The Federation starshipUSSEnterprise arrives at StarbaseYorktown for resupply andshore leave for its crew. Struggling to find meaning in the third year of their five-year exploration, CaptainJames T. Kirk has applied for a promotion to vice admiral, while recommendingSpock as his replacement. Meanwhile,Hikaru Sulu reunites with his husband and daughter,Montgomery Scott works to keep the ship operational, and Spock andNyota Uhura have decided to take a break from their relationship. Soon, Spock receives word from New Vulcan that Ambassador Spock—Spock's alternate-universe counterpart[a]—has died.
Enterprise is dispatched on a rescue mission after an escape pod drifts out of a nearby uncharted nebula. Its occupant, Kalara, claims that her ship is stranded on Altamid, a planet in the nebula. Upon arrival, a massive swarm of small unknown ships ambush and quickly overwhelm theEnterprise and begin to tear it apart. The swarm's leader, Krall, and his followers board theEnterprise, and capture and kill many crew members, in an attempt to capture the Abronath, a relic recovered during a recent mission. Kirk orders the crew to abandon ship, leaving the disintegratingEnterprise saucer section to crash land on the nearby planet Altamid.
On the planet, Krall captures Sulu, Uhura, and other survivors. Kirk andPavel Chekov, accompanied by Kalara, locate theEnterprise's saucer section. Knowing that Kalara knew they would be attacked, Kirk tricks her into revealing herself as Krall's spy. She is killed when Kirk and Chekov escape Krall's soldiers and flip theEnterprise saucer, crushing her. Dr.Leonard McCoy and a wounded Spock search for other survivors elsewhere on the planet. Spock tells McCoy that he ended his relationship with Uhura and is leavingStarfleet to help the Vulcan survivors and continue the late Ambassador Spock's work. Jaylah, a scavenger who previously escaped Krall's encampment where her father was killed, rescues Scotty and takes him to her makeshift home, the grounded USSFranklin, an early Starfleet vessel reported missing over a century earlier. Scotty is reunited with Kirk, Chekov, McCoy, and Spock. Krall coerces the captiveEnterprise crew to hand over the Abronath, then uses it to complete an ancientbioweapon. With the device complete, Krall intends to killYorktown's inhabitants, then use the base to attack theUnited Federation of Planets. Kirk and the others free the crew as Krall launches into space with the bioweapon, leading his drones toYorktown.
TheEnterprise survivors power up theFranklin and launch her in pursuit of Krall. Theorizing the swarm's system may be vulnerable to high frequencies such asVHF or radio; they jam and destroy the swarm by broadcasting the song "Sabotage" by theBeastie Boys. Krall is chased by theFranklin throughYorktown. Uhura, Kirk, and Scotty discover from theFranklin's logs that Krall is Balthazar Edison,Franklin's former captain. A pre-Federation human soldier, Edison rejected the Federation's principles of unity and cooperation with former enemies like theXindi and theRomulans. When he and his crew were stranded on Altamid by a wormhole, the survivors used the extinct natives' technology to prolong their lives at the cost of the others, and repurposed the ancient race's dormant mining drone workers into the swarm. Thinking the Federation had abandoned them, Edison planned to destroy the Federation and resume galactic conflict. Kirk pursues Edison intoYorktown's ventilation system, where Edison activates the bioweapon. Before it can spread, Kirk ejects it and Edison into space, where the weapon disintegrates Edison. Using a commandeered alien ship, Spock and McCoy save Kirk moments before he is also blown into space.
In the aftermath, Commodore Paris closes the files of Captain Edison and the USSFranklin crew. Though offered the promotion to vice admiral, Kirk decides to remain as a captain with his love of adventure restored; Spock, after finding a photograph ofAmbassador Spock's Enterprise crew, chooses to remain in Starfleet and renews his relationship with Uhura. On Kirk's recommendation, Jaylah is accepted intoStarfleet Academy. As the crew celebrates Kirk's birthday, they watch the construction of their new ship, theUSSEnterprise-A, and resume their mission.
Leonard Nimoy (left) died a year before the film's release. The film pays tribute to him.Star Trek Beyond marked one of the final film performances ofAnton Yelchin (right), who died in a car collision at his home on June 19, 2016, a month before the film's release.
Anton Yelchin as EnsignPavel Chekov, the ship's navigator and tactical expert. This was Yelchin's final performance as Chekov, as he died in a car accident on June 19, 2016, after filming his scenes.
Idris Elba as Captain Balthazar Edison / Krall, former commander of the USSFranklin who became a powerful mutated alien creature
Sofia Boutella as Jaylah, an alien scavenger. The role was originally developed forJennifer Lawrence and was named as a reference to her "J-Law" nickname.[citation needed] Despite Boutella's casting, the name was kept, with the same pronunciation but a different spelling.
Joe Taslim as Anderson Le / Manas, Krall's henchman and former first officer who was also transformed.
Lydia Wilson as Jessica Wolff / Kalara, Krall's henchwoman and former science officer who was also transformed.
In 2013, Orci had begun writing the script withPatrick McKay and J. D. Payne,[20][21] with Payne saying of the script in March, "We really want to get back to the sense of exploration and wonder. The kind of optimistic sense of the future thatStar Trek has always kind of had at its core. It's theChicago Bulls in space, in terms of these people who are all awesome at their job."[22] In January 2015, after Orci's departure as director,Simon Pegg andDoug Jung were hired to rewrite the screenplay,[23] with Pegg saying about the previous draft that Paramount "had a script forStar Trek that wasn't really working for them. I think the studio was worried that it might have been a little bit tooStar Trek-y." Pegg had been asked to make the new film "more inclusive", stating that the solution was to "make a western or a thriller or a heist movie, then populate that withStar Trek characters so it's more inclusive to an audience that might be a little bit reticent."[24] Pegg and Jung usedMemory Alpha, a Star Trek fanwiki, as a resource in the writing of the film.[25]
The first film's major cast members signed on for two sequels as part of their original deals.[26] In 2014, early in the film's development,William Shatner said that he was contacted by producer Abrams to see if he would be interested in a possible role, but as the process continued and the script changed hands, the role never materialized.[27][28]Alice Eve was not included in the film despite her character having joined theEnterprise crew at the end of the last installment, because Pegg, in writing the script, did not have anything meaningful for her to do; however, he stressed that Eve could appear in a later installment.[29]Joseph Gatt'scyborg Science Officer 0718 was dropped from the film after a rewrite.[30] In March 2015,Idris Elba was in early talks to play the villain, and he was confirmed for the role in the following months.[31][32] Pegg noted that the villain would be an original one, rather than a known antagonist from past stories in theStar Trek franchise.[33] In April,Sofia Boutella joined the cast in a lead role,[34] and in early July,Deep Roy was confirmed to reprise his role of Keenser.[35] That month,Joe Taslim was added to the cast opposite Elba's villain,[36] and by August,Lydia Wilson joined as well.[37] In March 2016,Shohreh Aghdashloo was cast as Commodore Paris for reshoots on the film.[38]
The visual effects are provided by Atomic Fiction,DNEG and Kelvin Optical and supervised by Kevin Baillie, Ryan Tudhope, Pauline Duvall and Peter Chiang as the Production Supervisor with help fromRodeo FX.[46]
In August 2015, composerMichael Giacchino confirmed that he would return to write the score.[47] On June 26, 2016, singerRihanna released a teaser across her social media accounts for a single for the film entitled "Sledgehammer", and the song premiered the following day. TheBeastie Boys' "Sabotage" was used in the movie's trailer, as well as the final battle scene.
Ateaser trailer for the film was released on December 14, 2015,[48] and was criticized by some fans for focusing too much on action, and for featuring theBeastie Boys song "Sabotage", which many considered out of place, despite its use in the first film of the rebooted series. Pegg expressed similar thoughts of dissatisfaction with the teaser, saying that he "didn't love it" because "I know there's a lot more to the film." He interpreted the trailer to be a way of the marketing team saying, "Come and see this movie! It's full of action and fun!"[49] A second trailer was released on May 20, 2016, to warmer reviews.[50] A third and final trailer was released on June 27, 2016, featuring Rihanna's single "Sledgehammer".
In August 2014, it was announced that Paramount had pushed back the release of the film to 2016, for the 50th anniversary celebration of the debut ofGene Roddenberry's original sci-fi series.[51] In December, it was announced that the film was to be released on July 8, 2016.[52] In September 2015, the film's release date was pushed back two weeks from its original release date of July 8, 2016, to July 22, 2016.[53] The film was released inDolby Cinema format in selected theaters.[54] The film had its Australian premiere in Sydney on July 7.[55]
Star Trek Beyond underperformed financially at the box office. Scott Mendelson ofForbes observed that one factor contributing to the film's underperformance was its untimely release in a crowded summer in which it was surrounded by other films likeGhostbusters,Jason Bourne andSuicide Squad. He also noted that had Paramount released the film for theStar Trek's 50th anniversary on September 8, the film could have benefited from that occasion, as demonstrated in October 2012 whenMGM released theJames Bond filmSkyfall (which went on to gross over $1 billion)[58] for that series' 50th anniversary.[59][60]
Star Trek Beyond grossed $158.8 million in the United States and Canada and $184.6 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $343.5 million, against a production budget of $185 million.[2] It had a global opening of $89.2 million and an IMAX opening of $11.6 million on 571 IMAX screens.[61] Industry analyst Danny Cox had previously estimated that in order for the film tobreak even, it would have to earn $340–350 million worldwide,[62] and ended losing an estimated $50.5 million.[63]
In the United States and Canada, the film was projected to gross $50–60 million from 3,928 theaters in its opening weekend. It opened alongsideIce Age: Collision Course andLights Out, but critics noted that the film did not face any direct competition with them.[64][65] It opened across 3,928 theaters, of which 391 were IMAX.[66] It made $5.5 million from Thursday previews from 3,100 theaters, an improvement over its two immediate predecessors. Of that, the film grossed $1.1 million on 387 IMAX screens. This includes revenues generated from Wednesday night, when Paramount screened allStar Trek films, which concluded with a 10pm screening ofBeyond.[67][68][69][70] On its opening day, it earned $22.3 million, which is the second-biggest among the franchise, only behindStar Trek ($30.9 million), the third-biggest opening day of the summer for a live-action film and the second-biggest opening day of the year for a non-comic book superhero live-action film, behind onlyThe Jungle Book.[71] It earned $59.3 million in its opening weekend, which is the third-biggest debut among the franchise but the lowest of the reboot series (behindStar Trek andStar Trek Into Darkness for both). Adjusted for inflation, it ranks fourth behind the aforementioned films andStar Trek: First Contact ($60 million).[72] It performed exceptionally well in IMAX making $8.7 million in 387 IMAX screens.[73] The film came in 14% lower than the opening of its immediate predecessor,Star Trek Into Darkness, but box office experts noted that the fall was mild in comparison to other sequels of 2016 and is still considered a hit.[74][75] It dropped precipitously by 69% on its second Friday and was overtaken by newcomer spy filmJason Bourne, earning $6.75 million. By comparison,Star Trek dropped 56% on its first Friday whileStar Trek into Darkness fell 53%. However, this was not the worst Friday-to-Friday drop for aStar Trek film, asStar Trek: Nemesis plunged 83% on its second Friday due to negative word-of-mouth and heavy competition fromThe Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.[76]
By the second and third weekend following the film's release, box office revenue continued to drop significantly due to the release of competing films likeJason Bourne andSuicide Squad.[77]
Internationally, the film received a scattered release pattern and was released across approximately 76 markets.[61][66] It opened in 37 markets in conjunction with its North American release in its first weekend, including in the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia — territories where the franchise has traditionally performed well. It earned a total of $30 million from the said number of markets, which is slightly lower thanStar Trek Into Darkness' $31.7 million international debut in 2013. Paramount said that the heatwave in Europe negatively impacted the weekend's results.Beyond debuted at first place in 16 of them and recorded the biggest opening weekend ever for the franchise in 17 markets, including Russia, Taiwan and Thailand. It debuted in third place overall at the international box office, behindSkiptrace andThe Legend of Tarzan.[61]Beyond set numerous records in IMAX theaters. Led by very strong results in the UK and Russia, it grossed an estimated weekend of $3.2 million on 184 screens, bestingStar Trek Into Darkness' $2.8 million debut.[61] In its second weekend, it fell drastically by 57% earning $13 million. As a result, it slipped into sixth place at the box office.[78] After fluctuating up and down the charts, it finally topped the international box office in its seventh weekend due to a robust debut in China[79] and remained at the top for the second weekend in a row.[80]
The highest international tallies were recorded in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Malta ($6.1 million), South Korea ($5.6 million), Germany ($4.5 million), Russia and the CIS ($3.3 million), Australia ($3 million), France ($2.1 million), Mexico ($1.5 million), Brazil ($1.6 million), Venezuela ($1.4 million) and Taiwan ($1 million).[61][81][79][80] In the United Kingdom, where the performance of the franchise has been consistently solid, it was edged out by the family filmThe BFG.[61] Its £4.74 million ($6.2 million) opening from 535 theaters is the lowest among the rebooted series and a 31% decline from the £8.43 million ($11 million) opening posted byStar Trek Into Darkness, if previews are deducted.The Guardian citedJ. J. Abrams's departure as the director and fans' unenthusiastic response toIdris Elba as the villain (in comparison toBenedict Cumberbatch inStar Trek Into Darkness) as some possible reasons why the film failed to generate lucrative revenue. The site also projected a total gross of around £20 million ($26 million+) for the film.[82]
It opened in China on September 2 and earned an estimated $9.30 million on its opening day (representing 66% of the total marketplace), including $370,000 in midnight preview showings (160% larger than the opening day ofStar Trek Into Darkness),[83] and $21.8 million in two days.[84] In total, it had an opening weekend of $31.3 million according to Paramount and $30.7 million according to Chinese box office service Ent Group from 6,259 screens, marking the biggestStar Trek debut in the country, 105% bigger than the opening ofStar Trek Into Darkness.[85][79][86] It was the only one of five new releases to make any impression on the chart.[86] It remained at the top of the box office for a second weekend by adding another $10.1 million (according to Chinese data provider Ent Group), or $11.37 million (according to Paramount) from 5,830 locations from Friday to Sunday, a steep decline of 62.6% from its previous weekend.[87][88][89] It fell out of the top 10 in its third weekend,[90] and has grossed a total of $64.2 million there.[91] It is projected the film will end its run there anywhere around $70–100 million,[92][93] a disappointing figure considering the robust marketing effort by investorsAlibaba Pictures and Huahua Media. Thus, the film is the second Paramount film to underperform in that corner followingTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows in July.[89]
In terms of total earnings, its biggest offshore markets are the United Kingdom ($13.3 million), Germany ($8.6 million), Russia and the CIS ($5.5 million) and Australia ($5.2 million).[78]Star Trek Beyond opened in Japan on October 21, where it has earned $4.9 million as of 17 November 2016.[79]
OnRotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 86% based on 319 reviews, with an average rating of 7/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Star Trek Beyond continues the franchise's post-reboot hot streak with an epic sci-fi adventure that honors the series' sci-fi roots without skimping on the blockbuster action."[94] OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 68 out of 100, based on 50 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[95] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, down from the first two films' "A".[96]
Richard Roeper of theChicago Sun-Times gave the film 3 stars out of 4 and said, "Even with its big-screen pyrotechnics and its feature-length running time,Star Trek Beyond plays like an extended version of one of the better episodes from the original series, and I mean that in the best possible way."[97] Scott Collura ofIGN awarded the film 8.4/10, describing it as being: "terrific, a fun and exciting entry in the series that balances subtle fan service while also feeling fresh and modern;Star Trek Beyond is the perfect way to celebrate the series' 50th anniversary."[98] David Rooney ofThe Hollywood Reporter said the screenplay by Simon Pegg and Doug Jung "injects a welcome strain of humor that's true to the original Gene Roddenberry creation, delivering nostalgia without stiff veneration", and went on by saying, "WhileBeyond won't unseat 1982's thrillingThe Wrath of Khan as the gold standard forStar Trek movies, it's a highly entertaining entry guaranteed to give the franchise continuing life."[99]Owen Gleiberman ofVariety, in an otherwise positive review, described the film being "a very familiar, old-fangled, no-mystery structure, and that's because it's basically theStar Trek version of an interplanetary action film, with a plot that doesn't take you to many new frontiers." Furthermore, he calledStar Trek Beyond "a somewhat diverting place holder, but one hopes that the nextStar Trek movie will have what it takes to boldly go where noStar Trek movie has gone before."[100] Mark Hugues ofForbes said, "Star Trek Beyond is the third-bestStar Trek film of all time, creating the sort of emotional connection and familiar, powerful characterizations we loved in the original series while delivering top-notch action and the bestStar Trek movie villain sinceFirst Contact's Borg Queen."[101]
The film was also met by critics who were less taken with the film.James Berardinelli ofReelviews gave 2½ stars out of 4, writing: "Star Trek Beyond is aStar Trek movie, although not an especially good one; The action sequences are frenetic, kinetic, and, at times, incoherent. This isn't unexpected; it's Lin's trademark. But the plot, credited to Simon Pegg & Doug Jung, is pureTrek. Unfortunately, it's also instantly forgettable."[102] Dave Robinson of outletCrash Landed writes that "Star Trek Beyond fails to push beyond its own roots and becomes just another very safe sci-fi popcorn movie in an increasingly crowded market, that will likely have you leaving the theatre feeling exactly as you entered."[103] Chris Nashawaty ofEntertainment Weekly gave the film a C+ and wrote, "[w]ithBeyond, it feels like just another summer tentpole with not enough going on underneath the tent."[104]
George Takei, the actor who played Hikaru Sulu in The Original Series, criticised the decision by the writers to make the character gay. The actor said "I'm delighted that there's a gay character, unfortunately, it's a twisting of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry's creation, into which he put so much thought. I think it's really unfortunate." Takei claimed this would make Sulu appear to have beencloseted, and he requested instead for a new character to be introduced.[105] Simon Pegg responded by saying the move was intended as a tribute to George Takei's status as anLGBT activist.[106]
While promotingBeyond, Abrams revealed that a fourth film in the reboot series would seeChris Hemsworth reprising his role ofGeorge Kirk, father of Pine's James T. Kirk, from the prologue of the first reboot film.[122] Paramount Pictures officially announced the fourth film in July 2016, withJ. D. Payne and Patrick McKay set to write the screenplay.[123] 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.[124][125] Smith was chosen to write the film's screenplay at the end of the month, based on Tarantino's idea.[126]S. J. Clarkson entered talks to direct theBeyond sequel in April 2018,[127] but contract negotiations with Pine and Hemsworth ended in August with the pair leaving the project.[128] The film was cancelled by January 2019 and Clarkson moved on to other projects.[129] In January 2020, Tarantino said he would not direct his proposed film.[130]
Noah Hawley was hired to write and direct a newStar Trek film for Paramount in November 2019,[131] based on his own vision for the franchise.[132] This project was "very close" to production beginning in August 2020 when it was placed on hold by new Paramount Pictures president Emma Watts, whose top priority at the studio was to figure out the direction of theStar Trek franchise.[133][134] Watts had several options, including Hawley's film, a newBeyond sequel attempt, and Tarantino's project with a new director.[133] In March 2021, Paramount setStar Trek: Discovery writerKalinda Vazquez to write a newStar Trek film based on her own original idea,[135] while a separate script was developed by Beer andGeneva Robertson-Dworet.[136] The studio scheduled the latter film for release on June 9, 2023,[137][138] and hiredMatt Shakman to direct it in July. Work was expected to move at "warp speed" ahead of a filming start in early-to-mid 2022,[139] with Abrams producing.[138] In November 2021, the film's release was pushed to December 22, 2023. The script was being re-written byJosh Friedman and Cameron Squires.[140] Abrams and new Paramount Pictures CEOBrian Robbins announced in February 2022 that the main cast from the previous threeStar Trek films would return, including Pine, Quinto, Pegg, Urban, Saldaña, and Cho.[141] The announcement came as a surprise to the actors as negotiations had not yet begun for their return.[142]
Shakman left the film in August 2022 after joining theMarvel Studios filmThe Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025),[143] and it was removed from Paramount's release schedule soon after.[144] In January 2024, the studio was revealed to be expanding itsStar Trek film slate to have multiple films in development, inspired by the success of the multipleStar Trek series on the streaming serviceParamount+. The in-developmentStar Trek 4 was described as the "final chapter" in the main film series at that time.[145]Steve Yockey was writing a new draft of the script by the end of March 2024.[146] Work on the film stalled amid themerger of Skydance Media and Paramount Global;Paramount Skydance canceledStar Trek 4 and hiredJonathan Goldstein andJohn Francis Daley in November 2025 to make a new film.[147][148][149]
^Ambassador Spock, who was played byLeonard Nimoy, is the version of Spock fromThe Original Series, who was transported from the future during the events ofStar Trek (2009).
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