Star Trek is an Americanscience fictionmedia franchise that started with a television series (simply calledStar Trek but now referred to asStar Trek: The Original Series) created byGene Roddenberry. The series was first broadcast from 1966 to 1969. Since then, theStar Trek canon has expanded to include many other series, a film franchise, and other media.

The film franchise is produced byParamount Pictures and began withStar Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979. That film and the five that followed all starred the cast ofThe Original Series. The seventh film,Star Trek Generations (1994), was designed to serve as a transition from the original cast to that of the next series,Star Trek: The Next Generation. The next three films just starred the cast ofThe Next Generation, and ended withStar Trek: Nemesis (2002), which disappointed at the box office.

After a break of several years, a new film simply titledStar Trek was released in 2009. It serves as areboot of the franchise, with new actors portraying younger versions of theOriginal Series characters, but it is technically a narrative continuation set in analternate timeline called the "Kelvin Timeline". Two sequels have been produced andanother is in development. A franchise prequel film is also in development. The first television film,Star Trek: Section 31, was released on the streaming serviceParamount+ in 2025 and is set in the original timeline.

Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry first suggested the idea of aStar Trek feature in 1969.^[1] When the original television series was cancelled, he lobbied to continue the franchise through a film. The success of the series insyndication convinced the studio to begin work on a feature film in 1975.^[2] A series of writers attempted to craft a suitably epic screenplay, but the attempts did not satisfy Paramount, so the studio scrapped the project in 1977. Paramount instead planned on returning the franchise to its roots with a new television series (Phase II ). The massive worldwide box office success ofStar Wars in mid-1977 sent Hollywood studios to their vaults in search of similar sci-fi properties that could be adapted or re-launched to the big screen. Following the huge opening ofColumbia'sClose Encounters of the Third Kind in late December 1977, production ofPhase II was cancelled in favor of making aStar Trek film.^[3]

A massive energy cloud from deep space heads toward Earth, leaving destruction in its wake, and theEnterprise must intercept it to determine what lies within, and what its intent might be.

The movie borrows many elements from "The Changeling" of the original series and "One of Our Planets Is Missing" from the animated series.Principal photography commenced on August 7, 1978^[4] with directorRobert Wise helming the feature. The production encountered difficulties and slipped behind schedule,^[5] with effects teamRobert Abel and Associates^[6] proving unable to handle the film's large amount of effects work.Douglas Trumbull was hired and given ablank check to complete the effects work in time and location;^[7] the final cut of the film was completed just in time for the film's premiere. The film introduced an upgrade to the technology and starship designs, making for a dramatic visual departure from the original series. Many of the set elements created forPhase II were adapted and enhanced for use in the first feature films. It received mixed reviews from critics; while it grossed $139 million the price tag had climbed to about $45 million due to costly effects work and delays.

Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalbán), whom Kirk thwarted in his attempt to seize control of theEnterprise fifteen years earlier ("Space Seed"), seeks his revenge on the Admiral and lays a cunning and sinister trap.

The Motion Picture's gross was considered disappointing, but it was enough for Paramount to back a sequel with a reduced budget. After Roddenberry pitched a film in which the crew of theEnterprise goes back in time to ensure the assassination ofJohn F. Kennedy, he was "kicked upstairs" to a ceremonial role while Paramount brought in television producerHarve Bennett to craft a better—and cheaper—film than the first.^[8] After watching all the television episodes, Bennett decided that the characterKhan Noonien Singh was the perfect villain for the new film. DirectorNicholas Meyer finished a complete screenplay in just twelve days, and did everything possible within budget to giveThe Wrath of Khan a nautical, swashbuckling feel,^[9] which he described as "Horatio Hornblower in outer space".^[8] Upon release, the reception ofThe Wrath of Khan was highly positive;^[10]Entertainment Weekly's Mark Bernadin calledThe Wrath of Khan "the film that, by most accounts, savedStar Trek as we know it".^[11]

Both the first and second films have television versions with additional footage and alternate takes that affect the storyline. (SubsequentStar Trek films tended to have shorter television versions.) Especially notable inThe Wrath of Khan is the footage establishing that a young crew member who acts courageously and dies during an attack on theEnterprise is Scotty's nephew.

The plot picks up shortly after the conclusion of the previous film. When McCoy begins acting irrationally, Kirk learns that Spock, in his final moments, transferred hiskatra, his living spirit, to the doctor. To save McCoy from emotional ruin, Kirk and crew steal theEnterprise and violate the quarantine of the Genesis Planet to retrieve Spock, his body regenerated by the rapidly dying planet itself, in the hope that body and soul can be rejoined. However, bent on obtaining the secret of Genesis for themselves, a renegade Klingon (Christopher Lloyd) and his crew interfere, with deadly consequences.

Meyer declined to return for this film, so directing duties were given to cast memberLeonard Nimoy. Paramount gave Bennett the green light to writeStar Trek III the day afterThe Wrath of Khan opened.^[12] The producer penned a resurrection story for Spock that built on threads from the previous film and the original series episode "Amok Time".^{[citation needed]}

While returning to stand court-martial for their actions in rescuing Spock, Kirk and crew learn that Earth is under siege by a giant probe that is transmitting a destructive signal, attempting to communicate with the now-extinct species ofhumpback whales. To save the planet, the crew must time-travel back to the late 20th century to obtain a mating pair of these whales.

Nimoy returned as director for this film. Nimoy and Bennett wanted a film with a lighter tone that did not have a classic antagonist. They decided on atime travel story with theEnterprise crew returning to their past to retrieve something to save their present—eventually, humpback whales. After having been dissatisfied with the script written byDaniel Petrie Jr., Paramount hired Meyer to rewrite the screenplay with Bennett's help. Meyer drew upon his own time travel storyTime After Time for elements of the screenplay.^{[citation needed]} StarWilliam Shatner was promised his turn as director forStar Trek V, and Nicholas Meyer returned as director/co-writer forStar Trek VI.

Spock's half-brother (Laurence Luckinbill) believes he is summoned byGod, and hijacks the brand-new (and problem-ridden)Enterprise-A to take it through the Great Barrier, at the center of theMilky Way, beyond which he believes his maker waits for him. Meanwhile, a young and arrogant Klingon captain (Todd Bryant), seeking glory in what he views as an opportunity to avenge his people of the deaths of their crewmen on Genesis, sets his sights on Kirk.

This is the only Star Trek film directed by William Shatner.

WhenQo'noS' moon Praxis (the Klingon Empire's chief energy source) is devastated by an explosion, caused by over-mining, the catastrophe also contaminating Qo'noS' atmosphere, the Klingons make peace overtures to the Federation. While on the way to Earth for a peace summit, the Klingon Chancellor (David Warner) is assassinated byEnterprise crewmen, and Kirk and McCoy are held accountable by the Chancellor's Chief of Staff (Christopher Plummer) and sentenced to life on a prison planet. Spock attempts to prove Kirk's innocence, but in doing so, uncovers a massive conspiracy against the peace process with participants from both sides.

This film is a sendoff to the original series cast. OneNext Generation cast member,Michael Dorn, appears as the grandfather of the character he plays on the later television series,Worf. It is the second and lastStar Trek film directed byNicholas Meyer and last screenplay co-authored by Leonard Nimoy.

The seventh film acted as a transition between the films featuring the original cast and those with theNext Generation cast. TheNext Generation cast made four films over a period of eight years, with the last two performing only moderately well (Insurrection) and disappointingly (Nemesis) at the box office. Film titles of the North American and UK releases of the films no longer contained the number of the film following the sixth film (the sixth wasStar Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country but the seventh wasStar Trek Generations). However, European releases continued using numbers in the film titles untilNemesis.

Picard enlists the help of Kirk, who is presumed long dead but flourishes in an extra-dimensional realm, to prevent a deranged scientist (Malcolm McDowell) from destroying a star and its populated planetary system in an attempt to enter that realm. This film also included original crew members Scotty (James Doohan) and Chekov (Walter Koenig).

Following seven seasons ofThe Next Generation, the nextStar Trek film was the first to feature the crew of theEnterprise-D, along with a long prologue sequence featuring three cast members of the original series and the only appearance of theEnterprise-B.

After a failed attempt to assault Earth, theBorg attempt to prevent First Contact between Humans and Vulcans by interfering withZefram Cochrane's (James Cromwell) warp test in the past. Picard must confront the demons which stem from his assimilation into the Collective ("The Best of Both Worlds") as he leads the newEnterprise-E back through time to ensure the test and subsequent meeting with the Vulcans take place.

The first of two films directed by series actorJonathan Frakes.

Profoundly disturbed by what he views as a blatant violation of the Prime Directive, Picard deliberately interferes with a Starfleet admiral's (Anthony Zerbe) plan to relocate a relatively small but seemingly immortal population from a mystical planet to gain control of the planet's natural radiation, which has been discovered to have substantial medicinal properties. However, the admiral himself is a pawn in his alien partner's (F. Murray Abraham) mission of vengeance.

Insurrection brought inDeep Space Nine writer Michael Piller instead of Ronald D. Moore and Brannon Braga who had written forGenerations andFirst Contact.^[13]

A clone of Picard (Tom Hardy), created by the Romulans, assassinates the Romulan Senate, assumes absolute power, and lures Picard and theEnterprise to Romulus under the false pretext of a peace overture.

Written byJohn Logan and directed byStuart Baird, this film was a critical and commercial failure (released December 13, 2002, in direct competition withDie Another Day,Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets andThe Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers) and was the finalStar Trek film to feature theNext Generation cast and to be produced byRick Berman.

Despite development on an eleventh film beginning afterNemesis was released, the poor reception to that film and a sense of "franchise fatigue" meant Paramount was not in a hurry to make the next film. With the cancellation of the television seriesStar Trek: Enterprise in 2005, there was no newStar Trek being made for the screen for the first time in nearly 20 years.^[14] In 2005,Viacom, which owned Paramount Pictures, separated fromCBS Corporation, which retained Paramount's television properties including ownership of theStar Trek brand. Paramount presidentGail Berman (no relation to Rick Berman) convinced CBS chief executiveLeslie Moonves to allow them eighteen months to develop a newStar Trek film, otherwise Paramount would lose the film rights. Berman approachedMission: Impossible III directorJ. J. Abrams and writersRoberto Orci andAlex Kurtzman to develop the next film.^[15]

Star Trek (2009) introduces a new cast as younger versions of theOriginal Series characters, and was widely considered to be areboot of the franchise.^[16] However, it is actually a continuation set in analternate timeline that is created after the events of the previous films by Spock, with Nimoy reprising his role. The writers chose this approach to free the new film from the restrictions of established continuity without completely discarding it.^[16][17] Orci said he used the term reboot because "that is what the press calls it", but he did not feel it was accurate.^[16] The new reality was informally referred to by several names, including the "Abramsverse", "JJ Trek", and "NuTrek",^[18] before it was named the "Kelvin Timeline" (versus the "Prime Timeline" of the original series and films) byMichael andDenise Okuda for use in officialStar Trek reference guides and encyclopedias. The name comes from the USSKelvin, a starship involved in the creation of the new timeline which Abrams named after his grandfather, Henry Kelvin.^[19][18]The Kelvin Timeline has since been used as a collective term for the reboot films by Paramount.^[20]

In the 24th century, Spock (Leonard Nimoy) fails to stop a supernova from destroying Romulus using an artificial black hole. He is pulled into the black hole with an attacking Romulan mining vessel, captained by Nero (Eric Bana), and they are sent back in time to the 23rd century. This creates a new timeline in which volatile Starfleet cadet James Kirk (Chris Pine) must work with Spock's younger self (Zachary Quinto) to stop Nero.

TheEnterprise crew hunt a rogue Starfleet operative (Benedict Cumberbatch) who has committed several terrorist attacks, and learn that he is actuallyKhan Noonien Singh.

TheEnterprise is ambushed and the crew are stranded on an unknown planet, where they find themselves in conflict with a new sociopathic enemy (Idris Elba) who hates the Federation and what it stands for.

Roberto Orci, co-writer of the first two reboot films, was hired to direct the third film,^[21] but he was replaced byJustin Lin in December 2014.^[22]Doug Jung and co-starSimon Pegg wrote the script.^[23]Star Trek Beyond was released on July 22, 2016, close to the franchise's 50th anniversary in September 2016.^[24]

In June 2018, after becomingshowrunner ofStar Trek: Discovery, Alex Kurtzman signed a five-year overall deal withCBS Television Studios to expand theStar Trek franchise beyondDiscovery to several new series, miniseries, and animated series.^[25] In March 2023, Kurtzman expressed interest in making television films for the franchise as well,^[26] as he was concerned about oversaturating the franchise with too many ongoing television series. Kurtzman reportedly planned to release aStar Trek streaming film every two years.^[27]

Former emperorPhilippa Georgiou from theMirror Universe rejoinsSection 31, a secret division ofStarfleet tasked with protecting theUnited Federation of Planets through unsanctioned tactics, and must face the sins of her past.^[29]

Paramount+ announced in April 2023 thatStar Trek: Section 31, which had been in development as a spin-off series fromDiscovery, was moving forward as a streaming "event film" instead.Michelle Yeoh was attached to reprise herDiscovery role of Philippa Georgiou in the film, which was written byCraig Sweeny and directed byDiscovery executive producerOlatunde Osunsanmi.^[29] Filming took place atPinewood Toronto Studios in Canada, whereDiscovery was produced,^[30] from January to March 2024.^[31] It was released on Paramount+ on January 24, 2025.^[32]

In January 2024, an "origin story" film was added to Paramount'sStar Trek slate.Toby Haynes had been hired to direct it andSeth Grahame-Smith was writing the script, with Abrams producing.^[79] By the end of March, the project was further along in development thanStar Trek 4 and was expected to begin pre-production by the end of the year.^[80] Paramount officially announced the film at CinemaCon in April 2024, and said filming would begin later that year for a planned 2025 release.^[81]Simon Kinberg was in talks to join as a producer the next month, with potential to become the "franchise shepherd" for Paramount'sStar Trek films. At that time, the film was reported to either be set in the "Prime Timeline" in the aftermath of humanity'sfirst contact with alien life, as depicted inFirst Contact, or to be another reboot of the franchise that retells the first contact and creation of Starfleet stories.^[82][83][84]

There have been several failed attempts to make a fourth film in the reboot series sinceBeyond was released:

• S. J. Clarkson was hired to direct a sequel written byJ. D. Payne and Patrick McKay that would have brought backChris Hemsworth asGeorge Kirk, father of Chris Pine'sJames T. Kirk, from the prologue of the first reboot film.^[85][86][87] However, contract negotiations with Pine and Hemsworth ended in August with the pair leaving the project,^[88] which was canceled by January 2019.^[89]
• In December 2017,Quentin Tarantino approached Abrams and Paramount about an idea he had for a newStar Trek film, and a writers room was hired consisting ofMark L. Smith, Lindsey Beer,Drew Pearce, and Megan Amram.^[90][91] Smith was chosen to write the film's screenplay at the end of the month, based on Tarantino's idea,^[92] but in January 2020, Tarantino said he would not direct the film.^[93]
• Noah Hawley was hired to write and direct a new film for Paramount in November 2019,^[94] based on his own vision for the franchise.^[95] This was very close to production beginning in August 2020 when it was placed on hold by new Paramount Pictures president Emma Watts, who took the franchise in a different direction.^[96][97]
• A new script was developed by Beer andGeneva Robertson-Dworet,^[98] andMatt Shakman was hired to direct it in July 2021.^[99] In November 2021,Josh Friedman and Cameron Squires were re-writing the script.^[100] Abrams announced in February 2022 that the main cast from the reboot films would return,^[101] which was a surprise to the actors as negotiations had not yet begun.^[102] Shakman left the film in August 2022.^[103]

In January 2024,Star Trek 4 was described as the "final chapter" of the main reboot film series.^[79]Steve Yockey was writing a new draft of the script by the end of March.^[80]

In March 2021, Paramount setStar Trek: Discovery writerKalinda Vazquez to write a newStar Trek film based on her own original idea.^[104] In March 2024, the film was revealed to still be in development.^[80]

AsStar Trek: Picard was coming to an end, starPatrick Stewart began pushing for a new film to be made starring himself and the rest of theNext Generation cast.^{[105][106][107]} In January 2024, Stewart said he had just been told that aStar Trek film was being written for him to star in.^[108] By the end of March, Kurtzman was considering a follow-up toPicard as one of the nextStar Trek television films ifSection 31 was successful.^[80]

• List ofStar Trek production staff
• List ofStar Trek television series

• Trimble, Bjo (October 1986).Stine, Hank (ed.).On the Good Ship Enterprise: My 15 Years with Star Trek (Reprint ed.). Norfolk, Virginia: The Donning Company.ISBN 0-89865-253-7.
• Turnbull, Gerry, ed. (October 1979).A Star Trek Catalog. New York: Grosset & Dunlap.ISBN 0-441-78477-1.

• Series & Movies onStarTrek.com

• Lists of films by franchise
• Star Trek lists
• Star Trek (film franchise)

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