The Star Trek TV Series That Never Happened: 6 Big Reveals

Star Trek almost returned to television in the 1970s with Star Trek: Phase II, a live-action continuation of Star Trek: The Original Series. Produced by The Roddenberry Archive and OTOY, Lost Voyages: Phase II and the Rebirth of Star Trek is a new documentary that sheds fascinating new light on the Star Trek TV show that never was.

In the mid-1970s, Paramount Studios planned to launch its own TV network. Star Trek: Phase II, a revival of Gene Roddenberry's TV series that became a ratings phenomenon in syndication after NBC canceled Star Trek in 1969, was intended to be the flagship series of Paramount's new network. Instead, Phase II was scrapped in favor of Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

Directed by Roger Lay, Jr. and written by Michael and Denise Okuda, Lost Voyages features interviews with Casey Bernay, Daren Dochterman, Walter Koenig, Jon Povill, Garfield and Judith Reeves-Stevens, and George Takei. Together, they reveal new information about what became of Star Trek: Phase II.

6A Star Trek Movie Was In Development Before Star Trek: Phase II

A Few Attempts Were Made At A Star Trek Movie

Star Trek: The Motion Pictures hit movie screens in 1979, but there were prior Star Trek movies in development in 1975 before Paramount pivoted to a new TV series, Star Trek: Phase II. Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry wrote a screenplay called "The God Thing," but this concept was shot down by Paramount CEO Barry Diller, who was "a devout Catholic" and didn't want a Star Trek movie with religious overtones.

The Right Stuff director Phillip Kaufman took a stab at a Star Trek movie dubbed Planet of the Titans, which got the farthest in development of these early attempts. However, Roddenberry and Paramount were unhappy with Planet of the Titans' script, and Kaufman's rewrite was even "worse" because it "wasn't Star Trek." Planet of the Titans didn't move forward and was dumped in favor of a new TV series, Star Trek: Phase II.

5Star Trek’s Initial USS Enterprise Movie Redesigns Resemble Star Trek: Discovery’s Starship

Enterprise Looks Like USS Discovery's Crossfield Class

Ken Adams, who was the production designer of the James Bond movies, and Ralph McQuarrie, who created concept art for George Lucas' Star Wars, came aboard for Star Trek: Planet of the Titans. Adams and McQuarrie contributed designs of aliens and planets for Phillip Kaufman's film, but McQuarrie's concept for a new USS Enterprise is the most striking.

With its saucer backed by a triangular stardrive section, Planet of the Titans' USS Enterprise redesign looks remarkably like the USS Discovery, the hero ship of Star Trek: Discovery. McQuarrie's revamped Enterprise could be an early Crossfield Class starship, which Star Trek: Discovery introduced in 2017. It's very possible, in hindsight, the USS Discovery's design was influenced by Planet of the Titans' Starship Enterprise.

4Star Trek: Phase II’s Production Was Farther Along Than Most Realize

Sets & Costumes Were Built While Actors Waited To Be Called To Set

Star Trek: Phase II's pre-production was at an advanced level before the new TV series was abruptly canceled. The sets for the new USS Enterprise were designed, as were the new Starfleet uniform costumes, while several actors were hired. These included new cast members like Persis Khambatta, who played Lt. Ilia, and David Gautreaux, who was to be Xon, the new Vulcan replacement for Leonard Nimoy's Spock.

Meanwhile, Star Trek: The Original Series' actors like George Takei and Walter Koenig were contracted to return and were awaiting a start date. As was William Shatner to reprise Captain James T. Kirk. However, Leonard Nimoy was not factored into being part of Star Trek: Phase II, as the actor was in a financial conflict with Paramount. Hence, Xon was created to take the place of Nimoy's Mr. Spock.

3Star Trek: Phase II’s USS Enterprise Bridge Design Was More Organic

The Enterprise's Bridge Reflected New Technology

Star Trek: The Original Series' USS Enterprise bridge, as explained by Daren Dochterman, was made of wood panels that could easily be made in Paramount's in-studio workshop. Star Trek: Phase II's USS Enterprise bridge redesign took advantage of new fiberglass technology widely available in the 1970s.

The result was a "more organic" Starship Enterprise bridge, complete with a plush Captain's chair, and smooth, rounded shapes instead of hard angles. Innovations included a second turbolift door, a mini transporter, globe displays for navigation and tactical weapons, as well as sliding science compartments. Many aspects of Star Trek: Phase II's bridge would carry over into Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

2Star Wars Wasn’t The Reason Phase II Was Scrapped In Favor Of Star Trek: The Motion Picture

A DIfferent Sci-Fi Movie Hit Made Paramount Opt To Make A Star Trek Movie

Daren Dochterman also debunked the popular belief that Star Trek: Phase II was scrapped because George Lucas' Star Wars became a blockbuster in 1977. As Dochterman points out, the development of Star Trek movies, and early production of Star Trek: Phase II predated Star Wars' filming in 1976 and its premiere in May 1977.

Lost Voyages confirms that it was the blockbuster success of Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind that provoked Paramount to turn Star Trek into a movie to compete. Close Encounters becoming a hit for Columbia Pictures in late 1977, following the success of Star Wars at Fox, led Paramount to pivot Star Trek back into a feature film.

1When & Why Star Trek: Phase II Was Canceled In Favor Of Star Trek: The Motion Picture

What Could Have Been?

The other major factor as to why Star Trek: Phase II never happened was that Paramount was unable to make the plan to launch their own TV network financially feasible. Paramount abandoned its TV network, although 20 years later, the studio launched United Paramount Network (UPN) with Star Trek: Voyager as its flagship series.

However, other TV networks like NBC, CBS, and ABC opposed Paramount's attempt to create a competing network, and they would not buy Star Trek: Phase II if Paramount went ahead with its TV series. At that point, the logical course of action was to pivot Star Trek back into a feature film and develop "In Thy Image," a story concocted by Gene Roddenberry, Alan Dean Foster, and Harold Livingston, who wrote the screenplay for Robert Wise to direct.

Star Trek: Phase II was announced in July 1977, and less than a month later, after a long period of development and pre-production, Paramount canceled the new Star Trek series following a secret meeting on August 3rd. Paramount head Michael Eisner said, "For five years, we've been looking for the right Star Trek feature story. ["In Thy Image"] was it."

Many concepts and characters like Lt. Ilia were repurposed for what became Star Trek: The Motion Picture, which went wildly over budget but successfully launched Star Trek as a movie franchise. Meanwhile, Star Trek: Phase II faded into legend as the Star Trek TV show that might have been but never was.