 5, 1949) is an American actor and author.
Early life
Shimerman was born into a Jewish family in Lakewood, New Jersey, on November 5, 1949, the son of accountant Susan and house painter Herbert Shimerman. When he w ...
. ''Voyager'' producer
Jeri Taylor wrote two novels detailing the personal histories of ''Voyager'' characters. Screenplay writers
David Gerrold,
D. C. Fontana, and
Melinda Snodgrass have also penned books.
A 2014 scholarly work
Newton Lee
Newton Lee is a computer scientist who is an author and administrator in the field of education and technology commercialization. He is known for his total information awareness book series.
Education
Lee holds a B.S. and M.S. in computer scien ...
discussed the actualization of ''Star Trek's'' holodeck in the future by making extensive use of artificial intelligence and cyborgs.
Comics
''Star Trek''-based comics have been issued almost continuously since 1967, published by
Marvel,
DC,
Malibu,
Wildstorm, and
Gold Key, among others. In 2009,
Tokyopop produced an anthology of ''Next Generation''-based stories presented in the style of Japanese
manga
Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is use ...
. In 2006,
IDW Publishing secured publishing rights to ''Star Trek'' comics and issued a prequel to the 2009 film, ''
Star Trek: Countdown''. In 2012, IDW published the first volume of ''Star Trek – The Newspaper Strip'', featuring the work of Thomas Warkentin. As of 2020, IDS continues to produce new titles.
Games
The ''Star Trek'' franchise has numerous games in many formats. Beginning in 1967 with a
board game
Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well.
Many board games feature a ...
based on the original series and continuing through today with online and DVD games, ''Star Trek'' games continue to be popular among fans.
Video games based on the series include ''
Star Trek: Legacy'' and ''
Star Trek: Conquest''. An MMORPG based on ''Star Trek'' called ''
Star Trek Online'' was developed by
Cryptic Studios and published by
Perfect World. It is set during the ''Next Generation'' era, about 30 years after the events of ''
Star Trek: Nemesis''. The most recent video game was set in the alternate timeline from Abrams's
''Star Trek''.
On June 8, 2010,
WizKids announced the development of a ''Star Trek'' collectible miniatures game using the
HeroClix game system.
On December 9, 2021, ''Star Trek: Resurgence'', a narrative adventure video game set in the ''Next Generation'' era, was announced by Dramatic Labs.
Magazines
''Star Trek'' has led directly or indirectly to the creation of a number of magazines which focus either on science fiction or specifically on ''Star Trek''. ''
Starlog'' was a magazine which was founded in the 1970s.
Initially, its focus was on ''Star Trek'' actors, but then it expanded its scope.
''
Star Trek: The Magazine'' was a magazine published in the U.S. that ceased publication in 2003. ''
Star Trek Magazine
''Star Trek Magazine'' is an authorized periodical, published quarterly by Titan UK in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand devoted to the ''Star Trek'' franchise; a separate North American version is also published, differ ...
'', originally published as ''Star Trek Monthly'' by
Titan Magazines for the United Kingdom market, began in February 1995. The magazine has since expanded to worldwide distribution.
Other magazines through the years included professional, as well as magazines published by fans, or
fanzines.
Cultural impact

The ''Star Trek'' media franchise is a multibillion-dollar industry, owned by Paramount Global. Gene Roddenberry sold ''Star Trek'' to
NBC as a classic adventure drama; he pitched the show as "''Wagon Train'' to the Stars" and as ''
Horatio Hornblower
Horatio Hornblower is a fictional officer in the British Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, the protagonist of a series of novels and stories by C. S. Forester. He later became the subject of films, radio and television programmes, a ...
in Space''.
The opening line, "to boldly go where no man has gone before," was taken almost verbatim from a U.S.
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, Washington, D.C., NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. preside ...
booklet on space produced after the
Sputnik flight in 1957.
''Star Trek'' and its spin-offs have proven highly popular in syndication and was broadcast worldwide.
The show's cultural impact goes far beyond its longevity and profitability. ''Star Trek''
conventions
Convention may refer to:
* Convention (norm), a custom or tradition, a standard of presentation or conduct
** Treaty, an agreement in international law
* Convention (meeting), meeting of a (usually large) group of individuals and/or companies in a ...
have become popular among its fans, who call themselves "
trekkie or "trekkers". An entire subculture has grown up around the franchise, which was documented in the film ''
Trekkies''. ''Star Trek'' was ranked most popular cult show by ''
TV Guide
TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program TV listings, listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news.
The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine, TV Guide Mag ...
''. The franchise has also garnered
many comparisons of the ''
Star Wars'' franchise being rivals in the science fiction genre with many fans and scholars.
The ''Star Trek'' franchise inspired some designers of technologies, the
Palm PDA and the handheld mobile phone. Michael Jones, Chief technologist of
Google Earth, has cited the
tricorder's mapping capability as one inspiration in the development of Keyhole/Google Earth. The
Tricorder X Prize, a contest to build a medical tricorder device was announced in 2012. Ten finalists were selected in 2014, and the winner was to be selected in January 2016. However, no team managed to reach the required criteria. ''Star Trek'' also brought
teleportation to popular attention with its depiction of "matter-energy transport", with the famously misquoted phrase "
Beam me up, Scotty
"Beam me up, Scotty" is a catchphrase and misquotation that made its way into popular culture from the science fiction television series ''Star Trek: The Original Series''. It comes from the command Captain Kirk gives his chief engineer, Montg ...
" entering the vernacular. The ''Star Trek'' replicator is credited in the scientific literature with inspiring the field of
diatom nanotechnology. In 1976, following a letter-writing campaign,
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeedi ...
named its prototype
space shuttle
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program na ...
''Enterprise'', after the
fictional starship. Later, the introductory sequence to ''Star Trek: Enterprise'' included footage of this shuttle which, along with images of a naval sailing vessel called ''
Enterprise'', depicted the advancement of human transportation technology.
Beyond ''Star Trek'' fictional innovations, its contributions to television history included a multicultural and multiracial cast. While more common in subsequent years, in the 1960s it was controversial to feature an Enterprise crew that included a Japanese helmsman, a Russian navigator, and a black female communications officer. Captain Kirk's and Lt. Uhura's kiss, in the episode "
Plato's Stepchildren
"Plato's Stepchildren" is the tenth episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series ''Star Trek''. Written by Meyer Dolinsky and directed by David Alexander, it was first broadcast on November 22, 1968.
In the ep ...
", was also daring, and is often mis-cited as being American television's first scripted, interracial kiss, even though several other interracial kisses predated this one. Nichelle Nichols, who played the communications officer, said that the day after she told Roddenberry of her plan to leave the series, she was told a big fan wanted to meet her while attending a
NAACP
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...
dinner party:
After the show, Nichols used this public standing to speak for women and
people of color and against their exclusion from the US human space program; NASA reacted by asking her to find people for its future Space Shuttle program. Nichols proceeded and successfully brought the first non-white people and
women into the US space program, working in this quality for NASA from the late 1970s until the late 1980s.
In 2020, the US effort to develop a vaccine to protect against
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickl ...
was named
Operation Warp Speed, which was suggested by a ''Star Trek'' fan, Dr. Peter Marks. Dr. Peters leads the unit at the
Food and Drug Administration
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food ...
which approves vaccines and therapies.
Parodies
Early parodies of ''Star Trek'' included a famous sketch on ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serve ...
'' titled "
The Last Voyage of the Starship ''Enterprise''", with
John Belushi as Kirk,
Chevy Chase as Spock and
Dan Aykroyd as McCoy. In the 1980s, ''Saturday Night Live'' did a sketch with William Shatner reprising his Captain Kirk role in ''The Restaurant Enterprise'', preceded by a sketch in which he played himself at a ''Trek'' convention angrily telling fans to "Get a Life", a phrase that has become part of ''Trek'' folklore.
''
In Living Color'' continued the tradition in a sketch where Captain Kirk is played by a fellow Canadian
Jim Carrey.
A feature-length film that indirectly parodies ''Star Trek'' is ''
Galaxy Quest''. This film is based on the premise that aliens monitoring the broadcast of an Earth-based television series called ''Galaxy Quest'', modeled heavily on ''Star Trek'', believe that what they are seeing is real. Many ''Star Trek'' actors have been quoted saying that ''Galaxy Quest'' was a brilliant parody.
''Star Trek'' has been blended with
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which '' H.M.S. ...
at least twice.
The North Toronto Players presented a ''Star Trek'' adaptation of Gilbert & Sullivan titled ''H.M.S. Starship Pinafore: The Next Generation'' in 1991 and an adaptation by
Jon Mullich
Jon Mullich (born 1961) American actor, playwright, director and Academy Award historian.
Background
Mullich was born in Los Angeles, California.
Mullich played Gloucester in Reza Abdoh's vision of ''King Lear'' and Abel Drugger in ''The Alch ...
of Gilbert and Sullivan's ''
H.M.S. Pinafore'' that sets the operetta in the world of ''Star Trek'' has played in Los Angeles and was attended by series luminaries Nichelle Nichols, D.C. Fontana and David Gerrold. A similar blend of Gilbert and Sullivan and ''Star Trek'' was presented as a benefit concert in San Francisco by the Lamplighters in 2009. The show was titled ''Star Drek: The Generation After That''. It presented an original story with Gilbert and Sullivan melodies.
''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...
'' and ''
Futurama'' television series and others have had many individual episodes parodying ''Star Trek'' or with ''Trek'' allusions.
''
Black Mirror's'' ''Star Trek'' parody episode, "
USS Callister", won four
Emmy Awards, including the
Outstanding Television Movie and
Writing for a Limited Series, Movie or Drama, and was nominated for three more.
In August 2010, the members of the
Internal Revenue Service created a ''Star Trek'' themed training video for a conference. Revealed to the public in 2013, the spoof along with parodies of other media franchises was cited as an example of the misuse of taxpayer funds in a congressional investigation.
''Star Trek'' has been parodied in several non-English movies, including the German ''
Traumschiff Surprise – Periode 1'' which features a gay version of the ''Original Series'' bridge crew and a Turkish film that spoofs that same series' episode "
The Man Trap" in one of the series of films based on the character
Turist Ömer
Turist Ömer or Ömer the Tourist is a recurring character in a series of comic films made in Turkey between 1964 and 1973. The character was played by Sadri Alışık.
Turist Ömer first appeared as a supporting character in a 1963 film by Hulki ...
. An entire series of films and novel parodies titled ''
Star Wreck
''Star Wreck'' is a series of Finnish '' Star Trek'' parody movies started by Samuli Torssonen in 1992. The first movie, simply named ''Star Wreck'', was a simple '' Star Control''-like animation with three ships shooting at each other, but late ...
'' has been created in
Finnish.
''
The Orville'' is a comedy-drama science fiction television series created by
Seth MacFarlane that premiered on September 10, 2017, on
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelv ...
. MacFarlane, a longtime fan of the franchise who previously guest-starred on an episode of ''Enterprise'', created the series with a similar look and feel as the ''Star Trek'' series. MacFarlane has made references to ''Star Trek'' on his animated series ''
Family Guy'', where the ''Next Generation'' cast guest-starred in the episode "
Not All Dogs Go to Heaven".
''
Other Space'' is a
science fiction comedy streaming series which premiered on
Yahoo! Screen on April 14, 2015. Created by
Paul Feig, it is set in the 22nd century and follows the dysfunctional crew of an exploratory spaceship who become trapped in an unknown universe.
Fan productions
Until 2016, Paramount Pictures and CBS permitted fan-produced films and episode-like clips to be produced. Several veteran ''Star Trek'' actors and writers participated in many of these productions. Several producers turned to
crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and Alternative Finance, alternative finance. In 2015, over was rais ...
, such as
Kickstarter
Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, K ...
, to help with production and other costs.
Popular productions include:
''New Voyages'' (2004–2016) and ''
Star Trek Continues'' (2013–2017). Additional productions include:
''Of Gods and Men'' (2008), originally released as a three-part web series, and ''
Prelude to Axanar''. Audio dramatizations such as ''The Continuing Mission'' (2007–2016) have also been published by fans.
In 2016, CBS published guidelines which restricted the scope of fan productions, such as limiting the length of episodes or films to fifteen minutes, limiting production budgets to $50,000, and preventing actors and technicians from previous ''Star Trek'' productions from participating. A number of highly publicized productions have since been cancelled or have gone abeyant.
Documentaries
Star Trek has been a popular subject for
documentaries reviewing the history of the franchise.
Some examples include:
* ''Journey’s End: Saga of Star Trek Next Generation,'' hosted by Jonathon Frakes, it reviewed the final season of the series and the upcoming ''Generations.''
*''
Trekkies'' (1997), exploring the subculture of Star Trek fandom.
* ''
Star Trek: Beyond the Final Frontier'' (2007), exploring a giant
Christie's
Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is owned by Groupe Artémis, t ...
auction of tens of thousand of ''Star Trek'' props, hosted by actor Leonard Nimoy.
* ''The Center Seat'' (2016), an 85-minute special on ''Star Trek'' for its 50th anniversary, aired by the
History
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
network.
* ''
For the Love of Spock'' (2016), focusing on the history and impact of the character
Spock.
* ''What We Left Behind'' (2019), about the production and legacy of ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine''.
* ''
The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek'' (2021), an eight-episode documentary series ordered by the cable network
History
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
covering the franchise's decades-long history.
It was narrated by
Gates McFadden, who was also one of the
executive producers.
Some documentaries have been funded by the community by money raised by
crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and Alternative Finance, alternative finance. In 2015, over was rais ...
.
''What We Left Behind'' raised nearly $650,000 in this way, and a planned Voyager documentary raised $450,000 in 24 hours.
Awards and honors

Of the various science fiction awards for drama, only the
Hugo Award dates back as far as the original series. In 1968, all five nominees for a Hugo Award were individual episodes of ''Star Trek'', as were three of the five nominees in 1967.
The only ''Star Trek'' series not to receive a Hugo Award nomination are the ''Animated Series'' and ''Voyager'', though only the ''Original Series'' and ''Next Generation'' won in any nominated category. No ''Star Trek'' feature film has ever won a Hugo Award. In 2008, the fan-made ''
Star Trek: New Voyages'' episode "World Enough and Time" was nominated for the
Hugo Award for Best Short Drama.
One of the most successful films was ''Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home'', which grossed a global total of $133 million against a $21 million budget.
''The Voyage Home'' garnered 11 nominations at the 14th annual
Saturn Awards, tying ''
Aliens
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrat ...
'' for number of nominations. Nimoy and Shatner were nominated for best actor for their roles, and Catherine Hicks was nominated for best supporting actress. At the
59th Academy Awards, ''The Voyage Home'' was nominated for Best Cinematography, Sound (
Terry Porter,
David J. Hudson,
Mel Metcalfe
Mel Metcalfe is an American sound engineer. He has been nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Sound category three times: in 1987, for '' Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home''; in 1992, for ''Beauty and the Beast''; and in 1993, for ''Aladdin''. ...
and
Gene Cantamessa), Sound Effects Editing, and Original Score.
The episode "
The Big Goodbye" in the first season of ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', in recognition of its "new standard of quality for first-run syndication", the episode was honored with a
Peabody Award in 1987. "The Big Goodbye" was also nominated for two
Emmy Awards in the categories of Outstanding Cinematography for a Series and
Outstanding Costumes for a Series, with costume designer
William Ware Theiss winning the award in the latter category.
''
Star Trek'' (2009) won the
Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling
The Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling is the Academy Award given to the best achievement in makeup and hairstyling for film. Traditionally, three films have been nominated each year with exceptions in the early 1980s and 2002 when the ...
, the franchise's first Academy Award. In 2016, the franchise was listed in the
Guinness World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
as the most successful science fiction television franchise in the world.
Examples:
*
List of awards and nominations received by ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine''
*
List of awards and nominations received by ''Star Trek: Enterprise''
*
List of awards and nominations received by ''Star Trek: The Next Generation''
*
List of awards and nominations received by ''Star Trek: The Original Series''
*
List of awards and nominations received by ''Star Trek: Voyager''
Episode rankings
''TV Guide'' (1996)
In 1996, ''
TV Guide
TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program TV listings, listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news.
The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine, TV Guide Mag ...
'' published the following as the ten best ''Star Trek'' episodes for the franchise's 30th anniversary:
# "
The City on the Edge of Forever" (''The Original Series'')
# "
Amok Time" (''The Original Series'')
# "
Mirror, Mirror" (''The Original Series'')
# "
The Doomsday Machine" (''The Original Series'')
# "
Journey to Babel
"Journey to Babel" is the tenth episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series ''Star Trek''. Written by D. C. Fontana and directed by Joseph Pevney, it was first broadcast on November 17, 1967.
In the episode, '' ...
" (''The Original Series'')
# "
11001001" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Yesterday's Enterprise" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
The Best of Both Worlds" (Part I) (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Tapestry" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
The Visitor" (''Deep Space Nine'')
50th Anniversary Convention (2016)
At the 50th Anniversary ''Star Trek'' Las Vegas (STLV) convention, in 2016, the following were voted by fans as the best episodes:
#"
The City on the Edge of Forever" (''The Original Series'')
# "
In the Pale Moonlight
"In the Pale Moonlight" is the 143rd episode of the American science fiction television series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'', the 19th of the sixth season. It originally aired on April 15, 1998, in broadcast syndication.
Set in the 24th centu ...
" (''Deep Space Nine'')
# "
The Inner Light
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...
" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Amok Time" (''The Original Series'')
# "
Yesterday's Enterprise" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
The Visitor" (''Deep Space Nine'')
# "
Chain of Command" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Balance of Terror" (''The Original Series'')
# "
In a Mirror, Darkly" (''Enterprise'')
# "
The Magnificent Ferengi" (''Deep Space Nine'')
Additionally, fans voted the following as the worst episodes:
#"
These Are the Voyages..." (''Enterprise'')
# "
Code of Honor A code of honor or honor code is generally a set of rules or ideals or a mode or way of behaving regarding honor that is socially, institutionally, culturally, and/or individually or personally imposed, reinforced, followed, and/or respected by cer ...
" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Threshold
Threshold may refer to:
Architecture
* Threshold (door), the sill of a door
Media
* ''Threshold'' (1981 film)
* ''Threshold'' (TV series), an American science fiction drama series produced during 2005-2006
* "Threshold" (''Stargate SG-1''), ...
" (''Voyager'')
# "
Turnabout Intruder
"Turnabout Intruder" is the twenty-fourth and final episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series ''Star Trek''. Written by Arthur H. Singer (based on a story by Gene Roddenberry) and directed by Herb Wallerstei ...
" (''The Original Series'')
# "
Shades of Gray" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Sub Rosa" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
And the Children Shall Lead" (''The Original Series'')
# "
Move Along Home" (''Deep Space Nine'')
# "
The Alternative Factor" (''The Original Series'')
# "
Precious Cargo" (''Enterprise'')
Washington Post (2016)
In 2016, ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...
'' ranked the best live-action television episodes:
# "
The Best of Both Worlds" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Darmok" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Balance of Terror" (''The Original Series'')
# "
In the Pale Moonlight
"In the Pale Moonlight" is the 143rd episode of the American science fiction television series '' Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'', the 19th of the sixth season. It originally aired on April 15, 1998, in broadcast syndication.
Set in the 24th centu ...
" (''Deep Space Nine'')
# "
Chain of Command" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Yesterday's Enterprise" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
The Doomsday Machine" (''The Original Series'')
# "
The Measure of a Man" (''The Next Generation'')
# "
Journey to Babel
"Journey to Babel" is the tenth episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series ''Star Trek''. Written by D. C. Fontana and directed by Joseph Pevney, it was first broadcast on November 17, 1967.
In the episode, '' ...
" (''The Original Series'')
# "
First Contact
First contact may refer to:
*First contact (astronomy), the moment in astronomical transit when the apparent positions of the two bodies first touch
*First contact (anthropology), the first meeting of two cultures previously unaware of one another
...
" (''The Next Generation'')
Corporate ownership
''Star Trek'' began as a joint-production of Norway Productions, owned by Roddenberry, and
Desilu, owned by
Desi Arnaz. The profit-sharing agreement for the series split proceeds between Norway, Desilu (later
Paramount Television), William Shatner's production company, and the broadcast network,
NBC. However, ''Star Trek'' lost money during its initial broadcast, and NBC did not expect to recoup its losses by selling the series into syndication, nor did Paramount. With NBC's approval, Paramount offered its share of the series to Roddenberry sometime in 1970. However, Roddenberry could not raise the $150,000 () offered by the studio.
Paramount would go on to license the series to television syndicators worldwide. NBC's remaining broadcast and distribution rights eventually returned to Paramount and Roddenberry sometime before 1986, which coincided with the development of what would become ''
The Next Generation''.
As for Desilu, the studio was acquired by
Gulf+Western. It was then reorganized as the
television production division of
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
, which Gulf+Western had acquired in 1966. Gulf+Western sold its remaining industrial assets in 1989, renaming itself Paramount Communications. Sometime before 1986,
Sumner Redstone had acquired a controlling stake of
Viacom via his family's theater chain,
National Amusements. Viacom was established in 1952 as a division of
CBS responsible for syndicating the network's in-house productions, originally called
CBS Films. In 1994, Viacom and Paramount Communications were merged.
Viacom then merged with its former parent,
CBS Corporation
The second incarnation of CBS Corporation (the first being a short-lived rename of the Westinghouse Electric Corporation) was an American multinational media conglomerate with interests primarily in commercial broadcasting, publishing, an ...
, in 1999. National Amusements and the Redstone family increased their stake in the combined company between 1999 and 2005.
Split ownership (2005–2019)
In 2005, the Redstone family reorganized Viacom, spinning off the conglomerate's assets as two independent groups: the new
Viacom, and the new
CBS Corporation
The second incarnation of CBS Corporation (the first being a short-lived rename of the Westinghouse Electric Corporation) was an American multinational media conglomerate with interests primarily in commercial broadcasting, publishing, an ...
. National Amusements and the Redstone family retained approximately 80% ownership of both CBS and Viacom. ''Star Trek'' was split between the two entities. The terms of this split were not known. However, CBS held all copyrights, marks, production assets, and film negatives, to all ''Star Trek'' television series. CBS also retained the rights to all likenesses, characters, names and settings, and stories, and the right to license ''Star Trek'', and its spin-offs, to merchandisers, and publishers, etc. The rights were exercised via the new
CBS Television Studios, which was carved out of the former
Paramount Television.
Viacom, which housed
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
, retained the feature film library, and exclusive rights to produce new feature films for a limited time. Viacom also retained home video distribution rights for all television series produced before 2005.
However, home video editions of the various television series released after the split, as well as streaming video versions of episodes available worldwide, carried variants of the new CBS Television Studios livery in addition to the original Paramount Television Studios livery. It was unclear who retained the
synchronization or
streaming rights.
Rights and distribution issues, and the fraught relationship between the leadership at CBS, Viacom, and the National Amusements' board of directors, resulted in a number of delayed and or cancelled ''Star Trek'' productions between 2005 and 2019. Additionally, the development and release of the new ''
Star Trek'' film, in 2009, was met with resistance by executives at CBS, as was ''
Into Darkness'' (2013) and ''
Beyond'' (2016), which affected merchandising, tie-in media, and promotion for the new films. During this period, both CBS and Viacom continued to list ''Star Trek'' as an important asset in their prospectus to investors, and in corporate filings made to the
Securities and Exchange Commission
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against mark ...
.
Current ownership
While several attempts were made to merge Viacom and CBS, power struggles between the major stakeholders of the companies prevented this from happening. In 2019, after the resignation of CBS CEO
Leslie Moonves, negotiations to merge CBS and Viacom began in earnest. These negotiations were led by
Shari Redstone, chairman of the National Amusements, and Joe Ianniello, then CEO of Viacom. On August 13, 2019, CBS and Viacom boards of directors reached an agreement to
reunite the conglomerates as a single entity called
ViacomCBS. National Amusements' board of directors approved the merger on October 28, 2019, which was finalized on December 4.
This entity would be renamed Paramount Global on February 15, 2022.
See also
*
List of space science fiction franchises
*
Outline of ''Star Trek''
*
Timeline of science fiction
*
Comparison of Star Wars and Star Trek
Comparison or comparing is the act of evaluating two or more things by determining the relevant, comparable characteristics of each thing, and then determining which characteristics of each are similar to the other, which are different, and t ...
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
*
*
''Star Trek''at
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeedi ...
– Enterprising
Nebulae
{{DEFAULTSORT:Star Trek
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Mass media franchises introduced in 1966
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