Summary
Star Trek’s upcoming prequel origin movie can finally deliver the original premise intended forStar Trek: Enterprise.Director Toby Haynes is mounting a new, untitledStar Trekorigin feature film from a script by Seth Grahame-Smith. Paramount Pictures' newStar Trekmovie, which is starting production in fall 2024 for a possible 2025 or 2026 theatrical release, is reportedlyset largely on Earth and focuses on humanity’s early contact with aliensand the formation of the United Federation of Planets.
The exact placement of Toby Haynes’Star Trekprequel movie within theStar Trektimelineis unclear, but if it deals with the founding of the Federation, then the prequel would likely be canonically set afterStar Trek: Enterprise. Captain Jonathan Archer’s (Scott Bakula) pioneering voyages of the NX-01 Enterprise ran for four seasons beforeStar Trek: Enterprisewas canceled by UPN in 2025. One of the issues audiences had withEnterpriseduring its network run was that it was a formulaicStar Trekshow that didn’t fully explore the true dangers of its prequel trappings. However,Enterprisewas originally intended to be a very different kind ofStar Trekseries,andStar Trek’s upcoming origin prequel could realizeEnterprise’s early promise.
When Is The Next Star Trek Movie Coming Out?
It’s been nearly a decade since the last Star Trek movie hit theaters, but new Star Trek movies are on the way for theatrical and streaming releases.
Star Trek’s Origin Prequel Movie Can Fulfill Enterprise’s Original Concept
Star Trek’s origin movie can make space travel scary
Star Trek’s Untitled Originmovie is meant as a jumping-on point for general audiences, and as a prequel,Starfleet wouldn’t be as technologically advanced or experienced with myriad aliensas it will be in laterStar Trek. Toby Haynes’Star Trekprequel largely being set on Earth actually harkens back to theoriginalStar Trek: Enterprisepremiseexecutive producers and co-creators Rick Berman and Brannon Braga wanted. As Braga explained onStar Trek: Enterpriseseason 1’s Blu-ray bonus features:
The show originally… was supposed to be set on Earth. The show Rick and I pitched to the studio was a show set on Earth. The Klingons attacked Earth. Same things, general things, happened, but it was all about the building of the first starship and… the Vulcan thing was all there… It was about getting the crew together. It was about Archer putting a crew together to be the first people who went out. It was either the end of the season or somewhere midseason the ship was going to be launched. So it was a much more mud on the boots, gritty show set on Earth for the first large part of the season. So launching the ship was going to be a much bigger deal.
Further, Brannon Braga felt that after spending some time in space and getting in over their heads against aliens like the Klingons, the NX-01 Enterprise would limp back to Earth battle-damaged and barely functional, to hammer home just how dangerous exploring the galaxy really is.Enterprise’s original concept seems akin to what Toby Haynes has planned for hisStar Trekprequel movie. TheStar Trekorigin’s crew and starship would likely also encounter enemies that Starfleet of this early era is not prepared for, and it would make for a much grittier kind ofStar Trekmovie than audiences have previously seen. Further, it’s likely to expect issues ofxenophobia surrounding humanity’s dealings with Vulcansand other aliens.
Star Trek Movies Have Recycled Old Concepts Before
J.J. Abrams' Star Trek rehashed an old Starfleet Academy idea
It’s not out of the realm of possibility that Toby Haynes’Untitled Star Trek Originmovie could recycle the original concept ofStar Trek: EnterprisesinceStar Trekmovies have used old ideas before. J.J. Abrams’Star Trek(2009) not only rebootedStar Trek: The Original Serieswith a new and younger cast led byChris Pine as Captain James T. Kirkand Zachary Quinto as Spock, but it also finally realized the discarded idea for the film that eventually becameStar Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.Originally,Star Trek VIwas going to be a reboot movie titledStar Trek: The Academy Years.
J.J. Abrams updated Harve Bennett’s reboot and Starfleet Academy ideas almost 20 years later inStar Trek(2009).
After director William Shatner’sStar Trek V: The Final Frontierbecame a critical and box office misfire, producer Harve Bennett came up with a plan to salvage theStar Trekmovie franchise. RecognizingStar Trek: The Original Series' castwas both aging and getting more expensive,Bennett wanted to reboot theStar Trekmovies, casting new and younger actors as the classic USS Enterprise crew and showing how they all met as Starfleet Academy cadets. Although Paramount opted for one last hurrah with the original cast inStar Trek VI,director J.J. Abrams updated Harve Bennett’s reboot and Starfleet Academy ideas almost 20 years later inStar Trek(2009). It’s possible Toby Haynes’Star Trekprequel could do the same withStar Trek: Enterprise’s original concept.
Would Star Trek: Enterprise Have Been Better With Its Original Concept?
Enterprise season 4 showed what the series could have been from the start
A million-dollar question audiences will never know the answer to is whetherStar Trek: Enterprisewould have been a better and more successful show if Rick Berman and Brannon Braga were allowed to execute their initial vision. Braga and Berman were very much aware thatStar Trekwas headed toward franchise fatigue after hundreds of episodes ofStar Trekin the mold ofStar Trek: The Next Generationsince 1987. For 2001’sEnterprise,Berman and Braga hatched a bold plan that wouldtake time for the prequel to introduce all of the familiarStar Trektrappings, while amping up the danger of what it means for early Starfleet to explore the final frontier.
Star Trek: Enterprise season 4, especially, felt like the show Enterprise wanted to be all along.
Star Trek: Enterprise, as aired, touched upon some of what Rick Berman and Brannon Braga wanted for the series, like how theNX-01 Enterprise used grapplersbecause it lacked tractor beam technology. Ultimately, however,Enterprisefollowed their time-testedStar Trekformula by network decree, and ended up feeling too safe and comfortable.ToStar Trek: Enterprise’s credit, seasons 3 and 4 introduced the Xindi arc that serialized the show as Captain Archer and the Enterprise sought revenge for a devastating alien attack on Earth.Star Trek: Enterpriseseason 4, especially, felt like the showEnterprisewanted to be all along.
Star Trekfans may be wary about Toby Haynes’Star Trekprequel movieand whether it will tamper with established canon. There are also understandable concerns about introducing a new crew and starship instead of bringing back the Starship Enterprise and familiar faces audiences want to see again. Butwhat little is known so far aboutStar Trek’sUntitled Originmovie does sound eerily similar to what was once intended forStar Trek: Enterprise,and if Toby Haynes' prequel does recycle any of it for the big screen, it could redeem what Rick Berman and Brannon Braga wanted forStar Trek: Enterprisebut were denied 25 years earlier.
How Does Star Trek’s Prequel Movie Connect To J.J. Abrams' Star Trek?
Which Star Trek timeline is the prequel set in?
Toby Haynes’Untitled Star Trekprequel movie is reportedlyset"decades before"J.J. Abrams’Star Trek,which begins when the Romulan Nero (Eric Bana) time traveled to 2233 and destroyed the USS Kelvin, creating the alternate Kelvin timeline Abrams' movies take place in. Presumably,Star Trek’s prequel movie is set in the 22nd century, which means it would take place inStar Trek’s Prime Timelinebefore the Kelvin timeline is created. This would track with the prequel’s intention to be the origin of all ofStar Trek.
Star Trek 4is being billed as"the final chapter"of the Starship Enterprise.
While theUntitled Star Trekprequel aims to hit movie theaters in the next couple of years,Star Trek 4is reportedly still in development, with screenwriter Steve Yockey working on a new story.Star Trek 4is being billed as"the final chapter"of the Starship Enterprise crew led byChris Pine’s Captain Kirk.Star Trek 4, if it happens, would take place long after Toby Haynes’Untitled Star Trek Originmovie, just as all of J.J. Abrams’Star Trekmovies do. J.J. Abrams’Star Trekalso takes place roughly a century afterStar Trek: Enterprise, which has been referenced inStar Trek(2009) andStar Trek Beyond.
