News

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Director Nicholas Meyer has always come across as a touch arrogant when talking about his "Star Trek" movies. Meyer famously took the outline of the script to "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" and banged out a final draft within 12 days, accepting no pay and no credit. He was brought in amidst some trouble behind-the-scenes, as "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry had been locked out of the production after the box office underperformance of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture." Meyer not only saved "Star Trek II," but he also made a film that is, even today, considered one of the best "Star Trek" movies.

Meyer returned to the franchise in 1986 to co-write "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home," which was the most financially successful "Star Trek" film for many years. He would later circle back to the property once...

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), considered by many to be the best of the Star Trek films, is taking its place in history by being one of the latest films to be added to the National Film Registry for Preservation by the Library of Congress. Per TrekMovie, the Library of Congress announced that The Wrath of Khan will be one of 25 films added to the National Film Registry for 2024.

The movie’s director, Nicholas Meyer, took to Threads to express his thoughts on the honor. “I am greatly surprised and gratified by this honor, but I feel bound to say in the same breath that Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan, stands on the shoulders of many who contributed to the film as well as those who have gone before."

The movie follows the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise as they encounter the villain known as Khan,...

Of the 13 extant "Star Trek" feature films, it's widely agreed that Nicholas Meyer's 1982 sequel "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" is the best one. Many Trekkies like the outsize character of Khan and Ricardo Montalbán's equally enlarged performance, as well as the film's exciting, climactic ship-to-ship combat sequence. To remind readers, "Khan" climaxes when the eponymous character hijacks a Starfleet vessel called the U.S.S. Reliant and uses it to fight Admiral Kirk (William Shatner), who's aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise. Kirk, you see, had left Khan behind on the planet Ceti Alpha V in the original series episode "Space Seed," unaware that an environmental cataclysm had turned the entire planet into a desert wasteland. Khan barely survived, and when he finally escaped Ceti Alpha V, he thought only of revenge.

"The Wrath of Khan," which features a story credited to Harve Bennett and Jack B. Sowards...

"Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" has become a huge part of the franchise's legacy and is considered by many to be the best "Star Trek" movie of them all, but it was a serious challenge to bring to the screen. After the relative failures of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," franchise creator Gene Roddenberry was sidelined, allowing for a darker, grittier "Star Trek" than we had ever seen before. "The Wrath of Khan" is an operatic epic, following the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise under Admiral James T. Kirk (William Shatner) as they contend with genetically engineered villain Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalbán). Khan was one of the most terrifying antagonists from "Star Trek: The Original Series," specifically the episode "Space Seed," so bringing the character back was a big deal. It raised the stakes, as Khan had the capacity to do real damage — stealing terraforming...

Establishing continuity and canon with any cinematic universe can present itself as a challenge, especially when two installments take place decades apart from one another and through two different mediums. When Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn hit theaters in 1982, fans were treated to a showdown between two adversaries who had first crossed paths on television and were once again out to do battle on a larger screen. Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalban) first clashed in the original series in the episode "Space Seed," which had originally aired in 1967. 15 years later, their paths would cross once more.

The second confrontation between Kirk and Khan would feature a showdown between the two adversaries in the reaches of deep space and would take inspiration from one of the most cherished novels in the history of American literature, Moby Dick. Khan would assume the role of Captain Ahab,...

Star Trek is a worldwide franchise that is beloved by millions if not hundreds of millions of people. Its influence is well-known and the fandom is diverse. Scattered across races, religions, economic situations, and the like. So it's not surprising or shocking that some would embrace the franchise in their everyday walk of life.

Enter social media, where this week we saw one very specific cargo ship go viral on Twitter/X. That ship bore a name that many fans should be familiar with, the Kobayashi Maru. Of course that was the name of the stranded ship that Starfleet Cadets had to try and rescue. Dubbed the "no-win scenario" by many, the ship was the foundation of an important test that prospective captains had to take.

It put the students in a situation where they had to rescue the Kobayashi Maru from a nasty situation, while not engaging in a...

The "Star Trek" movie franchise was almost a one-and-done fiasco. Paramount had the highest of hopes when they released "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" on December 7, 1979, and, at first, it appeared as though their commercial expectations would be exceeded. The film scored the biggest opening of the year with a gross of $11.9 million (slightly better than the openings for "Alien" and "Moonraker"), but mixed reviews and ho-hum word of mouth (particularly from non-fans) kept it from being the runaway blockbuster it needed to be given its then exorbitant $44 million budget. It wound up being the fourth highest grossing film of 1979 behind "Kramer vs. Kramer," "The Amityville Horror" and "Rocky II").

The film's primary problem was its length and lack of action. At 132 minutes, Robert Wise's movie kind of lumbered; there are long, reverent shots of the U.S.S. Enterprise that, for many in the audience, quickly went from awe-inspiring to tedious.

Looking back at Star Trek history, the death of Spock seems superfluous. The infamous scene occurred at the end of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Leonard Nimoy went on to play Spock in six more films and The Next Generation. But none of those other appearances would have happened if Spock hadn't died in The Wrath of Khan.

Star Trek producers so feared the backlash from Spock's demise that they included a tease at the last minute suggesting the beloved Vulcan was only "mostly dead," according to documentaries produced and articles written since the film's debut. Yet when it was conceived, Spock's death was a major moment in the movie that everyone assumed would be the final film in the series. But as The Wrath of Khan continued into production, everyone began to realize Star Trek was a legitimate franchise -- and it was about to be...

Leonard Nimoy's wild answers to a question about Spock's fate protected a major Star Trek III: The Search for Spock spoiler from leaking ahead of the $87 million movie's release in 1984. Star Trek 3 picked up from Spock's death at the end of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. The cliffhanger tease, and the third movie's title heavily signposted that Spock would eventually return, but how that would happen was a closely guarded secret. Star Trek fans now know that Spock was resurrected by the power of the Genesis planet, but at the time, fans would stop Nimoy in the street to offer their own theories.

In a 1984 interview with Harold Greene (via TV Crew Guy), Leonard Nimoy spoke of how one fan accosted him to reveal his theory that Spock's brain would control the Genesis planet in the sequel. Put on the spot by Greene to explain if Spock would return,...

One great thing about Star Trek's longevity is that themes and concepts can reoccur in stories and be studied from multiple angles. One of the franchise's most important philosophical examinations is its study of the "no-win scenario." However, the famous Star Trek captains' test, called the Kobayashi Maru crew, only exists as it does because of a screenwriter's neighbor and a plot leak for the second movie.

Perhaps the best example of the Kobayashi Maru test can't actually be found at the moment. Star Trek: Prodigy was recently pulled from Paramount+, but the series' sixth episode was titled "Kobayashi." The premise of the canceled Prodigy is that a group of non-Starfleet refugees end up possessing an experimental Federation ship. Dal, who names himself captain, tried to pass the test in which a captain is required to rescue the USS Kobayashi Maru vessel from three Klingon warships. The test is designed to fail,...

In 1979, Paramount’s Star Trek: The Motion Picture hit theaters to a somewhat mixed reception from critics and audiences. Many had predicted that the film would be a big money loser because it had gone dramatically over-budget, making it one of the most expensive films ever made up to the point. In the end, the film eked out a profit. It did well enough that Paramount was willing to take another chance on the franchise. Still, their approach would be pretty different, drastically slashing the budget and hiring fewer A-listers behind the camera. But, to the surprise of all, this proved to be precisely the right move, with the resulting film, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, a smash-hit that relaunched the franchise as a legitimate big-screen property and introduced the adventures of Kirk, Spock and McCoy to a whole new generation.

When Paramount Pictures was preparing for a sequel,...

What is the secret to the enduring success of “Star Trek”? Any fan can tell you that it’s the creative and humanitarian vision of its creator Gene Roddenberry.

This is no more apparent than in a letter Roddenberry sent to Paramount Pictures’ Harve Bennett, who was hired to take over the “Star Trek” motion picture franchise after the first film. Bennett, who was taken with the character of Khan from the series’ episode “Space Seed,” proposed a story called “The Genesis Project” that would become the basis for “The Wrath of Khan.”

Read More: ‘Star Trek’: 50 Years of Films and TV, Ranked From Worst to Best

Roddenberry was not pleased with the first draft, since many elements went against all things “Star Trek” holds dear. As part of Project 366, Roddenberry Entertainment is releasing never-before-seen “Star Trek” content from the archives, including this exclusive-to-IndieWire letter from Roddenberry to Bennett...

While "Star Trek" is now a huge, beloved franchise, recently reinvigorated by J.J. Abrams' reboot (and, fingers crossed, next year's sequel to that film), it wasn't always like that. The original 1960s series had low ratings, and only lasted three seasons, and while success in syndication let to a film version being greenlit in the aftermath of "Star Wars," that film, 1979's "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," proved hugely expensive, and less profitable than Paramount had hoped.

Instead, it was the second film, 1982's "Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan," that really cemented its place in pop culture. Made for a quarter of the budget of the original, it won rave reviews, thanks to a faster pace and less reverent approach from non-Trekker director Nicholas Meyer, and earned the all-time biggest opening weekend up to that point, and is still held up as a high watermark for the franchise.

The cast that made the original series a cult classic, returned to the silver screen time and again to create a definitive film anthology in sci-fi culture. William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, James Doohan, DeForest Kelley, Walter Koenig, George Takei and Nichelle Nichols overcome enormous odds with each film to prove that galloping around the cosmos isn’t just a game for the young. The Star Trek: Motion Picture Trilogy takes three classic films that have stood the test of time and gives them a high-definition overhaul.

Among trekkies, the Star Trek films follow an odd pattern: the odd numbered films are bad; the even numbered films are great. The Star Trek: Motion Picture Trilogy on Blu-ray takes advantage of this theory and includes Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Not only does this...

Chicago – It’s a cliched line, but the Blu-Ray release of “Star Trek: Motion Picture Trilogy” has something for everyone. It’s a release that will satisfy a generation that grew up in the prime theatrical era of this franchise and give young viewers who fall in love wiht J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek” more of their new favorite series of films.

Blu-Ray Rating: 5.0/5.0 Buyers unfamiliar with the history of the franchise would naturally assume that “Star Trek: Motion Picture Trilogy” consists of the first three films in the now-eleven film series. Nope. Paramount cuts out the first film, the mediocre “Star Trek: The Motion Picture,” and focuses on what is easily the most beloved sub-series in the entire theatrical run of the Enterprise - “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan,” “Star Trek III: The Search For Spock,” and “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home”.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture...