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What went wrong with Star Trek: Nemesis?

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"It’s a fact,” the character of Tim Bisley once said in Spaced, “sure as day follows night, sure as eggs is eggs, sure as every odd-numbered Star Trek movie is s***."

Back in 1999 that observation was an empirical truth. 1998 had just seen the underwhelming Star Trek : Insurrection, movie number nine in the decades-running franchise, and the next film on from the box-office busting First Contact. Before that, every even-numbered Trek movie, from The Wrath Of Khan through The Undiscovered Country via The Voyage Home, had been a nailed-on classic.

Read more: How Wrath of Khan changed Star Trek forever

So hopes were skyscrapingly high for Star Trek: Nemesis before its release in December 2002 — 20 years ago this week. The fourth film for the Next Generation crew and the 10th overall, how could this even-numbered promise fail?

Yet Nemesis would become the movie that effectively killed Star Trek on the big screen. Grossing just $67 million (£41 million) against a $60 million (£37 million) budget (to put it in perspective, the Borg-centred First Contact raked in a cool $146m - £90m) it put a final full stop on a run of movies that had been a multiplex mainstay since 1979.

In the years since it’s become fashionable to bash Star Trek: Nemesis. When asked why he thought it had bombed, LeVar (Geordi DeForge) Burton simply said, "Because it sucked!"

Patrick Stewart later lambasted the film as a 'pretty weak' finale for The Next Generation crew, while Marina ‘Troi’ Sirtis branded the movie’s director, Stuart Baird, an 'idiot'.

So what went wrong with Star Trek: Nemesis?

Notably, it was the first of the Next Generation movies to be written and directed by talent fresh to the franchise. Certainly, it was Paramount who were keen on Stuart Baird directing, replacing Jonathan Frakes who’d overseen the previous two Trek movies.

Baird was a British director, better known as one of the sharpest editors in the business. Though his editing prints had been over a host of lionised movies, from The Omen to Superman to Lethal Weapon (he was Richard Donner’s go-to scissors guy), he was less accomplished as a director, with only two films on his CV before Nemesis: the Kurt Russell action thriller Executive Decision (1996) and the ho-hum sequel to The Fugitive, U.S. Marshals, from 1998.

Read more: New Star Trek show captures spirit of Original Series

Then there was John Logan. While Generations, First Contact and Insurrection had been scribed by Next Generation veterans, it was decided to entrust the 10th Trek movie to someone new to the series. It’s not hard to see why producer Rick Berman’s head was turned by Logan. Oscar nommed in 2000 for his work on Gladiator, Logan was a big deal back then (he went on to pen The Aviator for Scorsese and co-write Skyfall), but the script he turned in was, according to Berman , 'too long and way too wordy'.

Though Logan was a dyed-in-the-wool Star Trek fan, Baird had scant knowledge of the then-36-year-old series he was joining. Not only did he refuse to watch any episodes of The Next Generation before he started on the film, it appears he did little research on the actors and characters he was working with either (Baird reportedly called LeVar Burton ‘Laverne’ and believed Commander LaForge was an alien).

With Jonathan ‘Riker’ Frakes having helmed the previous two movies, the cast had been used to having a director who knew the series and their characters inside out. Yet because Insurrection tanked at the box office, Frakes was passed over for Nemesis.

“I think we would have kept a lot more of the Star Trek family in the movie,” Frakes told TrekMovie in 2009 regarding how he would have approached the film. “It would have been more about us than about Tom Hardy [Shinzon]. As great as he is and as great as his character was, people come on the first weekend of a Star Trek movie to see their family.”

It has to be said, however, that Nemesis was, in Baird’s words, 'trimmed to the wire', before its release and much of what was lost were those character moments, often at the expense of action.

Read more: Shatner suffered loneliness at height of Trek fame

“I think if there was ever a real need for an extended edition of any work we have done, it would be Nemesis,” Patrick Stewart told Dreamwatch magazine. “It wouldn’t be a Director’s Cut of the film… that may have been even shorter, but maybe an Actor’s Cut.”

According to some sources, nearly an hour’s worth of footage hit the cutting room floor. Wesley Crusher made his only appearance in a Next Gen movie in Nemesis, only all of his dialogue scenes were scissored out. Still, at least Wesley could be seen, if only by the eagle-eyed, during Riker and Troi’s wedding.

Steven Culp fared even worse. His character, Martin Madden, was to have been Picard’s new First Officer, and his only scene would have closed the movie, as the newly-christened Captain Riker passes the baton to his credulous replacement (“If you want to get on the Captain’s good side,” Riker teases, “call him Jean-Luc”). In the end, Culp’s role was cut completely.

In the end, whatever Nemesis’ faults, it’s not as calamitous as the soporific Insurrection or the blundering Final Frontier. There’s much to love in its admittedly truncated running time, whether it’s Tom Hardy’s frosty-eyed performance as the Picard-cloned Shinzon or Data’s valorous death.

But it’s not quite the send-off the Next Gen crew deserved after 15 years. While the original Kirk-led crew got a proper sayonara with The Undiscovered Country, Nemesis suffers from not quite knowing whether it’s the final hurrah for the crew of the NCC-1701-E or just the closing of a chapter in the vast Trek story.

Read more: Takei responds to Shatner's 'bile'

Whatever you think of it, Nemesis was the movie that finally disproved that theory that every even-numbered Trek film was a guaranteed champ.

And it turns out that it wasn’t the au revoir to the Next Generation crew that we thought at the time. Next year, Star Trek: Picard is reuniting that cast, hopefully giving them the send off they deserved back in 2002.

And it’ll be that series’ third season, proof – if ever needed – that Star Trek has finally gotten over its odd-numbered curse.

Star Trek: Nemesis is streaming on Paramount+.

Watch a trailer for Star Trek: Picard

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Ranking Star Trek Movies By How Much They Made At The Box Office

Space may be the final frontier for humanity to venture into, but somewhere even more important for "Star Trek" features is the movie theater. Here is where audiences experience new adventures starring beloved captains, admirals, and assorted crew members with countless other strangers, all bonded over the emotions that only "Star Trek" can deliver. This realm is also where box office receipts are collected, a critical factor in determining the course trajectory of the "Star Trek" franchise. Dating back to the days of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" becoming a big enough success to spawn several sequels, dollars and cents have played as big a part in determining the future of "Star Trek" as anything else in this eternal saga.

Ranking the "Star Trek" movies by how much money they grossed at the worldwide box office , from lowest to highest-grossing, it becomes clearer than ever why certain entries in this series took off like a rocket with general audiences while others just sank like a stone and nearly capsized the entire franchise. Given that these movies have been released over multiple decades, this practice also gives one a peek into box office trends of different eras. Most importantly, though, breaking down the reasons the most lucrative "Star Trek" titles were so successful is bound to make one further appreciate the specific joys "Star Trek" has been unleashing for so long now.

Star Trek: Nemesis

Around 2002, the "Star Trek" film series wasn't a massive blockbuster property, but it had turned into a steady moneymaker for Paramount Pictures. The three preceding installments in the series, each starring the cast members of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," had all managed to crack $117 million globally, while 1996's "Star Trek: First Contact" had even hit $150 million worldwide. All that good financial fortune would come grinding to a halt with "Star Trek: Nemesis," which ended its worldwide box office run with a dismal $67.3 million , including an atrocious $43.2 million in North America.

That worldwide gross was down 43% from the global total of the last "Star Trek" title, "Star Trek: Insurrection" and was beneath all prior "Star Trek" adventures. A multitude of problems plagued "Nemesis" at the box office, including getting dwarfed at the box office by other blockbusters. Opening one week before "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers," "Nemesis" had much more competition to face than prior "Star Trek" titles. For comparison's sake, the biggest wide releases "Star Trek: Insurrection" had to face four years earlier were "Jerry Maguire" and "Mighty Joe Young." Meanwhile, that four-year gap since "Insurrection" also hurt "Nemesis," especially since the former garnered a divisive response . Considering all these factors, it becomes significantly less surprising that "Star Trek: Nemesis" hit a new box office low for the "Star Trek" saga.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

The "Star Trek" film series was coming off a box office high note with "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home," and "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" hoped to keep the good times rolling. Paramount's renewed confidence in this saga was reaffirmed by scheduling "Star Trek V" for release in the heart of summertime, instead of the Thanksgiving launch of "The Voyage Home." Unfortunately, "The Final Frontier" ended up coming up short on box office expectations with only $70.2 million worldwide , down 45% from the global box office gross of "The Voyage Home" and the lowest-grossing "Star Trek" title up to that point.

The biggest issue "The Final Frontier" faced was its release date. This "Star Trek" entry wasn't just opening in the summertime, it was opening in June 1989 . The summer of 1989 was a famously crowded corridor that saw "The Final Frontier" opening right after "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" and directly before the debuts of "Ghostbusters II" and "Batman." With all these heavyweight franchises to contend with, it's no wonder "The Final Frontier" got lost in the shuffle. Downright negative critical reviews also didn't help, especially since this installment was coming off the well-liked "The Voyage Home." Though not a total box office failure, "The Final Frontier" brought the "Star Trek" series back down to Earth after a big boost in financial clout.

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

At the end of "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan," Spock had perished...or had he? "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock," as the title implied, would be all about whether or not this Vulcan would be returning to the franchise full time. The prospect of seeing a fan-favorite character come back wasn't enough to make "The Search for Spock" bigger than all other preceding "Star Trek" movies, but it did manage to deliver a solid showing all the same.

In North America, "The Search for Spock" dropped into theaters in June 1984 and grossed $76.4 million , roughly on par with the $78.9 million gross of "The Wrath of Khan." On an $18 million budget, that was more than enough to make this a profitable venture and enough to make it one of the 10 biggest films in North America in 1984. The positive buzz from "The Wrath of Khan" and the promise of seeing Spock return had lured in moviegoers once more. The biggest problem here, though, was the international figures, which reflected that overseas audiences had finally given up on "Star Trek." International box office amounted to only $10.6 million, a far cry from the $56.8 million "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" accumulated from those same territories in 1979. Still, the domestic gross was solid enough to make "The Search for Spock" a reasonable success.

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

In modern discussions about the "Star Trek" movies, "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" tends to be talked about in the same manner as "The Empire Strikes Back" or "The Godfather Part II" as a sequel that vastly surpasses its predecessor. Given this reputation, it's shocking to remember that "The Wrath of Khan" is one of the lower-grossing "Star Trek" movies worldwide. Just because it's not as lucrative as other "Star Trek" features, though, doesn't mean "The Wrath of Khan" was a total wipeout financially.

In its entire box office run, "The Wrath of Khan" managed to score $95.8 million worldwide , a 30% drop from the global gross of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture." Much of this appears to be due to international grosses, as "The Wrath of Khan" only decreased from its predecessor by 5% domestically but was down a staggering 70% from the first movie globally. Perhaps the novelty of seeing the "Star Trek" characters on the big screen had just worn off for moviegoers in these territories by the time "The Wrath of Khan" rolled around. Still, solid domestic grosses and positive reviews ensured that "Star Trek II" was nowhere near the end of the road for the Enterprise crew at the movies.

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

The U.S.S. Enterprise has often gotten out of tricky situations, but by 1991, the "Star Trek" franchise was in a conundrum that could have stumped even Captain Kirk. "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" had brought the franchise to a new low at the worldwide box office. The financial viability of this property as a big-screen enterprise was suddenly more questionable than ever. The pressure was on for "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" to bring home the box office bacon and reignite people's passion for this series.

Luckily, several factors coalesced into making "The Undiscovered Country" a needed box office hit. This included the film scoring positive reviews and its release date tying into the 25 th anniversary of the original "Star Trek" TV series . The latter event helped "The Undiscovered Country" rocket its way to $96.9 million worldwide , a great haul for a $27 million-budgeted movie. That was also enough to make this installment the 13 th biggest movie of 1991 . While below the global grosses of two preceding "Star Trek" titles, "The Undiscovered Country" managed to conquer some daunting challenges and get this franchise back into shape at the box office.

Star Trek: Insurrection

With "Star Trek: First Contact," the "Next Generation" era of "Star Trek" movies had hit a new financial high. Naturally, there would be a sequel in the form of "Star Trek: Insurrection." The hope here was to maintain the box office momentum of "First Contact" and, initially, it looked like "Insurrection" would be able to do just that. Box Office Guru reported that the film cracked $22.1 million on opening weekend. That was beneath the domestic debuts of its two predecessors, but the hope was that opening in December (in contrast to the November launch pads of the previous "Star Trek" installments) would keep this one around longer. Plus "Insurrection" opened atop all other movies in North America, giving Paramount Pictures its 19 th instance of ruling a domestic box office weekend in 1998.

In the end, "Star Trek: Insurrection" didn't quite hold on as strongly as it could have, with the film eventually grossing just $70.1 million domestically , a sharp 25% decline from "Star Trek: First Contact." Worse, its worldwide haul was only $117 million, a disappointing sum for a title that cost $70 million to produce. After hitting a high with "First Contact," "Insurrection" charted the "Star Trek" franchise into bumpier terrain.

Star Trek: Generations

When it came to "Star Trek: Generations," the box office pressure was on. This franchise wasn't exactly in the doldrums when "Generations" was preparing to hit movie theaters, but it wasn't in peak shape either. The last two entries in the saga had failed to clear $100 million worldwide and now it was time for the "Next Generation" cast members to headline movies. It was understandable to be concerned over whether or not people would flock to movie theaters to see Picard and company the same way they had to see the highest-grossing movies headlined by Kirk's U.S.S. Enterprise crew.

"Generations" did have an ace up its sleeve, though, in the form of William Shatner coming back as Kirk to pass the torch. Melding the old and the new like this made for a perfect marketing gimmick to hinge the whole film on. As a result, "Generations" was able to make $120 million globally , the third-biggest haul for a "Star Trek" title up to that point. The only downside was that this was the installment where it became clear that "Star Trek" wasn't gaining much momentum internationally. "Generations" grossed a mere $44.3 million in overseas territories and wound up the 18 th biggest movie of 1994 worldwide , a far cry from when "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" was the fourth-biggest movie of 1979 globally. Still, "Generations" was a hit in every other respect and a rousing start to the "Next Generation" crew's tenure as "Star Trek" movie stars.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

In the context of "Star Trek" as an entire franchise, "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" can best be described as "the one with the whales." The simpler and lighter plot of this outing could have made it the movie where "Star Trek" jumped the shark and embraced flights of fancy over more intellectual pursuits. Instead, this premise helped inspire a movie that's still generating positive responses to this day, with many calling it a high point in the entire franchise. This extremely appreciative response can be traced back to the film's initial theatrical release in 1986, when "The Voyage Home" scored significant box office results.

In its worldwide run, "The Voyage Home" grossed $133 million , including a $109.7 million North American haul. The latter sum made it the only "Star Trek" title to exceed $100 million domestically until "Star Trek" in 2009. Made on a $24 million budget, "The Voyage Home" was wildly profitable and was the fifth-biggest movie released in 1986 globally. Even back then, audiences were wild about "The Voyage Home," as seen by how it was given an A+ CinemaScore grade by audiences . When you make a film that resonates with people, especially when it involves whales, the sky is the limit for your box office potential.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

The "Star Trek" film series began in 1979, with the fittingly titled "Star Trek: The Motion Picture." This being the first time the franchise played on the big screen, not to mention the first time cast members like William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy worked together since "The Original Series" went off the air a decade earlier, "The Motion Picture" was a theatrical event. Its eventual box office run managed to live up to the hype, scoring $139 million worldwide .

That was enough to make "The Motion Picture" the fourth-biggest movie of 1979 globally and, for nearly two decades, the biggest entry in the "Star Trek" series worldwide. All the anticipation for this production no doubt fueled its box office success, but it didn't hurt that "The Motion Picture" was able to premiere right after "Star Wars" and "Superman: The Movie" fueled the hunger of audiences for big-budget sci-fi blockbusters. Though its tone was more "2001: A Space Odyssey" than "Star Wars," the concept of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" was right in line with what moviegoers were hungering for. Though a sizeable (for that era) $44 million budget meant that it wasn't an enormously profitable venture, "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" still did more than well enough to launch the next era of "Star Trek" adventures.

Star Trek: First Contact

The website TrekMovie did a breakdown in 2008 of the marketing campaigns for each of the "Star Trek" films. When it came to 1996's "Star Trek: First Contact," the site observed that this feature had the most widespread marketing campaign of any of the "Star Trek" movies starring the "Next Generation" cast members. The ubiquitous presence of promotional materials culminated in "Star Trek: First Contact" becoming a major box office hit, one that became the biggest "Star Trek" entry globally until 2009.

Scoring such a noticeable achievement came largely down to the positive reception that the film stoked among "Star Trek" devotees. In a retrospective on the film for The Hollywood Reporter , "First Contact" cast and crew members such as screenwriter Brannon Braga recalled that the movie played like gangbusters to theatrical audiences, a sign that word-of-mouth was bound to be strong. This was borne out in the picture's box office performance, as it soared across the cinematic landscape with $150 million worldwide, including a notable $92 million domestically . The latter number was enough to make it the 17 th biggest movie of 1992 and the third-biggest feature of the year for Paramount in North America. Launching at Thanksgiving, not to mention an avalanche of marketing, made "First Contact" a prime moviegoing option for people everywhere.

Star Trek Beyond

The third entry in the rebooted "Star Trek" film series, "Star Trek Beyond" brought director Justin Lin to the franchise while also attempting to bring things a bit closer to the meditative and ensemble nature of the original "Star Trek" (albeit with motorcycle stunts and a Beastie Boys needle drop). However, arriving seven years after the 2009 "Star Trek" movie, the novelty of seeing young Kirk and Spock had worn off a bit. Exacerbating matters was that "Star Trek Beyond" was opening in late July 2016, a crowded month for summertime fare that meant this new installment would be opening directly before "Jason Bourne" and "Suicide Squad."

"Star Trek Beyond" would eventually gross $158.1 million domestically , a 28% drop from the North American haul of "Star Trek Into Darkness," but beyond all pre-2009 "Star Trek" movies in the territory. The bigger problem, though, was the $176.8 million international gross, a lackluster sum for a summer tentpole that cost $185 million to make. Grossing only $335.6 million globally, "Star Trek Beyond" was undoubtedly hindered by strong competition from other blockbusters . However, it didn't help that the marketing failed to establish an especially strong villain, while the divisive nature of "Star Trek Into Darkness" hurt the public's perception of this iteration of the franchise. Even as it wound up the third-biggest installment in the saga, "Star Trek Beyond" couldn't help but come off as underwhelming.

The 2009 "Star Trek" movie wasn't just a reboot of the "Star Trek" series. It was also a do-or-die moment for the franchise's box office prospects. After "Star Trek: Nemesis" had flopped at the box office seven years earlier, the cinematic landscape had changed further. "Star Trek" would now be opening in May 2009 in a summer blockbuster scene defined by superheroes and transforming robots. Would there be room anymore for Captain Kirk and friends? Could this saga get the "Batman Begins" treatment or would "Star Trek" go into the wastebasket of pop culture properties?

Turns out, those understandable concerns were not warranted. "Star Trek" took off like a rocket at the box office, especially in North America. While no prior "Trek" movie had exceeded $110 million domestically, "Star Trek" managed to speed past that mark in its second weekend of release, on its way to a $257.7 million haul . Overseas, the franchise was more subdued, but the $119.1 million intake from international countries was still a sizeable increase from all other entries in the saga. "Star Trek" managed to exceed all box office norms, thanks to a reboot that promised familiar characters like Kirk and Spock but told in a fast-paced, action-heavy manner that could appeal to 21 st -century moviegoers. It was the perfect blend of the old and the new, and when you throw in excellent reviews , then it seems like "Star Trek" was always destined to reenergize the saga.

Star Trek Into Darkness

It took a little while to get a sequel to the 2009 "Star Trek" reboot off the ground. Thanks to director J.J. Abrams committing to the 2011 sci-fi hit "Super 8," he couldn't get around to delivering a further "Star Trek" movie until May 2013. Arriving four years after its predecessor, this project was wrapped up in mystery, particularly around who exactly new cast member Benedict Cumberbatch was playing.

All the speculation and anticipation resulted in "Star Trek Into Darkness" grossing $467.3 million worldwide . This sizable haul made it the first "Star Trek" title to crack $400 million globally and also the first installment in the franchise to gross more internationally than domestically. That was big enough to make the project the 14th largest title of 2013 globally . The only downside here was that "Into Darkness" made less than the 2009 "Star Trek" movie in North America. This result was likely due to the lengthy wait for the sequel and "Into Darkness" opening between "Iron Man 3" and "Fast and Furious 6." On the other hand, "Into Darkness" maintaining 88% of its predecessor's domestic haul despite these obstacles speaks to how much the 2009 "Star Trek" had resonated with audiences. In the end, "Star Trek Into Darkness" still managed to take the saga where no "Star Trek" movie had gone before at the box office.

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Remembering Star Trek Nemesis – 10 Years Later

| December 13, 2012 | By: John Tenuto 238 comments so far

Nemesis – Great Promise after a long wait

10 years ago, Star Trek: Nemesis premiered with great expectations. It was being directed by veteran editor Stuart Baird, responsible for such films as Superman: The Movie, and it was written by arguably one of the most in-demand screenwriters of the day, John Logan, who was just coming off an Oscar win for Gladiator . Logan volunteered to write for Star Trek because he was such a big Next Generation fan. Nemesis featured a promising story by Rick Berman, Brent Spiner, and Logan that would reveal more about the history of the Romulan Star Empire. The entire main TNG crew of actors had re-assembled, along cameos from Whoopi Goldberg and Wil Wheaton, and audiences were being told this was the "final journey" of the Next Gen crew. Jerry Goldsmith (another Oscar-winner) was also back, along with veteran makeup artist Michael Westmore. Everything was promising a big Star Trek film with success at the box office.

On television, Star Trek: Enterprise was in its second year. It had been four years since a Trek film had graced the big screen. The gap between Insurrection and Nemesis was the longest since the film franchise kicked off in 1979. It took some convincing to get Paramount to do another film with the TNG crew following what Paramount felt was underperforming box office of Insurrection. Apparently the cast even took pay cuts to make the film happen.

I saw Star Trek: Nemesis under unusual circumstances, for me, anyway. My wife Maria Jose and I had recently had a son, Nicky, who was only six month old at the time of Nemesis ’ premiere. We both had to see the film individually on opening day, taking turns watching our new son. Maria Jose went first, to the 3:25PM show. There were few people in the theater, but that wasn’t surprising considering it was a December afternoon with students finishing their semester tests. I was confident the later show I was attending would be crowded, and while there certainly were more people there, it was not as packed as previous Trek opening days had been. I began to worry then as the entire “franchise fatigue” bells had started to ring in the media.

I was bolstered, albeit temporarily, by Nemesis earning $18 million its opening weekend, number 2 at the box office. We did our part, going again the next day with my parents. The excitement would diminish when the film earned only $7 million each week for the next two weeks and it became clear that Nemesis was not resonating with a wider audience. In the end the film grossed $67 million off a reported budget of $60 million. After factoring in the cut for distributors and cost of marketing, this would be the first Star Trek film to take a loss at the box office. While Nemesis may have gone into the black with home media, it was dubbed a ‘bomb.’

What happened?

But why? All the ingredients were there for a good film: great actors who knew their roles, talented behind the scene Star Trek veterans, excellent special effects, and an intelligent script written by John Logan that respected the characters. The film also introduced audiences to Tom Hardy as Shinzon, and he has gone on to a very successful career, including Christopher Nolan’s Inception and The Dark Knight Rises .

Certainly some of the perceived plusses actually became minuses. Baird’s direction has been famously revealed to be unsuited to the Star Trek world. Logan’s script is very good, but it was heavily edited because of the long running time. Indeed, the film may have been more successful if they kept it to its more than 2.5 hour running time despite that meaning there would be less showings possible per day in theaters. The budgetary limitations, with the actors reportedly agreeing to less money to help the film get made, were also quite evident with the sets and some of the effects.

It did not help that the film was poorly promoted. A Del Taco promotion, a website, some television commercials, and a few toys were not enough to tell the general audience why they should see Nemesis . It also did not help that a James Bond film, a Harry Potter film, and a Lord of the Rings film all opened around the same time.

Still a worthy Star Trek movie

Yet, I liked Nemesis then, and I like it now. Data’s relationship with Picard is one of loyalty and friendship, seen excellently in the film. In fact, the camaraderie between the characters is undeniably good in Nemesis, from the wedding sequence to Data’s funeral. Picard’s solution of ramming the Enterprise into the Scimitar is fun and surprising, and there are plenty of Trek easter eggs, like Admiral Kathryn Janeway’s appearance or the name of a ship being the U.S.S. Archer, provided by Logan’s script. It was great to learn more about the Romulans and their history, something the unfilmed and edited moments from the script go into even more detail about. The film does all this with some of the best dialog of the franchise, showing a wit and literacy missing since the Nicholas Meyer scripts. Of course, Goldsmith scores again with his score.

New ships like the Scorpion attack fighter and the excellent lighting and cinematography on Kolarus III help distract from some of the other budgetary limitations. Data’s death, yet promised rebirth, offers an appropriate melancholy end to the TNG adventures. Data’s idea that what makes us human is our trying to better than we are is pure Trek, and quite right. And as sociology professors, how could my wife and I not like a film that argues that we are more the result of our social experiences than we are our DNA?

What is important is that Nemesis has a place in Star Trek history. It is the last filmed adventure of the TNG crew, at least as of this date (there is always hope!). It is an important timeline moment, with fans discussing the post Nemesis adventures of the extended universe and the pre Nemesis filmed adventures. And, ironically, the failure of Nemesis at the box office meant a radical regrouping of the film franchise resulting in Star Trek 2009. A bald Romulan leader with a long coat from Nemesis may have inspired Nero and his band in more ways than one.

When I think of Nemesis, and when I think of 2002, however, I remember a time when Picard and crew ruled the film franchise. I think of a film where I said goodbye to my TNG friends. And I think of midnight feedings of our new son, while playing the Nemesis music to stay awake.

Final frontier: 'Star Trek: Nemesis' marked the end of an era 20 years ago today

Raise a glass of Romulan ale for this final "Star Trek" film starring "The Next Generation" cast

Overshadowed by competition and often unloved by fans, "Star Trek: Nemesis" celebrates its 20th birthday today as the tenth movie in the franchise and the final "Star Trek" film to feature Patrick Stewart's Captain Jean-Luc Picard and "The Next Generation's" intrepid crew.

After the somewhat tepid box office and critical flaying of 1998's " Star Trek: Insurrection ," interest was waning in the aging " Star Trek " franchise and audiences were turning to "Star Wars" sequels, "Harry Potter" movies, and "The Lord of the Rings" films to get their sci-fi/fantasy fix.

" Star Trek: Nemesis " was cast into the mix in the wake of its previous "Star Trek" sibling during the holiday season where it floundered against other tentpole releases like "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," "The Santa Clause 2," and "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers." When the tinsel finally settled it had only raked in a paltry $67 million in worldwide box office receipts.

Related: Star Trek movies, ranked worst to best

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Dropped into the crowded popular entertainment galaxy on Dec. 13, 2002 and directed by British filmmaker Stuart Baird, "Star Trek: Nemesis" has Picard altering the USS Enterprise's course following a scheduled rendezvous for Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Counselor Troi's (Marina Sirtis) wedding ceremony, to a tenuous peace treaty negotiation with the Romulans, who had rejected a plan to untie the forces of the planets Romulus and Remus.

Picard is soon shocked to learn that Shinzon (Tom Hardy), the recently "appointed" Praetor of the Romulans after a deadly coup, is actually a cloned Reman derived from his DNA to replace the venerable leader with a Romulan agent in the heart of Starfleet. After Enterprise crew members stumble across a computer system hack, a perilous game is played to thwart Shinzon and his Romulan warbird from completing a plan to attack Earth and cripple the Federation's armada.

Baird does a serviceable job keeping plot mechanics moving in this $60 million sequel, but there's a glaring absence of depth that begins to feel tedious after the initial narrative revelations. It's a handsome movie though, shot by "Top Gun" and "Mission Impossible 2" cinematographer Jeffrey L. Kimball, yet disappointingly infused with a forgettable orchestral score by the Academy Award-winning composer Jerry Goldsmith ("Planet of the Apes," " Alien ," "Star Trek: First Contact").

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Stuart Baird's resume included editorial duties on classics like "The Omen," "Superman: The Movie," "Lethal Weapon," "Die Hard 2," and "Demolition Man," which explains the film's fluidity and momentum despite being shackled to John Logan's inert screenplay.

Looking a bit like "Hellraisers'" Pinhead minus the studs, a young Tom Hardy is charismatic as the intense rebel chieftain. He's certainly up to the task of holding his own against the imposing talents of Stewart and their interplay and exchanges make for compelling drama.

And who can forget Data (Brett Spiner) singing "Blue Skies" at the nuptials, the sentient android discovering a younger prototype of himself, and Data's sacrificial death in the climactic scenes. Veteran character actor Ron Perlman ("Hellboy") also shines as Shinzon's Viceroy Vkruk, who carries an air of warrior-like menace though his screen lines are kept to a bare minimum.

"Nemesis'" visual effects and sets are impressive, especially the design of the intimidating Reman warbird, the Scimitar, glimpses of the dilithium mines of Remus where Shinzon was held for ten years as a slave, and the steel-buckling ramming of the Scimitar by the Enterprise in the showdown finale.

The USS Enterprise faces off against the Scimitar in

The wordiness of "Star Trek: Nemesis" and its tepid melodrama might not have been the "Star Trek" film we wanted to close out the legacy of cinematic sequels that had existed after 1978's "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," but it's still an engaging entry with a professional sheen and enough interesting performances to warrant a repeat viewing, especially on the occasion of its 20th anniversary.

It would be seven long years after "Nemesis" before J.J. Abrams rebooted the franchise in 2009 with "Star Trek" and its Kelvin Timeline, a similarly tenuous position the theatrical series now finds itself in after director Justin Lin's mediocre 2016 entry, "Star Trek Beyond." Will blue skies shine for the franchise once again?

"Star Trek: Nemesis" is currently streaming on HBO Max and Paramount+.

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Jeff Spry is an award-winning screenwriter and veteran freelance journalist covering TV, movies, video games, books, and comics. His work has appeared at SYFY Wire, Inverse, Collider, Bleeding Cool and elsewhere. Jeff lives in beautiful Bend, Oregon amid the ponderosa pines, classic muscle cars, a crypt of collector horror comics, and two loyal English Setters.

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A Look Back at Star Trek: Nemesis , the Film That Killed a Franchise

On February 1, Star Trek: Nemesis leaves Netflix in America. This also happens to be the same year as that film’s 15th anniversary. So I decided to rewatch it to see if my memory of this film as a complete disaster was true.

Star Trek Nemesis

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A coup d'état on Romulus brings a new praetor, Shinzon, to power. However, Shinzon is not a Romulan, but rather a genetic duplicate of Captain Jean-Luc Picard. After being banished to the planet Remus for years, he now plots to draw the Starship Enterprise and her crew into a deadly confrontation and destroy the Federation once and for all.

1.1 Romulus, 2379
1.2 Earth (Holodeck)
1.3 Next stop, Betazed
1.4 What do we have here on Kolarus?
1.5 A new mission
1.6 Romulus
1.7 En route to Earth
1.8 The Battle in the Bassen Rift
1.9 Cease fire
1.10 The Romulans arrive
1.11 Spacedock: Earth
2 Log entries
3 Memorable quotes
4.1 Cast trivia
4.2 References to other series and films
4.3 Sets, props, and costumes
4.4 Promotion
4.5 Merchandising
4.6.1 Merchandise gallery
4.7 Box office performance
4.8 Reception
4.9 Deleted scenes
5 Apocrypha
6 Awards and honors
7.1.1.1 Cast
7.1.1.2 Stunts
7.1.1.3 Crew
7.1.1.4 Songs
7.2.1 Okudagram references
7.2.2 Meta references
7.2.3 Unreferenced material
7.4 External links

Summary [ ]

Romulus, 2379 [ ].

Romulan capital

On Romulus , in the capital city, two Romulan commanders are urging the Senate to accept an alliance with Shinzon of Remus , an opportunity that would make the Empire powerful enough to outmatch any foe in the Quadrant , even the Federation . Unfortunately, their proposal falls on deaf ears, as Praetor Hiren silences him, telling him that " the military does not dictate policy on Romulus " and that Shinzon and his followers will be met with all deliberate force and sent back to " that black rock they came from! " Seeing that the Praetor has made himself clear, the two commanders leave (after a covert glance at Senator Tal'aura ).

Praetor Hiren consumed by mysterious radiation

As soon as they are gone, Tal'aura stands and excuses herself for a scheduled meeting with the Tholian ambassador . As the Senate begins discussing trade relations with Celes II , a small device left behind by Tal'aura opens, sending a cascade of greenish energy particles over the room. Confused, the Praetor calls for security to bring Tal'aura back, but it is too late – the entire Senate begin to decay from inside, and the Praetor himself topples to the ground and crumbles into dust …

Earth (Holodeck) [ ]

The wedding

Captain Picard speaks about how a Starfleet captain's life is filled with solemn duties. Picard remembers commanding men in battle, negotiating peace treaties between implacable enemies and leading numerous first contact missions, but all of that pales in comparison with the duty he is performing now… as best man .

There is a wedding reception in progress for Commander (soon to be Captain) Will Riker and his new wife, Deanna Troi on Earth at the foot of the magnificent Alaskan mountains of Riker's home state. At the table, along with Picard and the Rikers, are Data , Geordi La Forge , Worf , Beverly Crusher , and her son Wesley Crusher . Picard talks about how as a best man, he is expected to be gracious and very complimentary on this blessed union but he begins jokingly complaining that they are not considering the "damned inconvenience," they are putting him through: the USS Enterprise -E is losing its first officer and counselor in one go, as they depart for Riker's new command, the USS Titan , where Picard is sure they will be blissfully happy, while he is left behind having to train his new first officer, " a tyrannical martinet who will never, ever allow me to go on away missions! " Data – to whom Picard is referring – begins quoting the applicable Starfleet Starfleet regulation , and Picard amiably tells him to "shut up." While the assembled laugh, Picard remarks that he's waited for fifteen years to say that to Data.

Picard solemnly tells Riker and Troi they still have time to change their minds, but they decide "nah." So Picard raises his glass, and expresses his sincere thanks to Riker and Troi as his indispensable guides and advisers, and wishes them both the greatest happiness in their new lives together. " You are my family ," he says. Picard, in the best maritime tradition , wishes them both clear horizons and to "make it so". He invites everyone to join in his toast , " To the bride and groom! " Everyone raises their glass in a toast and Riker leans over and kisses Deanna, his new wife.

Later, as the guests dance, Geordi La Forge is sharing a table with Guinan and asks if she has ever considered remarrying. She says no, stating that " twenty-three was my limit. " Meanwhile, a very hung-over Worf moans and grumbles that Romulan ale should be illegal, and La Forge reminds him that it is.

Back at the main table, Troi compliments Picard on his toast and she assures him she will brief his new counselor on all she needs to know, but Picard absolutely forbids it, saying Troi already knows too much about him as it is. Picard asks if he'll have to make a speech during the ceremony on Betazed . Riker tells him there'll be no speeches – and per tradition, no clothes either.

Data stands up on the dais and calls for everyone's attention. He announces that, according to his studies of Betazoid and Terran marriage traditions, both cultures find it customary to present the happy couple with a gift . Given Riker's fondness for archaic Terran musical forms, Data's gift to Riker and Troi, " in honor of their conjugation, " is him singing " Blue Skies ". The song is a big hit with the happy couple and most of the guests, while Worf sinks his head back down onto his table with a groan and mutters " Irving Berlin… "

Next stop, Betazed [ ]

La Forge, Data, Riker, Worf, and Picard, 2379

" We will all honor the Betazoid tradition. "

Later, as the USS Enterprise -E is making its way to Betazed, Picard steps out onto the bridge while Troi is trying to convince Worf to honor the Betazoid wedding tradition – since, after all, he more than anyone should understand the importance of tradition. Worf appeals to Picard, saying it is inappropriate for a Starfleet officer to appear naked in public. Picard jokingly wonders what a "handsome, strapping fellow" like Worf would have to be embarrassed about. Before Worf can say anything, he is interrupted by a beeping from the tactical console, which has detected a signal coming from the Kolarin system – a positronic signature. La Forge narrows it down to the third planet in the system . Data speculates that as this signature has only been transmitted so far by androids created by Dr. Noonien Soong , Data's creator. Picard decides to set course for the planet, despite it being very close to the border with the Romulan Neutral Zone . Picard finds the planet to still be well on the Federation side of the border and believes it is worth taking a look at. Picard assures Riker that they will still arrive in time for the ceremony on Betazed where, Picard makes it clear, especially for Worf, that they will all observe the Betazoid tradition. And with that, Picard is off to the ship's gymnasium. Riker orders the ship to the Kolaran system at warp five and La Forge wonders if Data is about to discover a long-lost relative.

The Enterprise enters orbit of Kolarus III

In orbit, six separate positronic signatures are detected. La Forge recommends that they not use the transporter as there is an ion storm nearby and there's always a chance that it could come their way. With that in mind, Picard tells Worf and Data to go with him. Riker tries to tell Picard that it's his job to go down and not Picard's, but Picard invokes captain's prerogative, especially as he's been wanting to try out the Argo . Plus the fact that Picard knows that Troi would never forgive him if anything should happen to Riker. As he leaves the bridge, he jokingly tells Riker " You have the bridge… Mr. Troi, " causing snickers all over the bridge.

What do we have here on Kolarus? [ ]

The Argo flies out from the Enterprise 's shuttlebay and lands on the surface. The away team takes the Argo 's auxiliary all-terrain buggy out and Picard has fun with driving it at high speed around the local terrain . The team finds pieces of an android strewn throughout the area and, although the android is completely disassembled, its various pieces – including the head (which is identical to Data's) – are still active; an arm reaches out and grabs Worf by the foot, startling him, and the head speaks to Data. However, just as the searchers locate the final piece, they come under attack from Kolaran natives in vehicles of their own, so Picard drives the Argo back to the shuttle while Worf mans the buggy's aft phaser cannon . Data has the shuttle waiting behind a cliff. Picard jumps the buggy off the cliff and into the shuttle, where it is secured. The shuttle lifts back off toward the Enterprise .

" You know, all things considered, Data, I think you have nicer eyes. " " Our eyes are identical, doctor. "

Back aboard the ship, Dr. Crusher looks at the newly discovered android's head and decides that Data has nicer eyes. Confused, Data points out that his eyes are identical to the other android's. La Forge's scans reveal that the android is likely a prototype built by Dr. Soong, as the android has the same physical makeup as Data, but not nearly as much development in its neural pathways. Data asks the head what its name is and the head refers to himself as B-4 . Picard notes that Soong's penchant for whimsical names ("Before") continues. Data asks if B-4 knows how he got to the planet or anything about his life prior to that, but B-4 knows nothing. Picard tells La Forge to reassemble him. Data asks if B-4 knows him and B-4 tells Data " You are me. " Data corrects him and tells B-4 that his own name is Data and that he is B-4's brother. It is becoming clear that the state of B-4's positronic brain results in him being simple-minded.

A new mission [ ]

In his ready room , Picard orders Earl Grey tea from his replicator while reading a PADD at his desk . Shortly after, he receives a message from Starfleet Command and when the signal comes through, he's pleased to see the recently-returned Admiral Janeway on the screen. Janeway surprises Picard by sending him on a diplomatic mission to Romulus . The recently-installed Praetor , Shinzon , has requested a Federation envoy. As if that weren't surprising enough, Shinzon himself is Reman , not Romulan, having ascended as a result of some kind of political shake-up. Janeway says that Starfleet is just as confused as Picard must be, but needs an experienced captain on the scene, and the Enterprise happens to be the closest ship to the Romulan border. Janeway warns Picard to watch his back, and to be careful, since instability in the Empire could have consequences for the entire quadrant.

Picard steps out onto the bridge and tells the helmsman, Lieutenant Branson , to set course for Romulus, regretfully telling Riker " I'm afraid the Opal Sea will have to wait, Number One. " With Picard's command, the Enterprise warps into Romulan territory.

In the observation lounge , Data briefs the crew on what little the Federation knows of Remus and the Remans: the planet Remus is tidally-locked , leaving one side permanently facing the Romulan sun and therefore uninhabitable, and the other side in permanent dark, which is where the Remans live. Virtually nothing is known of life on the planet, except Starfleet Intelligence has conducted long-range scans that indicate the presence of dilithium mining and heavy weapons construction.

As for the Remans themselves, Data notes that they are, in the hierarchy of the Empire, second-class citizens , but Riker notes that they also have a reputation as being formidable warriors; during the Dominion War , Reman troops were used as ground assault troops (i.e., cannon fodder) in the most violent encounters. La Forge wonders how a Reman could have become Praetor, and Riker theorizes that the Remans must have orchestrated a coup d'état with the support of the Romulan military .

Picard asks what is known about Shinzon himself. Data reports that Starfleet has nothing except a portion of his military record, from which it can be inferred that he is relatively young, but a very capable commander, having fought twelve successful engagements in the war. Picard remarks that the Enterprise is truly " sailing into the unknown " and asks everyone to keep up their research.

On the way to Romulus, Data, with La Forge's help, downloads a copy of his memory into B-4. Data is hopeful that with his memories and information that B-4 will be more successful in becoming a productive member of society. To Data's silent disappointment, the results of the memory download do not appear to be successful but La Forge notes that B-4 is assimilating a lot of information and it could just take some time. Data examines the back of B-4's head while La Forge is talking, and discovers an unknown port on his neck . La Forge thinks it may be a redundant memory port, believing it could possibly be provisional memory storage in case B-4's neural pathways overload. La Forge decides to keep B-4 with him in order to see if there's more he can do for him.

Romulus [ ]

On the bridge, the crew continues to wait. Picard asks Troi for impressions, and she reports that " they're out there, captain. " Worf recommends raising shields but Picard refuses. Riker comments that " with all due respect to diplomatic protocol, the Federation Council isn't sitting out here; we are. " Picard reminds Riker that " diplomacy is an exacting occupation " and that they will continue to wait. On the viewscreen, a massive warship decloaks in front of them, easily twice the size of the Enterprise . Worf automatically begins to raise shields, but Picard tells him to stop and calls for a tactical analysis. Worf scans the ship and reports grimly that the vessel is loaded with weapons systems: 52 disruptor banks , 27 photon torpedo bays, and primary and secondary shield generators . Picard grimly sums up the vessel: " She's a predator. "

They are hailed by the warship. A Reman holding a scepter appears on screen and identifies their ship as the Reman Warbird Scimitar . Picard, thinking this is Shinzon, begins to address him, but the Reman tells them he is not Shinzon, but rather his viceroy . He relays transport coordinates to the Enterprise and promptly cuts off the transmission. The senior staff head for the transporter room.

Praetor Shinzon

They beam over to Scimitar and find themselves in a darkened room. A man hidden from view up a flight of stairs asks their forgiveness for receiving them in such a darkened room but Remans are uncomfortable in light. The man, Shinzon, finally walks into view although his face is still hidden by the darkness. He tells Picard that he imagined Picard to be taller and that Data may scan him without trying to hide the tricorder . Picard tells Shinzon he is not what they imagined him to be and Worf correctly identifies him as Human . Shinzon takes notice of Troi while Picard asks why they were summoned here. Shinzon says he's never met a Human woman before, but Troi tells Shinzon she's only half-Human. Shinzon recites many statistics about Troi, how she's from Betazed, and the ship's counselor. All this Shinzon knew, but he states he did not know she was so beautiful. Riker, obviously concerned about the remarks Shinzon is making about his wife, comments that he seems to know a lot about their personnel, Shinzon tells Riker he does indeed. He asks Troi if he can touch her hair, but Picard steps in and tells Shinzon that they came on what was made to sound like an important mission and if Shinzon has any real business to do with them, he should get on with it. Shinzon apologizes and says there is much to discuss. Shinzon proposes unity, tearing down the Neutral Zone and establishing peace. Shinzon tells Picard that he's likely thinking this is too good to be true, but that a chance for peace cannot be ignored. When Picard confirms it, Shinzon raises the light level in the room, which causes the Viceroy to step back into the shadows. No one but Picard recognizes who Shinzon appears to be. Shinzon looks just as Picard did in his early 20s. They are of the same flesh, the same blood, the same person. Shinzon tells Picard to come tomorrow to Romulus and the two of them – or rather – the one of them, will have dinner and speak more about the future then. He pulls out a knife, cuts his hand, and gives the blood stained blade to Data, knowing they'll want to scan it. He bids them farewell, returns the light back to the previous levels and he and the Viceroy leave the room and the away team beams back up to the Enterprise .

In sickbay, Beverly Crusher examines the bloodstain in the computer and tells Picard that right down to his aggressive strain of Shalaft's Syndrome , Shinzon is a clone of Picard. She notes that they probably cloned him from a hair follicle or a skin cell of Picard's. Riker wonders why the Romulans would clone Picard; Picard tells Riker that he intends to find out.

On Romulus, Suran is growing impatient with Shinzon, telling him that they only supported him because Shinzon said it was time for an attack on the Federation but now Shinzon is delaying and he wonders what purpose bringing the Enterprise here serves. Shinzon tells Suran he doesn't have to understand Shinzon's purpose and that he should really learn patience – something that spending eighteen hours a day being harassed by a Romulan guard will teach a man. Shinzon sends them away but asks Commander Donatra to remain a moment. Shinzon tells Donatra to consider the word "allegiance," and that he demands that from people who serve him. He says that Donatra serves him and he believes she does so faithfully but not so with Suran. Donatra asks Shinzon to consider the word "trust" and asks if he trusts her and to what extent. She asks what she should do to prove herself faithful as an officer and as a woman. Shinzon, however, tells her that she's not a woman, but merely a Romulan. He tells her to watch Commander Suran and if he shows any sign of disloyalty, he is to be eliminated. Then she will have proven herself. On her way out, Shinzon tells Donatra that if she ever touches him again, he will kill her. She leaves the Senate hall as Shinzon doubles over immediately after and the Viceroy touches his chest and appears to calm him. Donatra meanwhile, watches the entire incident outside the door.

In Data's quarters, B-4 seems to receive a signal. He stops petting Spot and walks over to the computer and begins working it with the apparent skill and ability of Data.

That next day, in the Senate Hall, Shinzon tells Picard he was created from a sample of Picard's DNA and that at the right time, he would replace Picard and be a Romulan spy in the heart of Starfleet. When Picard asks what happened, Shinzon explains that the plan was abandoned some time ago when a new government came to power and they deemed the idea too risky, fearing it would incite a war with the Federation were he discovered. Shinzon explains that his face isn't exactly as Picard's was because of how he's endured a lifetime of violence, with the Romulans breaking his nose and jaw. But Shinzon says that the eyes should be very similar and Picard agrees. Shinzon says a man's eyes reflect the life he's led and says Picard's eyes are so confident. Shinzon confesses he hoped to grow to a height of two meters, a feeling Picard shared. Picard asks how Shinzon ended up on Remus and Shinzon tells Picard that he was sent to the Reman mines to die. They didn't think a Human would last very long there. Shinzon recalled not seeing the stars again for almost ten years after he arrived and also how the only thing the Romulan guards hated more than the Remans was him. He would have died quickly had a man not taken pity on him and kept the Romulans away from him. The man that helped him when he was only a small child became his Viceroy after Shinzon began his rise to power. He tells Picard that everything he has done has been for the sole purpose of liberating the Remans, from building the Scimitar at a secret shipyard to assembling his army and finally coming to Romulus in force. Shinzon realized the Romulans would never willingly liberate them and so they would have to forcibly take their freedom.

When Picard asks just how many Romulans died for their freedom, Shinzon has to admit it was "too many", but he is also glad to see that the Empire is finally beginning to realize there is a better way, the way of peace. Shinzon realizes that Picard doesn't trust him and Picard has to admit it is so. Shinzon tells Picard that if it had been him on Remus, he would be doing the exact same thing; Picard tells Shinzon if he were in Picard's position he'd know that Picard's responsibility to the Federation prevents him from letting his personal feelings affect his judgment. Shinzon remarks that all he has to go with are his personal feelings, and that he wants to know what it means to be Human. While the Remans have given Shinzon a future, he wants to know about his past. Picard says that he can tell Shinzon about Picard's own past. Shinzon asks if the Picards were always warriors. Picard says he prefers to think of himself as an explorer, so Shinzon asks if they were always explorers. Picard says he was the first of the family to ever leave the solar system ; it caused a great stir in his family, but he had spent his life looking at the stars and dreaming of new worlds. Picard says that he wants to believe Shinzon and that the Federation strongly believes that all races can be united, and that a Starfleet captain standing in the Romulan Senate is a good example of that. Picard adds that when the trust of the Romulan Empire has been earned, he will be pleased to take Shinzon's hand in friendship.

Dr. Crusher explains

Later, back aboard the Enterprise , Worf reports an unauthorized access of the ship's main computer and that La Forge is working on locating the source, but what he finds strange is that no restricted material was accessed – just basic stellar cartography and colony tracking station uplinks, for example. Picard says that they must still find the source of the break-in. La Forge also tells Picard that when the Scimitar decloaked, they detected thalaron radiation ; because it was thought to be theoretical, initial scans didn't detect it earlier. Picard remembers how research into thalaron radiation was outlawed in the Federation because it could be used as a biogenic weapon. Crusher tells Picard that merely a microscopic amount of the radiation could kill all life on the Enterprise -E in seconds.

In the Senate, the viceroy tells Shinzon that this was a mistake and they are wasting time. The viceroy reminds Shinzon that he must not forget their mission and they must act now. Shinzon says he'll spend his time how he pleases, but that he was merely curious about Picard.

In Picard's quarters, Crusher comes to visit him. They reminisce about how Picard was when he was younger, and Crusher mentions that he turned out alright. Picard says that he wanted to believe Shinzon, but the evidence of the thalaron radiation proves that whatever he is after, it is not peace. Picard tells Crusher that Shinzon is very much as Picard was when he was younger. Data signals from engineering and says he and La Forge have found the source of the unauthorized access, as well as a way to take tactical advantage of it.

In Riker's quarters, Riker and Troi head for bed and they begin kissing each other passionately. In Troi's mind, Riker disappears and is replaced by Shinzon, telling her that Riker can never know Troi as Shinzon could. Troi realizes this isn't real, but the image of Shinzon changes into the Viceroy. As it turns out, the Viceroy is creating a sort of mental link and placing himself and Shinzon in Troi's mind, a form of telepathic rape . Riker finally manages to snap Troi out of the assault, and Shinzon tells the Viceroy to find her again. Another Reman enters and informs Shinzon that they've received the transponder signal. As he leaves, Shinzon doubles over again. The Viceroy touches Shinzon's chest and tells him that Shinzon's condition is accelerating and that he has no more time for games. Shinzon tells the Viceroy to get the doctors ready.

On the bridge of the Scimitar , Shinzon orders B-4 beamed aboard. The Remans tap into him and begin a download of the files that he accessed from the Enterprise . Meanwhile, Shinzon orders a cup of hot tea.

In sickbay, Crusher tells Troi that, other than elevated readings of adrenaline and serotonin , she's all right. Troi tells Picard that she was violated and that she feels herself to be a liability, and asks to be relieved of duty. Picard denies her request, telling her if she can withstand any future assaults, he needs her by his side now more than ever with the Enterprise being so far from Federation space. Before he can say anything further, Picard is beamed away before Riker can order Worf to put the shields up. The Scimitar cloaks and moves away from the Enterprise .

Aboard the Scimitar , Picard is restrained in a medical lab. Shinzon has the doctors take a sample of Picard's blood and he points out that B-4 was bait that Picard couldn't refuse. Shinzon says that with the information obtained from B-4, he now has all of Starfleet's communications protocols and knows the exact locations of the entire Federation fleet. Shinzon says his life has no meaning as long as Picard is alive. Picard says that if Shinzon has issues with him, then Shinzon should deal with him, and leave the Enterprise and the Federation alone. However, Shinzon says that the Remans will no longer bow before anyone – not the Romulans, and not the Federation. Shinzon says that if Picard had lived Shinzon's life, Picard would do the exact thing Shinzon is doing. Picard tells Shinzon that he's a mirror for Shinzon as well, but Shinzon says that he won't be for long, and that he's about to witness the echo triumph over the voice.

On the Enterprise , La Forge tells Riker that Shinzon's cloak is perfect and that there's no way to detect the Scimitar . Riker tells La Forge to keep trying.

Emergency transport unit - arm compartment

The emergency transport unit concealed in Data's forearm

On the Scimitar , B-4 enters and tells the Reman guard that Shinzon wants the prisoner. As the guard releases Picard, B-4 – revealed to be Data posing as B-4 – gives the Reman a Vulcan neck pinch to incapacitate him. After completely freeing Picard, Data tells Picard that Scimitar is, for all intents and purposes, an enormous thalaron generator. He also tells Picard that the information he (as B-4) gave Shinzon was false, created by himself and La Forge. He offers Picard the prototype of the emergency transport unit that La Forge gave him. Since it will only work for one person, Picard says he and Data will find a way off together.

The viceroy comes to the bridge and tells Shinzon that it's time; Shinzon goes with him to the medical lab. Meanwhile Data, acting as B-4, has Picard cuffed and taken at gunpoint away as an act to fool any passing Remans. Eventually, when Shinzon and the Viceroy arrive at the medical lab, they find the doctor just waking up and Picard gone. The Viceroy kills the Reman doctor on Shinzon's order, and the alert is sounded. Picard is freed of his manacles and given a disruptor. Once they reach the shuttlebay, Data attempts to decipher the code while Picard holds off the Reman security force by himself. Data does not have much luck initially, as Reman is a very complex and difficult language. Picard urges him on, telling him, " We really need that door open! " Finally, Data manages to punch in the right code. He and Picard enter the shuttlebay, and Picard welds the bay doors shut with his disruptor rifle. Data tells Picard that the shuttles on board are Scorpion -class attack fliers . While the Reman guards try to shoot through the door, Picard tries to become acquainted with the controls of the fighter. After being able to lift off, Data tells Picard that force fields have been erected around exterior portals, preventing them from leaving through the shuttlebay doors. Picard has Data fire through the door from which they came, and flies the fighter through the Scimitar 's corridors. They finally return to the observation deck where Shinzon had initially received them, and fly out through the window. This causes a disruption in the cloaking field, revealing the location of the Scimitar . Shinzon notices the fighter flying toward the Enterprise and orders that it be caught in a tractor beam . At the same time on the Enterprise , they see the fighter flying toward them, and Riker has Worf transport the fighter aboard into a shuttlebay. As transport completes, the Enterprise races away from Romulus at maximum warp.

Commander Suran shortly thereafter calls Shinzon and tells him his patience is wearing thin, wondering why Shinzon continues to delay further after promising that it was time for action. Shinzon tells Suran that the Enterprise won't even make it out of the Neutral Zone , and that two days later, the Federation would be crippled beyond repair. Shinzon asks if that will satisfy Suran, who says it will, "for the moment." Shinzon says that when he returns to Romulus, he and Suran will have a little chat about showing proper respect. He closes the channel. Tal'aura wonders what's happening to Shinzon's face. Before everyone leaves the Senate Hall, Donatra stops Suran and asks him if he's truly ready to have his hands drenched in blood, and explains that instead of trying to conquer Earth, Shinzon plans on annihilating it; that crime will dishonor and stain their hands with blood for many generations.

En route to Earth [ ]

Later, aboard the Enterprise , Beverly Crusher explains that Shinzon is dying from genetic degeneration because he was created with a temporal RNA sequence, which would allow him to skip thirty years of his life in order to reach Picard's actual age more quickly. But since that wasn't activated, his body is beginning to break down and the only thing that will save him is a complete blood transfusion from Picard, which would kill him. Crusher says she doesn't know how long it will take for Shinzon to die, but knows that the effect is accelerating. With this information at hand, Picard realizes that Shinzon will come for him.

In Data's quarters, Data has B-4 restrained and activates only cognitive and vocal subroutines. Data tells B-4 that because he is a danger to the ship, he must be deactivated indefinitely. However B-4 does not understand and wishes to be released but Data cannot allow it. Data asks about Shinzon's plans, but B-4 doesn't have any useful information. B-4 asks how long "indefinitely" is, and after deactivating him, Data says it is a long time.

During a senior staff briefing, La Forge calls Shinzon's weapon a cascading biogenic pulse and that the properties of thalaron radiation allow the weapon to expand its radius enough to affect a ship, or even a planet. Picard realizes that the only reason Shinzon would have built such a weapon would be to destroy Earth. If Humanity is destroyed, the Federation is crippled and would be an easy target for a Romulan invasion. La Forge also reluctantly tells Riker that there is no way to penetrate Shinzon's cloak. Crusher notes that Shinzon will likely come after Picard before going to Earth, which is what Picard is counting on. He tells the crew they're being sent to Sector 1045 to meet Star Fleet Battle Group Omega ; hopefully the fleet will be able to stop the Scimitar . Picard stands and tells the staff that under no circumstances can Shinzon be allowed to use the weapon, and that all other concerns are secondary. After Riker assures him they understand his order, Picard orders the ship to battle stations .

On the Scimitar , the viceroy touches Shinzon's chest, and tells him that he only has a matter of hours and they must begin the procedure. As it turns out, the Scimitar is cloaked and right behind the Enterprise . The viceroy tells Shinzon they will reach the Bassen Rift in seven minutes.

In astrometrics , Picard asks Data where their current position is. Data reports that they will reach the fleet in forty minutes. Picard remarks that Shinzon called himself a mirror of Picard, but Data disagrees, saying the events of Picard's life have created a unique individual. He compares Picard's situation with Shinzon to his situation with B-4; he says that while B-4 may be physically identical to Data aside from the former's less developed neural ability, B-4 would not be Data even if he did have equal mental powers. Data explains that he aspires to be better than he is, as does Picard – but neither B-4 nor Shinzon share that trait. As they begin passing through the rift, their connection to Starfleet Cartography is interrupted, and Data explains that all long-range communication will be affected. As he does so, both he and Picard realize that this is what Shinzon has been waiting for. Picard taps his combadge and orders Riker to take evasive maneuvers, but it is too late, as Shinzon has already begun firing at them. Shinzon orders his gunner to only target weapons and shields, as he doesn't want the Enterprise destroyed.

The Battle in the Bassen Rift [ ]

The next shot knocks out the Enterprise 's warp drive , causing it to revert to impulse speed. The Scimitar is visible for the briefest moment as it too drops out of warp, disappearing completely as it turns about to resume the attack .

Picard and Data arrive on the bridge as disruptor blasts continue to impact the Enterprise . Riker reports that they cannot return fire while the Scimitar is firing through its cloak, and La Forge says their warp drive is inoperable. Picard orders Worf to fire a full phaser spread at zero elevation, with photon torpedoes ready to launch at any shield impact. The Enterprise looses a corona of phaser blasts, a few of which hit the Scimitar behind it, but it easily evades the volley of torpedoes. On his bridge, Shinzon sneers, " You're too slow, old man, " and orders his crew to perform Attack Pattern Shinzon Theta.

Passing overhead, the Scimitar rakes the Enterprise 's dorsal hull with disruptor blasts, almost draining its shields in that quarter. Picard orders a full-axis rotation to port, and to fire all ventral phaser banks. The Enterprise scores several hits, but only causes minimal damage to the Scimitar . Riker orders evasive pattern Kirk Epsilon and Picard calls Troi to the bridge. Shinzon hails and asks to see Picard in his ready room.

Cease fire [ ]

In the ready room, Picard encounters a holographic Shinzon , who tells him not to bother trying to trace the holographic emitters. Shinzon wants Picard to surrender and to allow him to transport Picard aboard his ship. When Picard asks about the Enterprise , Shinzon says he has little interest in it. Picard asks Shinzon to look at him; he says that Shinzon's heart, hands and eyes are all the same as his own, and that they all have the same potential. Picard tells Shinzon that using that potential to make yourself a better man is what it means to be Human. Shinzon dismisses all of this as childish dreams he lost in the brutality he experienced in the Reman mines. Picard says that he knows that deep down, they are a better man than someone who would exterminate an entire planet's population. Picard asks if Shinzon will waste his life with in a blaze of hatred, and says he can make another choice. However, Shinzon says that he can't change what he is, and that he will show Picard their true nature; he says his voice will echo through time after Picard's fades to a dim memory. With that, the hologram disappears. Picard sighs sadly, forced to accept that he has lost his last chance to get through to Shinzon, and now has no choice but to fight him to the death.

The Romulans arrive [ ]

Shinzon returns to his bridge just in time to see two Romulan Warbirds decloak. On the Enterprise , Picard steps out just in time to see the same thing. Riker tells Picard this is happening " just when I thought it couldn't get any worse. " At that moment, they are hailed and Commander Donatra, aboard the warbird Valdore , offers her assistance to the Enterprise . Picard is amazed that they're here to help them instead of Shinzon. She explains that the Empire considers this situation a matter of internal security and she apologizes that Picard has had to get involved. Picard says when this is over, he owes Donatra a drink; Donatra suggests Romulan ale. The three ships get to work coordinating with each other to make a full attack on the Scimitar . Shinzon attacks the flanking Warbird and manages to disable it. The Valdore makes a strafing run on the Scimitar . Shinzon orders a partial de-cloaking and has the ship come to a full stop, making it looks like the Scimitar has suffered significant damage. Donatra takes the bait and has the Valdore close in. At the critical moment, Shinzon fires all weapons just as Valdore passes over them, and Valdore is disabled as well. Donatra tells Picard they have life support but are otherwise disabled. With the Romulans out of the way, Scimitar turns its attention back to the Enterprise . With shields failing and the hull beginning to fail in certain areas, Troi has an idea.

On Scimitar , as Shinzon prepares the next attack, the viceroy suddenly gasps in shock. When Shinzon asks what's wrong, the Viceroy tells him " She's here… " Troi has used the same trick the viceroy did earlier to get Shinzon in her mind. She is locating the viceroy through her mind and at the same time, guiding Worf's hand to precisely locate the Scimitar . After a few moments, she locks onto the Viceroy despite his attempts to resist, telling him to " Remember me! " At that moment, she tells Worf " Now! ", and Worf fires a full volley of quantum torpedoes toward the Scimitar , all of which score direct hits. Picard has the Enterprise continue to fire. The ship makes a strafing run over the Scimitar while slamming it with phasers and more quantum torpedoes, which finally disable the cloak. Shinzon orders the Viceroy to prepare a boarding party and to go get Picard. Shinzon orders full disruptors targeting one specific point on the Enterprise ; it is enough to disable the Enterprise 's shields, and the Reman boarding party beams to the Enterprise . Riker and Worf lead a team to confront their intruders. On the way, Worf admits to Riker that the Romulans fought with honor, and Riker agrees.

Reman boarding party

At that moment, the parties meet, and a firefight ensues in the corridor. The viceroy, after sneering at Riker, eventually ducks into a Jefferies tube ; with Worf covering him, Riker follows. They soon meet in the tube, the viceroy knocking Riker's phaser rifle away and cutting Riker's arm with his knife.

The Scimitar fires on the bridge, destroying the viewscreen and causing a massive hull breach that blows the helmsman, Lieutenant Branson , out into space. The rest of the crew hang on to whatever is nearby until the emergency force fields are put in place. Picard calls for medical teams as Troi races down to take over the Ops position in order to pilot (the conn position having been destroyed along with half the bridge). Data reports that they have exhausted their torpedo complement and phasers are down to four percent. Picard considers targeting all phasers on one spot, but with the Scimitar 's shields still at seventy percent, La Forge tells him it would make no difference. The Scimitar pulls into position so they can see it right through the hole in the bridge where the viewscreen was. Troi wonders what Shinzon is doing. Picard realizes that Shinzon is trying to look him in the eye; thinking Shinzon knows what Picard will do, Picard realizes they have a chance to get him. Picard tells La Forge to divert all power to engines and has Troi standing by. Shinzon hails and asks if Picard is still alive; Picard says he is. Shinzon suggests that Picard go ahead and surrender. Picard tells Shinzon that when he was in the Academy , during his first evaluation, he was considered to be very overconfident; Picard cuts off the channel before Shinzon can finish his reply. Meanwhile, as he was talking to Shinzon, Picard sent Troi an order via text message to prepare to engage the engines at full impulse on his command. As Picard cuts off the channel, he tells Troi to engage, and orders all hands to brace for impact. Troi takes the Enterprise to maximum impulse on a direct collision course with the Scimitar . Shinzon quickly notices what Picard is doing and orders evasive action, but not in time. The Enterprise collides with the Scimitar , and starts to plow its way through the main hull. The Enterprise suffers massive damage, throwing the entire crew off their feet and destroying several sections of the ship, while the Scimitar 's hangar and other decks are completely demolished by the saucer. Eventually, the Enterprise comes to a stop, leaving both ships locked together.

In the Jefferies tube, Riker gets the drop on the viceroy and kicks the knife away from him; at that point, their battle becomes a hand-to-hand brawl.

USS Enterprise-E and Scimitar following collision extraction

The Battle in the Bassen Rift

On the Scimitar , Shinzon orders full reverse on the engines, which separates the ships and destroys several decks, leaving part of the Enterprise 's saucer section in the Scimitar . During the pull away, Riker and the viceroy fall into a chasm, likely caused by the ship's separation; Riker, hanging onto a metal causeway, kicks the Viceroy's leg out from under him and sends him plummeting to his death.

With both ships separated and all other options exhausted, Picard attempts to initiate the auto-destruct sequence; however, the computer informs him that it is offline. On the Scimitar , Shinzon is told that their disruptors are off-line. Shinzon orders that the weapon be deployed and used to kill everyone on the Enterprise ; afterward, they are to set course for Earth and complete their mission. As the thalaron matrix begins to activate, Shinzon quietly says to Picard that there are some ideals worth dying for.

The activation is noticed on the Enterprise . When Picard asks how long they have, La Forge says the sequence should take about seven minutes as the thalaron radiation is relayed to the firing points; once that happens, no one on the Enterprise will survive. When Troi wonders how Shinzon can do that, knowing it will kill Picard, Picard tells her it's not about him anymore. Picard picks up a phaser rifle stored behind a wall on the bridge and orders La Forge to prepare for a site-to-site transport . When La Forge begins to tell Picard that he might not make it, Picard says that's an order. Data asks Picard to let him go, but Picard says he must do this. He leaves Data in command, and tells him to try to put some distance between them and the Scimitar . Just as the transport completes, they short out and transporters go down. Data orders Troi to assume command and takes La Forge with him. Data and La Forge head for an exposed corridor that faces Shinzon's vessel. The two old friends exchange a brief look at each other, knowing it is for the final time, before La Forge activates another force field between him and Data. As Data runs toward the hole in the ship, La Forge deactivates that force field which, as he leaps, blows Data out of the Enterprise and toward the Scimitar . When he reaches it, Data grabs hold and activates a hatch, allowing him access.

On the Scimitar , Picard heads toward the bridge, shooting any Reman he comes across. Upon reaching the bridge, Picard destroys the door and begins firing at any and all Remans on the bridge. One Reman gets close to him; he beats the Reman with his phaser rifle, which unfortunately destroys the rifle. Shinzon and Picard begin brawling, and Picard loses his phaser when it falls out of its holster. Picard gets away from Shinzon long enough to get up close to the thalaron generator, but realizes he's lost his phaser; between the generator and him is Shinzon, holding a knife. The two have another close fight, and the knife is lost into the thalaron generator, destroying it immediately. Shinzon pulls out a smaller blade, but Picard, against the wall, pulls down a pipe and impales Shinzon with it. Shinzon pulls himself along the pipe, running it all the way through himself; he puts his hands around Picard's neck, and tells him that he's glad they're together at that moment and that their destiny's complete. Shinzon dies with his hands around Picard's throat, and Picard is left frozen in shock.

"Good bye…"

Data enters the Scimitar 's bridge, goes up to the generator, and pulls Shinzon's body off of Picard. In the ultimate sacrifice, Data activates the emergency transport beacon on Picard, who disappears just as he begins to protest. Data softly says " Goodbye. " He turns toward the thalaron generator, which will fire in ten seconds; he aims his phaser at the thalaron generator and shoots it in the final seconds, which destroys the generator, the Scimitar , and himself along with it.

Data makes the final sacrifice

From the Enterprise , La Forge and Troi witness the destruction of Scimitar , shocked by what they see. They turn and see Picard standing on the bridge. Troi asks about Data, but Picard can only shake his head. The Valdore signals as Commander Donatra tells Picard she is sending shuttles with medical personnel and supplies; she informs Picard that he's earned a friend in the Romulan Empire , which she hopes will be the first of many. A devastated Picard asks La Forge to open the doors, as the Romulans won't know their procedures. He tells La Forge to " just open the doors. " La Forge gently assures Picard that he'll take care of it as Picard retreats to his ready room.

A toast to Data

Later in Picard's quarters, he hands glasses of Chateau Picard to Riker, Troi, La Forge, Crusher, and Worf. He makes a toast in remembrance of their fallen crewmate and friend. Troi begins to cry, and in Irish wake tradition, Riker, through tears, chuckles and recalls the first time he saw Data on the holodeck . Riker mentions how Data was trying to whistle but couldn't ever get the tune right, but Riker can't remember the name of the tune Data was trying to whistle.

Spacedock: Earth [ ]

The Enterprise undergoing repairs

Later, after the Enterprise is taken to Earth, the ship is undergoing extensive repairs in drydock . Picard is reading something in his ready room when Riker comes in, now wearing his captain's rank pips, and asks Picard for permission to disembark, which Picard grants. Picard asks where Titan is headed off to and Riker tells Picard they're going back to the Neutral Zone and that they're heading up a task force out there. It seems the Romulans are now interested in talking. Picard offers Riker one piece of advice and Riker is happy to take it. Picard tells Riker that when his first officer insists that he can't go on away missions to ignore him. Riker says he intends to. The two men and old friends clasp hands. Riker tells Picard that serving with him has been an honor and Picard says the honor was his. And with that, Captain Riker leaves the Enterprise to head for the Titan .

Picard goes to his quarters and talks to B-4, telling him about Data's goal of becoming more Human and that Data's wonder about Human nature allowed them to see the best part of themselves and Data embraced change because he always wanted to be better than he was. B-4 doesn't understand though and Picard says he hopes B-4 eventually will and that they will talk again. Worf calls and tells Picard they're ready to put the warp engines online and Picard leaves for the bridge. B-4 begins to mumble lyrics from "Blue Skies." Picard helps him continue by singing along a couple of lines. As he walks down the corridor, Picard smiles knowing that a small part of Data survives in B-4 and that despite all that's changed recently, things will indeed be all right.

Log entries [ ]

Memorable quotes [ ].

" A starship captain's life is filled with solemn duty. "

" Data? " " Sir? " " Shut up. " " Yes, sir. " " Fifteen years I've been waiting to say that! "

" Did you ever think about getting married again? " " No. Twenty-three was my limit. "

" Romulan ale should be illegal. " " It is. "

" But I take it there will be no speeches during the ceremony on Betazed? " " No. No speeches and… no clothes. "

" Ladies and gentlemen, and invited transgendered species… "

" Captain, I do not think it is appropriate for a Starfleet officer to appear… naked. " " Oh, come now! A big, handsome, strapping fellow like you? What can you be afraid of? "

" Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be in the gym. "

" The Son'a, the Borg, the Romulans – you seem to get all the easy assignments. " " Just lucky, Admiral. " " Let's hope that luck holds. "

" You have the bridge… Mister Troi. "

" I will always be puzzled by the Human predilection for piloting vehicles at unsafe velocities. "

" It appears to be a robotic arm. " "Very astute. "

" Why do you have a shiny head? "

" B-4? Doctor Soong's penchant for whimsical names seems to have no end. "

" Why does the tall man have a furry face? "

" I am in a room, with lights! "

" Jean-Luc… how'd you like a trip to Romulus? " " With or without the rest of the fleet? "

" Diplomacy is a very exacting occupation. "

" Raising shields! " " No! " " Captain… " " Tactical analysis, Mr. Worf" " 52 disruptor banks, 27 photon torpedo bays, primary and secondary shielding " " She's a predator "

" Come to dinner tomorrow on Romulus! Just the two of us. Or, should I say, just the one of us? "

" Our eyes reflect our lives, don't they? And yours, so confident! "

" If there is one ideal the Federation holds most dear is that all men, all races, can be united. "

" Remember him? " " He was a bit cocky as I recall. " " He was a damn fool. Selfish, ambitious, very much in need of seasoning. " " He turned out alright. "

" As ship's counselor, I recommend you come and get some sleep. " " Some honeymoon! "

" Why am I here? Why have you done this? " " I was lonely. "

" What is it your Borg friends say? Resistance is futile. "

" What am I while you exist? A shadow? An echo? "

" I'm a mirror for you as well. " " Not for long, Captain. I'm afraid you won't survive to witness the victory of the echo over the voice. "

" And like a thousand other commanders on a thousand other battlefields, I wait for the dawn. "

" For now we see but through a glass darkly. "

" Can you learn to see in the dark, captain? "

" Captain Picard, Commander Donatra of the warbird Valdore . Might we be of assistance? " " Assistance? " " The Empire considers this a matter of internal security. We regret you've become involved. " " Commander… when this is over, I owe you a drink. "

" The Romulans… fought with honor. " " Yes, they did, Mr. Worf. "

" Goodbye. "

" Captain, we are being hailed. " " On screen. (looks up to see there is not screen) Open a channel. "

" You've earned a friend in the Romulan Empire today, captain. I hope the first of many. "

" To absent friends. To family. "

" Serving with you has been an honor. " " The honor was mine… captain. "

" Never saw things… " " …going so right. " " …going so right. "

Background information [ ]

Filming on Star Trek Nemesis began on 28 November 2001 ( citation needed • edit ) and wrapped on 8 March 2002 , overlapping with the filming of the first season of Star Trek: Enterprise . ( Star Trek: The Magazine Volume 3, Issue 2 , p. 6)
This TNG film featured the longest gap between it and the preceding movie, a span of about four years. This was also the longest drought in the Star Trek franchise until it was surpassed by the next film in the series, Star Trek, which was released nearly six and a half years later. However, due to its poor box-office performance and reception, Nemesis was also the last film chronologically set in the prime universe (save for the Spock Prime mind-meld 2387 flashbacks in the 2009 film).
There are no opening credits save the title. Both the letter "R" in "Trek" and the second "E" in "Nemesis" are presented backward within the words in order to introduce the idea of a mirror image. In the audio commentary of the DVD, Rick Berman says that he "was not crazy" about the inversions.
Brent Spiner receives partial story credit for this film, following in the footsteps of Leonard Nimoy who co-wrote the story for the final appearance of the Star Trek: The Original Series cast in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country .
The Enterprise -E is not the first Federation starship to visit Romulus . The USS Bellerophon visited the planet in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode " Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges ".
This is the only TNG film not to feature the Mintakan tapestry ( TNG : " Who Watches The Watchers ") somewhere in Picard's quarters.

Enterprise-E saucer section, regeneration

Enterprise -E saucer section in "Regeneration"

Jeri Ryan was asked to reprise the role of Seven of Nine in a cameo at Riker and Troi's wedding, but refused both because she wanted to avoid being too attached to Star Trek and she was confused as to why Seven would attend the wedding of people she did not know. ( The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years )
The song Riker can't remember from his first encounter with Data was " Pop Goes the Weasel ," dating all the way back to the pilot, " Encounter at Farpoint ".
A large mock-up of the saucer section of the Enterprise -E, used during the collision course sequence, later appeared in the debris field of a Borg sphere in the Star Trek: Enterprise second season episode " Regeneration ". ( ENT Season 2 Blu-ray , "Regeneration" audio commentary )
As with the actors portraying Remans, Michael Dorn 's voice was electronically lowered in pitch in post production to give Worf a more alien sound.
The contact lenses used in Data's makeup differed from those used in previous outings as, this time, they were more opaque yellow.
In an interview early in the film's preproduction, John Logan stated that a Gorn would be present in Riker and Troi's wedding reception. However, no such alien appeared in the final movie due to the prohibitively high cost of creating such a creature. However, Logan's insertion of a " Tholian ambassador ," spoken by Tal'aura, survived the final cut of the movie. A redesigned Gorn later made an appearance in ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ". ( citation needed • edit )
Logan also wanted the battle in the Bassen Rift to be fought with a fleet of vessels, not just four, however, this too would have been prohibitively expensive. ( citation needed • edit )
A scene cut from the movie's script states that the USS Hemingway towed the critically-damaged Enterprise to Earth following the latter ship's battle against the Scimitar . ( citation needed • edit )
In the It's A Wrap! sale and auction , an unused blue casual jumpsuit that was to be used by Shinzon was put up for auction. This costume was never used, which could suggest that there was an intended scene which may have had Shinzon in a casual state.
The film's visual effects were provided by Digital Domain .
Before kicking the Reman viceroy to his death, Riker originally was going to quip " Don't worry, hell is dark. " Jonathan Frakes objected to the line, feeling that it made Riker seem like he was enjoying the thought of killing the viceroy rather than doing it out of self defense, but it initially remained in the movie. However, when the film's script was leaked on the internet in mid-2002, Riker's quip in particular was widely ridiculed by fans, which finally led to the line's removal. It is, however, kept in the novel.
The leaked script also revealed that the bridge of the Scimitar would have had several warp core relays built into it, and Data would have destroyed the ship by shooting one of the relays at the climax. This ended up being removed after Rick Sternbach pointed out how ridiculous it would be to have part of the warp core routed through the bridge, and Sternbach also called attention to the fact that if a firefight broke out on the bridge (as indeed happens when Picard arrives) one misplaced shot by either party could destroy the whole ship. As a result, the script was changed so that Data destroyed the Scimitar by shooting the thalaron generator. ( citation needed • edit )
Just after Data destroys the Scimitar , Picard appears suddenly on the bridge of the Enterprise in very much the same fashion that Data suddenly appears on the bridge after Gomtuu leaves in a brilliant flash of light in TNG : " Tin Man ".
This is the first Star Trek film to use the 2002-2012 Paramount Pictures logo.

Cast trivia [ ]

The only actors, beside the main cast, to participate in both this film and the first TNG film, Star Trek Generations , are Majel Barrett and Whoopi Goldberg . In both films, Barrett voiced the Enterprise computer and Goldberg played Guinan.
Shannon Cochran had previously appeared as Kalita in TNG : " Preemptive Strike " and DS9 : " Defiant " and as Martok 's wife Sirella in DS9 : " You Are Cordially Invited ".
J. Patrick McCormack had previously played Admiral Bennett in DS9 : " Doctor Bashir, I Presume " and Prax in VOY : " Counterpoint ".
Bryan Singer , director of the first two X-Men films (which featured Patrick Stewart ), can be seen in one scene as the replacement tactical officer .
Although Wil Wheaton 's ( Wesley Crusher ) only scene in the movie with any dialogue was cut from the final film, he can be seen sitting to the left of his mother at the far end of the front table during the wedding celebration (note inset photo marked "The wedding"). Several deleted scenes, including that one, can be seen in the two-disc DVD Special Collector's Edition .
In a 2012 convention appearance, Wil Wheaton talked about his appearance in this film. According to Wheaton, he found out about it and that it was going to be the last one after a chance run-in with LeVar Burton and that it was Burton who went to the producers and asked that Wheaton be included in the film. Wheaton said that only a few days later, his agent got an offer from Paramount to appear in the film and Wheaton agreed without even knowing what he would be doing, only that he would be again portraying Wesley Crusher. Wheaton also said that he asked John Logan what Wesley was doing there, was he still a Traveler and just visiting or had he stopped traveling and returned to Starfleet? Wheaton said that Logan told him he didn't have an opportunity in the script to decide that one way or the other and it really didn't matter as far as the rest of the film went and that it would just have to be one of those things left to the audience to decide which would be the case.
Steven Culp , who later played Major Hayes in ENT Season 3 , was filmed portraying the Enterprise -E's new first officer, Commander Martin Madden . This scene was cut from the theatrical release, but is available as a deleted scene on the DVD and Blu-ray release.
In his appearance here, and in his recurring special guest appearances on the third season of Star Trek: Picard, Worf is the only Star Trek: Deep Space Nine main character to be seen in other live-action Star Trek productions since DS9 went off the air in 1999 . Kira Nerys, Quark and Odo (the latter using archive audio) later appeared in animated form in episodes of Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Prodigy ; Odo actor Rene Auberjonois also appeared in Star Trek: Enterprise , but as a different character.

References to other series and films [ ]

Admiral Kathryn Janeway 's comments to Captain Picard in the original script called for her to name "the Borg, the Son'a, the Romulans, even that pesky Dr. Soran ", referencing the main adversaries of all four TNG films. The first three made it into the final cut; Janeway and her ship were already whisked away to the Delta Quadrant when the Soran incident took place and entirely out-of-contact with Starfleet , before managing to re-establish regular contact at a later point in time.
The film contains references to all five live-action Star Trek television series that had been released at this time. Riker employs an evasive maneuver named after James T. Kirk , the entire cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation appears, Riker discusses the Remans' participation in the war with the Dominion , Admiral Janeway appears, and a USS Archer is listed among a Starfleet battle group.
The name of the Romulan ship Valdore was later reused as the name of a 22nd century Romulan senator and admiral, Valdore , in Star Trek: Enterprise .
The toast given in Data's honor posthumously by Captain Picard, " To absent friends ", was also spoken by Admiral Kirk in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock , in reference to Spock 's death in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan . " To absent friends " is the traditional naval toast of the day for Sunday. A similar toast, " To absent comrades " was given by Kor given in Jadzia Dax ' honor in " Once More Unto the Breach ".
The end of the film (where Shinzon decides to unleash the thalaron device to destroy the Enterprise and Data's subsequent decision to destroy it, ultimately killing him) mirrors the end of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , where Khan decides to unleash the Genesis device on the Enterprise , in which Spock sacrifices himself to save the Enterprise .
Additionally, the closing scene between Picard and B-4 , in which it is hinted that Data's memory transfer to the prototype android was seemingly successful, could be interpreted as setting up a potential regeneration of Data through B-4 – just as Spock was regenerated in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock – for a next outing in the film series, which however did not come to fruition, as explained below .
The way Riker defeats Shinzon's viceroy is also reminiscent of the way Kirk defeats the Klingon, Kruge , in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock .
The closing scene with the Enterprise undergoing repairs in drydock over Earth pays homage to Star Trek: The Motion Picture , reusing music from the scene in which the refurbished USS Enterprise is first viewed by Kirk from a shuttle.

…the ultimate fate of B-4…

Data's self-sacrifice became a major plot point for Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: Picard which premiered in 2020, and in which Picard stated on several occasions that he still mourned his friend after two decades. It was also revealed in the opening episode " Remembrance " that B-4 had been deactivated and disassembled when it became evident that Data's memory engrams had not taken hold after all. The disassembled B-4 being put in storage at the Daystrom Institute indefinitely, effectively put an end to any possibility of Data being resurrected à la Spock as he only appeared in Picard's guilt induced dreams.
In Picard 's season one finale " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2 " however, it turned out that Data was not dead in the truest sense of the word, as his consciousness had been preserved by Bruce Maddox and Altan Soong in an artificial construct. A single neuron from the memory engrams Data had copied into B-4 was used to reconstruct his consciousness. When a dying Picard got to visit Data in the construct, he was finally able to get closure by thanking Data in person for his self-sacrifice, who himself had no memory of the event as it occurred after he had transferred his memory engrams into B-4. Aware that he was only "living" in a simulation, Data however, requests Picard to terminate the simulation, thereby making his death definitive. Picard grants Data's wish.

Sets, props, and costumes [ ]

The Enterprise -E main bridge set was placed on gimbals during production to allow for more realistic movement during battle sequences. Hence, the typical lurching movements made by the actors to simulate weapon impacts would appear more authentic. ( citation needed • edit )
The interiors for sickbay and the crew quarters were new sets specifically built for this film. In previous outings, redressed interiors for USS Voyager were used. Unfortunately, they had already been struck by the time filming commenced. ( citation needed • edit )
The freestanding terminals used on the Scimitar bridge are actually reused Cardassian consoles from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . ( citation needed • edit )
The freestanding terminals used on the Valdore bridge are actually reused Klingon consoles that were used throughout the various series. ( citation needed • edit )
The Valdore bridge itself was actually a redress of the bridge of the Enterprise -E. ( citation needed • edit )
The Starfleet hand phasers were reused versions from VOY : " Endgame ". ( citation needed • edit )
The Reman costumes were later reused as Xindi-Reptilian uniforms in Star Trek: Enterprise . ( citation needed • edit )
Director Stuart Baird requested the redesign of many aspects of the universe, such as phasers and other props, to make them seem more realistic. He also requested a darker scheme to be used in the sets, hence a complete overhaul of the LCARS displays throughout the ship. ( citation needed • edit )
The costumes worn by the Romulan guards seen briefly in the Senate were based upon ancient Japanese armor. ( citation needed • edit )
The Enterprise -E observation lounge features a bank of computers that later reappeared aboard Enterprise NX-01 in " The Xindi " and later still in " Observer Effect ", where it was repainted. The lounge itself was in fact a redress of the Enterprise -D observation lounge, the only TNG set not struck after completion of Star Trek Generations . ( citation needed • edit )
While in Star Trek Generations the displays in stellar cartography were created with blue-screens and digital compositing, stellar cartography in this film simply featured a large screen with a rear-projected display. This set, along with the cybernetics lab seen earlier in the film, were redresses of the Enterprise -E's main engineering set. ( citation needed • edit )
Also, the console in the center of stellar cartography seen in this film was a reuse of the table featured in the Son'a conference room in Star Trek: Insurrection . ( citation needed • edit )
The pants worn by Noriko Olling in the wedding scene were earlier used by Kate Vernon in the role of Valerie Archer in VOY : " In the Flesh ". ( citation needed • edit )
Several props, set dressings, and costumes from this film were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay, including Jonathan Frakes ' Starfleet uniform, [1] a Starfleet stunt phaser rifle , [2] a Reman X buckle, [3] a Reman rifle, [4] a plate and bowl lot, [5] Roger Raskin 's Starfleet uniform, [6] Romulan senate chamber set dressings, [7] Sunny Gorg 's Starfleet undershirt, [8] a Romulan wig, [9] the USS Enterprise -E set stage plans. [10] a final draft script, [11] and a Kolaran costume which was later re-used as costume for Scott Booker in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode " Demons ". [12]

Promotion [ ]

The main page of the official Nemesis website

The film's official website, operated by StarTrek.com and located at "nemesis.startrek.com", was launched on 28 June 2002 . The website's main page contained links to the film's trailer and the option of activating the site as run by Macromedia Flash or viewing a non-Flash version of the site. The site itself, like most official sites, contained information on the film and its cast and crew, as well as images, trailers, and downloads. The American version of the site was fully activated and updated by 30 November 2002 , and by February 2003 , links to foreign-language versions of the site had been added to the homepage. On 3 June 2005 , the site was integrated into StarTrek.com's main website. [13] (X)
The fast food restaurant Del Taco featured promotional tie-ins to the film.
Trailers and TV spots featured Shinzon's line " Kill everything aboard that ship, then set a course for Earth " edited into " Set a course for Earth – kill everything ".

Merchandising [ ]

The toy company Art Asylum released four action figures based on the film in the likeness of Picard, Data, Shinzon, and the viceroy. However, its replica of the Enterprise -E (with lights and sound) was finally released in February 2006 , over three years later.
Much like the score for Star Trek: Insurrection , the original soundtrack had a lot of material left off of it. A bootleg began circulation about six months after the film was released on home video. Yet while this bootleg contained more music, a couple of vital cues were left out of the score.
In January 2013, Varèse Sarabande released a Limited Edition 2-CD Deluxe Edition of the score which contained everything heard in the film. [14] This release also revealed it contained mixes that the bootleg had and the two missing vital cues. This set also contains "Blue Skies" as heard by Brent Spiner in the film.

Merchandise gallery [ ]

Box office performance [ ]

Opening on Friday, 13 December 2002 , Star Trek Nemesis earned a lower-than-expected US$18.5 million in its opening weekend. It became the first Star Trek film to not debut in the number one spot at the box office. That honor instead went to the Jennifer Lopez romantic comedy Maid in Manhattan , which beat out Nemesis by less than US$200,000 ( Nemesis actually made slightly more per cinema than Maid in Manhattan , but opened in nearly two hundred fewer theaters). Nemesis went on to lose over 76% of its business the following weekend, falling to eighth place in the face of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers . At the time, reflecting the fan's perception of the movie, this was the worst revenue drop of any major studio film in box office history, though it would be surpassed the following summer when Gigli (also starring Jennifer Lopez) lost 89% of its first-week business. The movie closed on Thursday, 13 March 2003 with a total gross of US$43.25 million, the lowest of all Star Trek films.
Nemesis was equally disappointing in the United Kingdom. Opening on 3 January 2003 , it grossed only £4,666,630 in its entire run at the UK box office, considerably down on the other Next Generation films.
The movie has the dubious distinction of becoming the all-time worst performing Star Trek movie, with the preceding Next Generation movie, Insurrection , coming in third, and one of only four which turned in an official net loss for the studio, the biggest one as a matter of fact. Even the hitherto most reviled one, The Final Frontier , had been able to break even. See for further details, Star Trek films: Performance summary .

Reception [ ]

LeVar Burton is on record as having said that the film " sucked. " [15] Marina Sirtis backed him up, but also quipped " it sucked less than Insurrection . " Burton and Sirtis also criticized Stuart Baird for not watching a single episode of TNG. In later years, Sirtis has been more vocal in her criticisms of Baird, referring to him as " an idiot ." [16] According to Burton and several other members of the main cast, Baird kept referring to LeVar as "Laverne" throughout production and thought the character of Geordi La Forge was an alien.
Fans came to agree with the assessments of Burton and Sirtis: the film review website Rotten Tomatoes calculated a 37% overall approval rate for Nemesis. As of 2016, this is the second lowest of all Star Trek films, only surpassed by Star Trek V: The Final Frontier , which is widely considered to be the worst Star Trek film. [17] Released at a time when the franchise was already under fire for the poorly-received television series Star Trek: Enterprise , it added considerable weight to a fan campaign seeking the removal of the "current leadership of the franchise from their positions, including Rick Berman, Brannon Braga [note: who, incidentally, had not worked on Nemesis ] , and their entire staff".
Patrick Stewart has divulged that Nemesis was not intended to be the last in the Next Generation series, but a subsequent, fifth, one, " While we were filming Nemesis , an idea was being developed by John Logan, the screenwriter of Nemesis , and Brent Spiner for a fifth and final movie. It was a very exciting idea for a screenplay. It would have been a real farewell to Next Generation , but it would have involved other historic aspects of Star Trek as well. " However, the dismal reception and performance of Nemesis ended all notions for an encore. [18]
The poor performance and reception of Nemesis – hard on the heels of the equally poor performance and dismal reception of Insurrection – , combined with the failure of Enterprise , was for the franchise conglomerate the reason to cease any and all further investments in prime universe Star Trek . Pursuant the cancellation of Enterprise , the studio one-and-a-half years later sold off their entire warehouses' contents of Star Trek production stock assets in the 2006-2009 40 Years of Star Trek: The Collection , and It's A Wrap! sale and auction wave of auctions , save for a limited amount for exhibition purposes, making it abundantly clear that Paramount was done with Star Trek as has been. Not only were live-action productions suspended, the release of related merchandise was, with the exception of home media formats, also dialed down considerably; exemplary of this was the publication cessation of two of the three official Star Trek magazines in existence at that time, Star Trek: Communicator in 2005, and the franchise's flagship magazine, Star Trek: The Magazine already in 2003, leaving the originally British Star Trek Magazine the sole survivor. Still, Paramount quite literally rebooted Star Trek with the alternate universe 2009 movie Star Trek , essentially reinventing and recreating Star Trek from scratch. It would not be until 2015 that a new prime universe work, which became Star Trek: Discovery , was announced.
The poor fan reception became part of pop-culture when Nemesis was labeled a "terrible movie" in the otherwise Star Trek -friendly and heavily referencing sitcom The Big Bang Theory , in its only reference in the season four episode "The 21-Second Excitation".

Deleted scenes [ ]

An extended wedding scene where Picard speaks with Wesley Crusher, who confirms that he has returned to Starfleet and will be serving aboard the USS Titan .
A private conversation on board the Enterprise following the wedding between Picard and Data over a glass of Chateau Picard where Data examines Picard's Ressikan flute and Picard confirms that not only are Riker and Troi leaving the Enterprise but Dr. Crusher is also leaving to return to Starfleet Medical . They toast to "new worlds", which is later echoed during the dinner between Shinzon and Picard.
Early introduction of Shinzon in the film (right after the wedding reception). This is the scene that includes the dialogue from the theatrical trailers, " But in darkness there is strength… " (Viceroy) and " The time we have dreamed of is at hand… the mighty Federation will fall before us… " (Shinzon).
A discussion between Riker, Troi and Worf in the crew lounge about spending their honeymoon on the Opal Sea on Betazed (which is later expounded on in the theatrical cut where Picard tells Riker that "the Opal Sea will have to wait, Number One" after the Enterprise sets course for Romulus). Data also enters with B-4 and attempts to show the prototype android how to eat with a spoon.
Worf warning Picard about the Romulans following the scene in the observation lounge on course for Romulus. This scene includes Worf's dialogue from the teaser trailer, " I recommend extreme caution… "

Jean-Luc Picard, command chair seat belts

Captain Picard enjoys the new upgrade to the captain's chair in the original ending of the movie

A scene of Picard walking with Troi down a corridor and Troi explaining to him that he and Shinzon are two different people. This scene includes the line from the trailer, " it was like a part of me had been stolen… " (Picard).
The second mind-rape scene of Counselor Troi in a turbolift. Parts of this scene also appeared in the trailer showing Shinzon telling Troi " Don't fear " and later her on the floor of the turbolift looking distressed
Sickbay getting ready for battle with dialogue between Dr. Crusher and Picard, referencing Zefram Cochrane 's quote " to seek out new life and new civilizations ."
A scene of Worf and La Forge packing up Data's personal belongings in his quarters after his memorial service. La Forge examines Data's violin and Sherlock Holmes pipe . Spot jumps up in Worf's arms, who complains that he is " not a cat person ", as La Forge quips " you are now. "
A conversation over subspace between Picard and Crusher, where she invites him to dinner on Earth after she has left the Enterprise for Starfleet Medical.
The original ending – a new first officer is introduced on board the Enterprise as Riker departs and a new command chair is installed on the bridge.

Apocrypha [ ]

The A Time to… series of novels depicted Wesley Crusher still as a Traveler, and that he arrived to the wedding ceremony naked as he was expecting a Betazoid wedding. To cover the snafu, Picard had a uniform beamed down for Wesley to wear during the ceremony. The novel also established that Dr. Pulaski was present at the ceremony. The novel also establishes that Worf was serving temporarily as acting chief of security/tactical officer as the Enterprise 's chief of security was on shore leave on Earth and her second in command had recently resigned. Worf was also planning to transfer to the Titan with Riker and Troi as first officer, but after the death of Data, Picard requested Worf remain aboard the Enterprise and he agreed to do so.

Also, several novels, including Death in Winter , Resistance , Q&A , Before Dishonor , Greater than the Sum , and the Destiny trilogy have continued the adventures of the Enterprise beyond the events of Nemesis and showed further crew changes, for example, Beverly Crusher returning to the Enterprise after falling in love with, eventually marrying Captain Picard and becoming pregnant with their first child. Also, Worf is shown being promoted to full commander and becoming the Enterprise 's new permanent first officer.

The comic book series Star Trek: Countdown (that also functions as a prequel to the J.J. Abrams movie ), shows that Data "returned" to life by having his neural pathways eventually overwrite B-4 and then with help from Geordi and the Soong Foundation, upgraded B-4's neural net, thereby allowing Data's pathways to be fully operational. The restored Data would eventually become captain of the Enterprise after Picard becomes the Federation Ambassador to Vulcan . However, the events of this series would be later contradicted by the Cold Equations novel trilogy where Data's and B-4's fates take different paths than what are depicted in the comic.

Awards and honors [ ]

Star Trek Nemesis received the following awards and honors.

Links and references [ ]

Credits [ ], closing credits [ ].

Stuart Baird
John Logan & Rick Berman & Brent Spiner
Rick Berman
Gene Roddenberry
Marty Hornstein
Jeffrey L. Kimball , ASC
Herman Zimmerman
Dallas Puett , ACE
Bob Ringwood
Peter Lauritson
Jerry Goldsmith
Amanda Mackey Johnson , CSA & Cathy Sandrich Gelfond , CSA
Junie Lowry-Johnson , CSA
Mark O. Forker

A Rick Berman Production

Patrick Stewart
Jonathan Frakes
Brent Spiner
LeVar Burton
Michael Dorn
Gates McFadden
Marina Sirtis
Ron Perlman
Jude Ciccolella
Kate Mulgrew as Admiral Kathryn Janeway
David Sardi
Richard Oswald
Michael Westmore
Robert Blackman
Matthew J. Birch
Shannon Cochran
Michael Owen
Kate Mulgrew
Robertson Dean
David Ralphe ( #2 )
J. Patrick McCormack ( #1 )
Wil Wheaton
Majel Barrett Roddenberry
Doug Coleman
Steve Kelso
Brian Williams
Sonia McDancer
Eileen Weisinger
Tony Angelotti
Sandy Berumen-Justus
Joey Box ( Enterprise -E engineer )
Eliza Coleman
Max Daniels
Erica Grace
Terry Jackson
Mike Justus
Bob McGovern
Eric Norris
Allen Robinson
Chris Sayour
Pete Turner ( Kolaran soldier , Reman guard , Reman guard , Reman officer )
Irving Lewis
John Alden ( Security officer )
Chino Binamo
Charlie Brewer
Jarrid Eddo
Mickey Giacomazzi
Steve Holladay
Brandon Johnson
Dorian Kingi ( Reman soldier )
Chris Palermo ( Crewmember )
Clint Lilley
Brennan Dyson
Todd Bryant ( Stunt double for Ron Perlman )
Joey Anaya ( Reman soldier )
Dan Barringer ( Security officer )
Robin Bonaccorsi
Mark Chadwick ( Kolaran soldier )
Darrell Craig Davis
Dana Dru Evenson ( Security officer )
Tanner Gill ( Security officer )
Keii Johnston
Tom Morga ( Boarding Reman , Reman in corridor )
Brian Stewart
Harry Wowchuck
Cherie Baker
Donald B. Woodruff
Ronald R. Reiss
John M. Dwyer
Tom Southwell
Glenn Richard Cote
Gregory Lundsgaard
Ken Nishino
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Jim Argenbright as Romulan senator
Chris Bailey as Starfleet technician
Stuart Baird as Scimitar computer voice
Audrey Baranishyn as wedding guest
William Bebow as Romulan senator
Rita Tannenbaum
Romulan senator
Greg Bronson as Romulan senator
Donna Burns as Romulan senator
Jeremy Colp as Romulan senator
Steven Culp as Martin Madden ( deleted scene )
David Dacy as Romulan senator
Robin Datry as Romulan senator
Jason Decker as Romulan senator
Jenny Deiker
Bruce Dobos as wedding guest
Marcus Eley as wedding oboe player
Jonathan Engle as Romulan senator
Chris Eves as wedding guitarist
David Fahning as Romulan senator
Whoopi Goldberg as Guinan
Sunny Gorg as operations Starfleet officer
Nelson Grande as operations officer
Pete Henderson as Starfleet wedding guest
Peter Hill as Romulan senator
Dieter Hornemann as Vulcan wedding attendee
Cliff Howard as wedding guest
Richard Irving as Romulan senator
Baron Jay as command officer
Lydia Jay as Romulan senator
Andray Johnson as USS Enterprise -E sciences officer [19]
John Jurgens as Reman soldier
Andy Keith as Romulan senator
Bradford Kelly as Romulan senator
Michael Keppel as Romulan senator
Michael Kurtz as Romulan senator
Nicholas Lanier as ensign ( deleted scene )
Jasmine Lliteras as Romulan senator
Andrew MacBeth as operations officer
Marti Matulis as Reman soldier
Mykle McCoslin as sciences officer
Bill Thomas Miller as command officer at wedding
Kevin Moon as operations officer [20]
Debra Naclerio as Romulan senator
Noriko Olling as wedding piano player
Roger Raskin as sciences officer
Katja Rieckermann as wedding saxophone player
Rachelle Roderick as Romulan senator
Wanda Roth as Starfleet lieutenant
Stephen Ryan as Romulan senator
David Senescu as wedding trumpet player
Bryan Singer as Kelly
Gregory Sweeney as operations officer
Loran Taylor as Starfleet wedding guest
James Walker as Romulan senator
Doug Wax as sciences bridge officer
Tyson Weihe as Romulan senator
Jessica Wheal as Vulcan wedding attendee
Michael Wickson as Reman sub-commander
Wanda Willis as wedding guest
Anne Woodberry as wedding guest
Spencer Wright as wedding bass player
Young Shinzon
Bolian wedding attendee
Enterprise -E engineer
Enterprise -E female relief ops officer
Enterprise -E sciences female bridge officer
Enterprise -E sciences male bridge officer
Reman guard
Reman soldier
Sixteen Romulan senators
Two female Wedding guests
Two Reman surgeons
Two Romulan Senate guards
Valdore bridge officer 1
Valdore bridge officer 2
Valdore tactical officer
Vulcan male wedding attendee
wedding trumpet player
wedding drummer
Darrin Prescott
Scott Rogers
Rick Seaman
Casey Erklin
Vanessa Grayson – stand-in for Marina Sirtis
Whitney Guss – stand-in for Gates McFadden
Peter Iacangelo – stand-in for Brent Spiner
Mark Rogerson – stand-in for Jonathan Frakes
Paul Sklar – stand-in and photo double for Patrick Stewart
Scott Somers – stand-in for LeVar Burton
Michael Avallon – Driver
Tom Boyd – Musician: Oboe
Christopher Flick – Foley Editor
Leslie Cook – Choreographer
Gilley Grey – Set Medic
Clark James , Prop Maker ( hand phasers , phaser rifles , and tricorders ) [21]
Steve Johnson – Special Makeup Effects Artist
Duane Katz – Rigging Technician
Mark Kenaston – Rotoscope/Paint Artist
Jane Kilkenny – Model Maker
Stacia Lang – Specialty Costumer
Derek Ledbetter – Visual Effects Compositor ( Howard Anderson Company )
Jennifer Mann – Makeup Artist
Bart Mixon – Makeup Artist
David Nowell – Aerial Unit Director of Photography [22]
Dan Patterson – Data I/O Operator ( Digital Domain )
Cristina Patterson Ceret – Contact Len Designer/Painter
Diane Pepper – Hair Stylist
Ralph Sarabia – Set Painter
Marlene Stoller – Makeup Artist: Romulan senators
Rick Stratton – Makeup Artist
James Thatcher – Musician: French Horn
Joshua Thatcher – 2nd Unit Conventional Light Programmer
Tim Walston – Sound Designer
Karen Westerfield – Prosthetic/Beauty Makeup Artist
Jeff Wolverton – Digital Artist/FX Animator: ending explosion effects ( Digital Domain )
Professional VisionCare Associates – Contact Lens company

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Star Trek Nemesis (Special Edition DVD)
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External links [ ]

Star Trek Nemesis at StarTrek.com
Star Trek Nemesis at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
Star Trek Nemesis at Wikipedia
Star Trek Nemesis at the Internet Movie Database
Linux and Star Trek – a discussion with the studio Digital Domain on using Linux to render special effects in Star Trek Nemesis and other films, including anecdotes and some code used in the process
Star Trek: Nemesis script at Star Trek Minutiae

Den of Geek

Does Star Trek: Nemesis Deserve Its Reputation?

A Generation’s Final Journey nearly killed the franchise. But did it deserve to bomb?

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Roy Walker gave the best review of Nemesis when he said “it’s good, but it’s not right,” although he may have been talking about something else. Star Trek: Nemesis does not try to do the things you think it should, but what it does attempt it succeeds at admirably. It is a film with the workings utterly exposed, where each part of the film has its own function that is plain to see, it’s just not the function you would logically expect those scenes to have. Star Trek: Nemesis is something of an inverse of Generations : it’s more than the sum of its parts, it’s just not the right parts.

Star Trek: Nemesis had something of a troubled production ( which you can read about here ), so I will focus on the film we actually got. In this sense Nemesis should be faintly praised. The direction is good. The plotting is good. The editing is good. But each is aiming to achieve different things.

Writer John Logan, it seemed, was reigned in by both franchise head Rick Berman and director Stuart Baird on what backstory he was allowed to include (and much was edited out anyway), the cast were keen on including more of themselves (Spiner it seems won in that regard), and Berman didn’t have a clear vision for who should win. The resulting film is a compromise, aiming to please everybody just enough. At these mediocre aims it succeeds. Perhaps we should be grateful that we got something coherent at all.

Watch Star Trek Nemesis on Amazon

But first, we’ve got to talk about Data.

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Data is probably the most loved and remembered of The Next Generation crew (next to Picard, obviously), but his thoughtful and respectful search for humanity in the series never translated well onto the big screen. A film does not give you the same scope for character development as a series and cannot be approached in the same way. The original series films got this right – highlight one area of character drama and resolve it by the end, whether that be inexperience, overconfidence or a conflict between characters.

The Next Generation did not translate as well to the big screen, but First Contact showed that the characters, if handled properly, could carry a film in such a way. Data’s handling was all over the place because he had a major role in each film, even when the film had nothing to do with him. His emotion chip was a mistake in Generations , and its absence a similar one in Insurrection . By Star Trek: Nemesis , Data had become a full grown plot tumor.

Star Trek: Nemesis shouldn’t be about Data, but it is. Star Trek: Nemesis should be about Shinzon. Picard perhaps. But definitely not Data. From the discovery of the prototypical B4, the crude analogue of the Picard/Shinzon relationship he became to the final, stolen sacrifice, Data usurped every major plot point in the film, and in every case it was less interesting than either the Shinzon story or even Data’s own stories from the past. Unlike Generations or Insurrection , Data isn’t entirely irrelevant to the main story, but his part does nothing to enhance the film.

This is not to say Data’s storyline in Star Trek: Nemesis is bad. In fact, it’s actually quite good. Data makes peace with his quest for humanity by coming face to face with the original version of himself, and sees how he has grown simply through his desire for betterment. Then, at the end, he shows his humanity by sacrificing himself to save his friends – an act B4 could not have done. It’s a great story (admittedly not executed anywhere near as well as I just made out), but it’s not the story of the film, nor does it really relate to it when seen in its best light. Worse, there was a far better and more relevant story that could have easily worked had John Logan delved a bit further into lore: er, Lore.

Data’s evil twin was a much more interesting character than B4 because he was basically Data with emotions. Well, guess what, Data has emotions now. Shinzon and Lore vs Picard and Data? Now that’s a conflict that makes sense. Alas, Data’s emotion chip isn’t even mentioned, which means that Data’s storyline doesn’t even work as a mirror to the Picard/Shinzon story.

Undoubtedly this was done deliberately to avoid confusing casual fans. Much of the malalignment of the film comes from the edit, specifically the character building scenes that were cut, which seem to have been discarded for both pacing reasons and accessibility. Had Lore been included it would have required some sleight of hand scripting to explain who he is and what his past relationship with the crew was. Such exposition worked well in Khan and First Contact as the films were basically designed around that premise, but as Star Trek: Nemesis already had a major villain to introduce it probably wouldn’t have been such an easy task. It’s also easy to forget that this was during the dark ages of the franchise, with continuity lockout a genuine concern, so it’s easy to understand why this storyline was approached this way.

Of course, it’s the wrong approach. Even if the idea was executed well (and there’s nothing wrong with the B4 storyline as it is), it was the wrong idea. But what compounds it is how Data’s sacrifice is ultimately for nothing. Baird’s inexperience with Star Trek (and Berman’s insistence he remain oblivious to the greater Trek canon) meant that numerous plot holes and oddities surrounded Data’s death. What happened to the shuttlecraft? What happened to the transporters on the shuttlecraft? What happened to the transporters on the Scimitar? Why not use the emergency transporter to beam a photon torpedo into the Scimitar’s thalaron matrix? Why couldn’t Wesley Crusher just bend time with his brain, or something?

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Perhaps it is for the best that Data’s resurrection with B4 is teased at the end, even if it does just give it the air of ripping off Wrath Of Khan . Hmm, a main character’s pointless and stupid death reversed by a plot contrivance introduced at the start of the film?

Attention Star Trek Into Darkness : stop stealing plot ideas from the weaker Trek movies.

Shinzon really should be the focus of the character here. After all, he is Picard with another lifetime, and exposing some of the more unsavory aspects of Picard worked so well in First Contact so it should work here. Shinzon also has an interesting backstory, being bred as a spy and then having his entire life discarded due to politics. You can see the individual bits working here even in the final film, but as Shinzon is not the focus, it doesn’t come through too well. Consider how Shinzon’s life is destroyed by a change of government, and how his first act in the film is to destroy that government and the lives of everyone involved.

Had Shinzon’s extreme invocation of Article 50 taken place towards the middle of the film it would have served as a crowning moment of revenge for Shinzon, and possibly even been a moment to root for. But we never see Shinzon in too sympathetic a light, even though he is the real victim and the Romulan Senate is the real villain.

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Such a treatment of Shinzon would have amped up the Shinzon/Picard dichotomy when it emerges in the second half of the film. Who knows, perhaps it could have been the deconstruction of the self-righteous Federation that Insurrection definitely wasn’t. This was the intention at one point, but, like so much, it was cut. It would have been a bold move to dedicate so much of the runtime to a new character, but Wrath Of Khan benefited from devoting such development to Khan, and there could be no one better to carry such a burden than the wonderful Tom Hardy. After all, he made a film about concrete pouring utterly compelling.

Another example of how Star Trek: Nemesis would have been improved by either more or less character can be seen in Riker and Troi. Their wedding was the culmination of 15 years of will-they-won’t-they so fans were pleased to see it, but there was a function in the story as well. The final of the three nemeses in the film, Viruk (Ron Perlman’s Viceroy who is never named in the film, for some reason) is presented as one for Riker and Troi.

Shinzon and Viruk’s rape of Troi required some character development for maximum impact. More time for Riker and Troi would have strengthened this conflict no end (this was the intention, with a second rape scene cut for pacing reasons), providing character drama that fuelled the story, rather than being somewhat separate. That way, there would have been a true emotional pay off as Riker finally kicks the Viceroy down one of science fiction’s inexplicable bottomless pits.

Alternatively, this entire plot could have been dropped, allowing development in other areas. After all, Shinzon is already planning to kill billions so we know he’s not very nice, and the payoff of Troi using telepathy to find the Scimitar despite being cloaked could have been passed to Picard, to show his relationship with Shinzon as similar to his relationship with the Borg. That may have made the ramming of the Scimitar seem less as foolish abandon and more as a calculated risk. Both approaches would have allowed for a much more satisfying story, but instead we have a halfway house approach. It succeeds but only at mediocre aims.

Star Trek: Nemesis really is a film broken by the edit, but you can at least see why the film was edited in such a way. Every scene has a purpose, and the pacing really is quite good. Strangely, though, it doesn’t work. The purpose of each scene is so singular you can almost see the cog wheels grinding together in the background.

Let’s take the Argo scene as an example. The capabilities of the Argo are demonstrated. Individual cuts go on slightly too long to build suspense. The parts of B4 are found in order of least importance to help build for the reveal of B4 being a copy of Data. Worf is grabbed by surprise to increase the tension. And then the payoff, as the angry natives cause a car chase. Textbook execution and the action is very well directed. But it’s utterly pointless, because the car chase adds nothing save a car chase. It makes for an entertaining film and it would not be as entertaining without it, but when character is cut for action, it’s a bitter pill to swallow no matter how fun a scene it is. It is possible, albeit difficult, to have both.

In a greater sense, then, Star Trek: Nemesis suffers from a lack of world building. It exists in a halfway house between trying to cater to fresh viewers but appeal to long time fans. For me, it succeeds at both, but only because it aims are so small. For non-fans there’s plenty of exposition and action, and for fans there’s Riker and Troi’s wedding and a glimpse at the inner workings of Romulus. Nemesis succeeds at the world building it attempts, but in order to please everyone it spreads itself too thin. Fans wanted much, much more of the character development that was cut, but few casual fans really would have cared.

Anyone watching the film gets caught in the crossfire between director Baird’s desire for a tight action film, and screenwriter Logan’s desire to please everyone. Neither approach is wrong but they don’t go together at all. Frakes’ style would have worked well with Logan’s, and Meyer’s writing would have complimented Baird’s tight direction. I find it difficult to fault either Logan or Baird without it being an arbitrary decision. Interestingly, a lot of fans blamed Brannon Braga, who had nothing to do with Nemesis .

Fan perceptions certainly harmed the film, fuelled by a number of continuity oddities throughout the film. Worf’s presence is never explained and directly contradicts the ending of Deep Space Nine , Wesley Crusher is back (blink and you’ll miss him) but what the hell happened to him is never explained. The Enterprise uses photon torpedoes again, despite being outfitted with quantum torpedoes before (admittedly, it is shown to use both). Janeway is now an admiral despite being nothing but a liability for seven seasons. Picard thinks nothing of violating the prime directive in antagonising a primitive society. Nothing that is particularly egregious or couldn’t be explained with a single line of dialogue, but when you’ve got a film already making some odd choices, these problems get significantly magnified.

There are some highlights, though. The special effects shots are really quite good. It’s not quite the level of First Contact and is obviously shown up by its successor, but what the CGI lacks in fidelity it makes up with flair and inventiveness, and Baird deserves credit for the spectacular action set pieces he conjures up without the kind of effects budget afforded to previous Trek films.

The music too is wonderful, with Jerry Goldsmith returning to the franchise for a final time. He manages to give the film series a sense of closure that the story could not, bookending the beginning of The Motion Picture and the ending of Nemesis with his Enterprise theme, but presenting an air of finality with a haunting, funereal march. One must only admire the man for once again turning in a score deserving of a better film. In fact the entire sound mix deserves credit. If you have a working Blu-ray disc then it really is demo material.

Nemesis exists in a strange world all on its own. Taken on its own terms Nemesis is actually a really entertaining action movie, but you can never escape the feeling that it really should be something more. It isn’t deserving of its reputation as a franchise killer all on its own – Insurrection and Voyager started the rot – but it certainly isn’t the worst film in the franchise.

Removed from its poor box office gross ( Nemesis has actually turned a profit) and its coincidence with the nadir of the franchise, Nemesis is, on balance, a film that has gotten better with age. While we will never see the fifth Next Generation film that truly would have been a Generation’s Final Journey, which is Nemesis ’ fault, and while it falls very, very short of the send off given to the Original Crew, there is at least a little joy to be had in this big, dumb action movie.

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Alex Carter

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Why the tng cast hated star trek: nemesis.

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Star Trek: Nemesis is one of the most disliked movies in the Star Trek franchise, with even members of its cast leveling criticism at the sequel. Nemesis was the fourth and final film featuring the cast of The Next Generation , which was the second TV series in the franchise and one of the most popular Star Trek series of all time. TNG was about the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and his crew, and when the series ended after seven seasons the TNG films picked up where it had left off.

Nemesis was not originally intended to be the final TNG movie, but the film was such a critical and commercial failure that it put any further ideas about continuing the films to bed, and was the beginning of a franchise hiatus that lasted for most of the 2000s. There were numerous reasons why Nemesis failed, including issues with the story and fans' general dissatisfaction with the franchise at the time. However, it was not only the audience and critics who ended up disliking the sequel; members of the TNG cast have also gone on record to express their unhappiness with how Nemesis turned out.

Related: Why Seven of Nine Didn't Cameo In Star Trek Nemesis

The two most vocal cast members are Marina Sirtis, who played Counselor Deanna Troi , and LeVar Burton, who played Engineer Geordi La Forge. Burton and Sirtis' main issue with the film was what they perceived as the failings of its director, Stuart Baird. Baird was a complete newcomer to Star Trek when he was hired to helm Nemesis , and according to Sirtis and Burton, refused to watch any episodes of TNG prior to directing. Sirtis has been vocal about her disappointment with this, stating that she thought one of TNG's strongest aspects was its exploration of relationships between the crew, something Barid never took into account. Further demonstrating Baird's lack of knowledge, Burton has said the director mistakenly referred to Geordi as an alien several times, and continually got Burton's name wrong on set, calling him " Laverne ". Other cast members have mentioned difficulties working with Baird filming Star Trek: Nemesis too.

Baird has defended himself against these accusations over the years. In an interview with the BBC , Baird said that he was more interested in making a film that stood on its own and didn't " rest on all the past history ". He acknowledged the Star Trek fans take the series very seriously but stated he didn't feel able to watch such a vast catalog of past TNG episodes prior to shooting. Baird also stated he tried to make Nemesis a film that would give fans " as much bang for your buck " as he could and was focused on the action and entertainment aspects rather than character development. He did not offer any counters to the reports of experiencing difficulty working with people on set but did seem to concede he could understand why fans might be offended by his lack of Star Trek knowledge.

With how badly Star Trek: Nemesis was received when it premiered, however, consensus about the sequel's failings seems to lie firmly with Sirtis and Burton. Baird likely did the best he could with the knowledge he had and other factors contributed to Nemesis's bad showing, but Sirtis, Burton, and other cast members have not backed down about their dislike for the film over the years. Ultimately, the TNG cast's disapproval of Star Trek: Nemesis serves as just one other reason it is considered one of the worst Star Trek films.

More: How Star Trek: Nemesis Killed The TNG Movies

SR Originals

20 Things You Didn't Know About Star Trek: Nemesis

Revisiting the Trek movie that brought the franchise screeching to a halt.

It's not controversial to say that Star Trek: Nemesis is just about nobody's favourite Trek film.

Released in 2002, the fourth and final big-screen outing starring the cast of The Next Generation was a critical and commercial disappointment to the extent that it put the cinematic franchise on ice for over five years.

It's certainly not as bad as Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, at least. Nemesis is an interesting but highly flawed swan song for the TNG gang, one backed by an ultra-talented cast and crew but ultimately mangled by a rickety production which led to some less-than-inspired creative decisions behind the scenes.

And so, while it's far from a great or even particularly good Trek movie, the many stories and anecdotes of its creation are nevertheless fascinating.

The classic Trek characters who almost made cameos, the original plan for the whole Shinzon debacle, the on-set sparring with director Stuart Baird, and everything in-between.

These 20 must-know factoids certainly make it clear how Nemesis turned out the way it did, while also hinting at a vastly superior movie that sadly never came to be...

20. Patrick Stewart Originally Played Both Picard & Shinzon

Though Tom Hardy of course ended up playing the part of villainous Reman leader and Picard clone Praetor Shinzon, the very first version of the script actually had Shinzon also being portrayed by Patrick Stewart as a more direct, older clone of Picard.

There sadly aren't any further details available online about how this would've changed the story, though it's fair to assume that Nemesis would've climaxed with Patrick Stewart effectively battling himself.

Ultimately the potential for goofiness would've been extremely high had they gone this route, so bringing in a young actor to portray a younger clone was probably the right call.

However, a few years ago a curious fan cleverly deep-faked Stewart into the role of Shinzon to give fans a speculative glimpse at how it could've turned out:

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.

Star Trek's 2009 Reboot Changed Everything

Star Trek has been an important fixture of sci-fi TV for decades, and alongside its continued existence, movies have helped further flesh out the characters. But in both the movies and TV, the early 2000s weren’t kind to the franchise: 2002's Star Trek: Nemesis was a critical and commercial disaster, and Star Trek: Enterprise had a respectable four-season run, but the shortest of the shows since the original series. Change was in order, and it was eventually decided that would take the form of a reboot that took everyone by surprise.

Star Trek—that is, the reboot film released May 8, 2009—is one of those movies that showed up at just the right moment. At the time, movies based on old TV shows like Starsky & Hutch and Charlie’s Angels had found commercial successes, which gave this reboot some cultural context. It also helped that it was being helmed by a trio of filmmakers who knew how to make hits: J.J. Abrams was still riding the high off directing Mission: Impossible 3 (speaking of movies based on old TV shows), along with the almost-ended Lost and the still young Fringe . Writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman had written Mission and were further on Paramount’s good side with the first Transformers movie. If there was anyone who could make a new Star Trek flick that’d get anyone’s attention, for better or worse, it’d be these guys.

It really can’t be understated how much Paramount was banking on this new Star Trek being a hit back then. The studio wanted, more than anything, to get audiences to care about Star Trek again, and how best to do that in the 2000s? By hyping up its action scenes and Kirk being quite the ladies man. That didn’t entirely go over well, much like Abrams’ comments that the movie would mainly be for non-Trekkies. Even with that, the movie couldn’t help but look interesting. Those trailers didn’t tell you a dang thing about its actual plot, but they had good vibes, and made you want to see how the Enterprise crew would come to be the adventurers our parents and grandparents had fallen in love with back in their day.

And fall in love, people did: the reboot movie was met with critical acclaim and later four Academy Award nominations, ultimately winning one for Best Makeup and being the only Trek movie to net an Oscar. Despite mixed reactions on the movie splitting off into its own timeline, critics and audiences loved the young cast’s takes on the original characters—especially Zachary Quinto’s Spock and Zoe Saldana’s Uhura—and their chemistry. With a $385.7 million box office, Star Trek succeeded in making people care about the franchise once more. But its high ended up coming down quicker than you’d think, and in the years since, the movies have been marooned in space.

A few years later, 2013's Star Trek Into Darkness left an odd taste in audiences’ mouths. It still made money, but something about it felt off: maybe it was how it did a more convoluted retelling of Wrath of Khan, or maybe it can be owed to its very weird B-plot with 9/11 parallels that feel like they belong in a completely different movie (or another franchise entirely). Star Trek Beyond , conversely, went for a considerably simpler approach and just functioned like a regular episode of the show. That energy, combined with a still-incredible needle drop , was the right move, even if the film wasn’t a smash hit when it dropped in 2016. Paramount’s spent years trying to get a fourth movie off the ground since then, and it’s anyone’s guess as to if it’ll actually happen.

Things have gone much better over in TV land: Star Trek: Discovery and Lower Decks , a pair of well-liked shows, are both ending after their respective fifth seasons—a run that feels like a miracle these days. Star Trek: Picard gave Next Generation fans the legacy sequel they’d been wanting for years, and Star Trek: Prodigy , despite how messily its schedule was handled, brought younger audiences into the fold. It’s Star Trek: Strange New Worlds that’ll be spearheading future TV plans, which currently include a Starfleet Academy show and the Paramount+ film focused on Michelle Yeoh’s Discovery character Phillipa Georgiou .

Star Trek 2009's biggest aftershock came outside of its franchise with the big reboot and legacy sequel boom of the 2010s. New takes on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, RoboCop , and Evil Dead were born from this movie’s success, even if it was just to revitalize its own series. Abrams, Orci, and Kurtzman went on to become even bigger names in Hollywood: the former famously went on to revive Star Wars for the big screen, and is a producing powerhouse. Orci and Kurtzman went on to be involved with the Amazing Spider-Man movies, and create or executive produce shows like Sleepy Hollow and Fringe. When the duo separated, Kurtzman—following his directorial debut The Mummy , which failed to launch Universal’s Dark Universe—effectively became Star Trek’s equivalent to Kevin Feige. Orci, last we heard, was writing a Spider-Man adjacent movie for Sony that’s gone quiet in the years since its announcement.

All-in-all, Star Trek was a game-changer, and for better or worse, you don’t get our current movie landscape without it. With how big the franchise is right now, it’s understandable why Paramount’s wanted so much to get a fourth film off the ground—but is it possible by this point? That hypothetical (and surprising ) Star Trek 4 has been waylaid by shifting creatives for years, to the point you feel like someone should finally make the call to pull the plug. Not only did Beyond give the Kelvin universe its cleanest end after the passings of Anton Yelchin and Leonard Nimoy, fourth movies can sometimes be dicey, especially when their franchise wasn’t really built with it in mind. And it’s anyone’s guess as to if a Starfleet prequel set in the same timeline will rejuvenate it for more films or just be a small detour before we head back to Prime time.

In 2022, Chris Pine said the best way forward for Star Trek movies may require they be less bombastic, more geared toward fans, and cost less to make. It’s an easy sentiment to get behind, and that may really only be possible by junking Trek 4 and doing it with another movie. The Enterprise of the Kelvinverse had a good run, and after 15 years, it’s more than fine to boldly go in a new direction.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel , Star Wars , and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV , and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who .

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Janeway : Jean-Luc, how would you like a trip to Romulus? Picard: With or without the rest of the fleet?

The One With… Picard’s younger evil clone .

Star Trek Nemesis is the tenth movie in the Star Trek film series, released in 2002, and serves as the big-screen Grand Finale for the Next Generation crew. It is directed by Stuart Baird, with the screenplay by John Logan and the story by Logan, Rick Berman and Brent Spiner , who also played Data.

After a coup , the new leader of the ever-secretive Romulan government makes an offer of peace to The Federation . Our heroes find out that this new leader, Shinzon ( Tom Hardy ), is a younger clone of Jean-Luc Picard ( Patrick Stewart ), the by-product of a botched Romulan plot. At first, Shinzon's intentions seem honest, but they quickly turn malicious for convoluted medical reasons. There's also a subplot about a prototype of Data, B-4 (Spiner), which serves as a counterpoint to Picard's identity struggles. See here for a more detailed recap.

The film also stars TNG series regulars Jonathan Frakes as William T. Riker, LeVar Burton as Geordi La Forge, Michael Dorn as Worf, Gates McFadden as Beverly Crusher and Marina Sirtis as Deanna Troi. Ron Perlman appears as Shinzon's Evil Chancellor . Cameos include Wil Wheaton as Wesley Crusher, Whoopi Goldberg as shipboard bartender Guinan, and Kate Mulgrew as Admiral Kathryn Janeway, the only one of the three to have lines.

The film was released on December 13, 2002 in North America. It did poorly at the box office due to a combination of stiff competition note Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets , James Bond 's Die Another Day and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers were all released within a few weeks of this film's debut and, despite having the Star Trek Movie Curse in its favor, was not well received. It is generally viewed as a Franchise Killer signaling the decline of Star Trek movies, not helped by Star Trek: Enterprise also struggling before being cancelled several years later.

Nemesis provided a bookend in several ways. With a prequel show currently airing, this film was the chronological last story set in the 24th Century, and J. J. Abrams 's Alternate Timeline Star Trek (2009) (which is somewhat of a Stealth Sequel to this film) made it appear to be the last of the Prime Timeline . But this would change as a new era of Star Trek television shows would return to the timeline with TOS-era Star Trek: Discovery , while Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Lower Decks are set after the events of this film. The Third Season of Star Trek: Picard would go on to serve as Putting the Band Back Together for the TNG cast, acting as another Grand Finale .

Nemesis provides examples of:

Aborted Arc : Shinzon is an in-universe example. Picard's clone was created as part of an ambitious operation to replace the real Picard (who even at that point was a rising star in Starfleet) with a Romulan agent at the heart of Starfleet (and with none the wiser). However, the plan ultimately fell victim to a political shakeup in the Senate. A new government came to power, decided the plan was too risky, and pulled the plug and dumped Shinzon on Remus.
Action Film, Quiet Drama Scene : The dinner scene, where Shinzon seems genuinely curious about the life that Picard lived.
Alas, Poor Villain : Yes, his motives were unclear, his tactical expertise was debatable (see Informed Ability below), and he wanted to kill everyone on Earth, but there's no denying that Shinzon's life sucked . He was created solely to be a tool of war, and through no fault of his own, he was eventually condemned to a lifetime of back-breaking labor in a hellish mine. And even though he managed to overthrow his captors and the entire Romulan leadership, his engineered lifespan ensured that he had a very short time to live. In short, he lived a short, violent, brutal life, and never really had any chance to know love or happiness.
Antagonist Title : Shinzon is Picard's nemesis.
Anything but That! : Worf: ... Irving Berlin .
Apocalypse How : Class 6, threatened.
Applied Phlebotinum : Thalaron radiation.
Arc Words : "Never saw the sun shining so bright, never saw things looking so right..."
Activation Sequence : After the Enterprise rams the Scimitar , rendering their weapons inoperable, Shinzon activates the thalaron weapon, a process that takes about seven minutes as the targeting emitters on the wings are moved into position prior to firing.
Attack Pattern Shinzon Theta.
Defensive Pattern Kirk Epsilon.

Backported Development : Even though Picard was supposed to have lost his hair with age, his clone is also completely bald. Shinzon's baldness can perhaps be explained away as being a result of his screwed up DNA and the resultant premature aging, but a photograph showing Picard as a bald cadet, not so easily. Especially since on TNG younger versions of Picard were shown twice; "Tapestry", fresh out of the Academy with a full head of hair, and "Violations", ten years before the start of the series, with the hairline starting to recede. Though maybe he just shaved his head at one point in the Academy.
Bait-and-Switch : At Riker and Troi's wedding party, Data begins singing the bridge of "Blue Skies" in a stilted, robotic way before switching to Brent Spiner's usual jazz singing style. In-universe, there's no reason for him to do this: all of Data's friends and people who have seen STTNG and its previous movies already know Data is a good singer. This seems to have been done solely to serve as an awkward Establishing Character Moment for audience members who aren't familiar with Data's character.
Bald of Evil : Shinzon is completely bald.
Beam Spam : The Enterprise uses this when attempting to locate the cloaked Scimitar during the battle in the Bassen Rift before the other Romulans arrive.
Because You Were Nice to Me : The Remans helped Shinzon survive in the mines, and now he's fighting to liberate them from the Romulans.
Big Damn Heroes : Commander Donatra arrives with two warbirds to assist the Enterprise and after realizing Shinzon was genocidal. Subverted, however, in that neither warbird succeeds in causing any damage whatsoever to the Scimitar , which then cripples Donatra's warbird and destroys the other one outright, meaning that Donatra's intervention ends up achieving nothing .
Troi screams it when Vkruk mentally rapes her, and again when Riker calls her name.
Vkruk yells one when Riker sends him falling to his death.
Bittersweet Ending : Data is dead, and the crew of the Enterprise is going their separate ways after so many years together. But thanks to their efforts, Shinzon is killed and the Romulan Empire is finally willing to talk with the Federation, which may lead to peace between the two, and Picard, along with all those who remain on the Enterprise , will continue their mission to go where no one has gone before. Sadly, Star Trek (2009) establishes that eight years after Nemesis , Romulus is destroyed in a supernova and the rest of the Romulan Empire blames the Federation for screwing up the project to stop it. In addition, Star Trek: Picard shows that Picard tried to help the Romulans, but The Federation chose to withdraw their aid, and Picard resigned in protest. Also, Data's attempt to download himself into B-4 failed.
Blank Slate : Data's "brother" B-4.
Board to Death : Romulan Senate not cooperating? Kill 'em all with an experimental thalaron radiation bomb!
Body Horror : The effects of thalaron radiation: it turns you into powder from the inside-out. Quite painfully, it must be added.
Body Snatcher : Data imprints his neural net on his mentally handicapped brother's brain. He plays it off as "helping his brother grow" or somesuch, but it's implied that in the future Data will completely take over B-4's body...until Star Trek: Picard reveals that the download failed.
Boldly Coming : Defied Trope . Shinzon, a clone of Picard raised on the Romulan twin planet of Remus, organizes a coup against the Imperial Senate and takes over. Commander Donatra later tries to flirt with him , but he stops her dead cold, as he grew up amongst the Slave Race of the Romulan Empire and thus despises ordinary Romulans. Instead, he settles for engaging in some pretty literal Mind Rape against the half-human Troi. Shinzon: You are not a woman. You are a Romulan .
Bond Villain Stupidity : "I have you now, Picard. Now I can proceed with the operation to save my life, a short time after I walk away and leave you in a room with one guard. I'm sure nothing will happen during that time."
When we first saw the Prime Universe Enterprise on the big screen in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , she was in spacedock undergoing a refit. In this last Prime Universe film, we last see her in spacedock undergoing repairs. The same Jerry Goldsmith Star Trek theme is played in both scenes.
Similarly, as of 2023, this remains the final Trek film set in the Prime Reality. So, Jerry Goldsmith has the distinction of scoring both the first and last films of the original, pre-reboot Film Series.
In their first meeting in the TNG pilot episode "Encounter at Farpoint", Picard and Riker talk about how it was the first officer's responsibility to take on away missions. In their last meeting before Riker leaves for the USS Titan , Picard offers some advice about how to handle that with his first officer.
In the original ending, the Enterprise would have left for a mission to the Deneb system, which was where the TNG pilot episode "Encounter at Farpoint" took place.
At the beginning of the film, Data sings "Blue Skies" at Troi and Riker's wedding reception. By the end of the film, B-4 struggles to sing the song as the Enterprise is docked .
Bottomless Pit : Riker kicks Vkruk into one of these; the Enterprise apparently has one starting at deck 29 (the bottom of the ship... or five decks below the bottom, thanks to a Continuity Snarl ) and going down far enough to be fatal.
In the last movie , Geordi was amazed at Picard's acute hearing. Turns out that it was painfully acute when Picard was a boy.
Shinzon's backstory is that he was a clone of Picard developed as part of a plot to undermine the Federation. In "Redemption: Part II", when they first met Sela, the identical half-Romulan daughter of Tasha Yar , Dr. Crusher briefly wondered whether she was actually Tasha's clone, created for undermining Starfleet.
Janeway appearing as a (recently promoted) Admiral is the only Canon description of what happened to the Voyager crew after their Grand Finale , until Star Trek: Picard added some further details.
Whoopi Goldberg also has one line as Guinan.

Captain Obvious : Data: [picking up a robotic arm] It appears to be a robotic arm. Worf: Very astute .
The micro transporter Data attempts to use when rescuing Picard is used later on... to rescue Picard.
Troi uses Vkruk's telepathy (which she knows about after her Mind Rape ) to locate the cloaked Scimitar . She even says "Remember me?"
Commonality Connection : Shinzon tries to forge a connection with Picard, though it's ambiguous how sincere he is given that he plans to kill Picard for his blood. Shinzon: I want to know what it means to be human. The Remans have given me a future, but you can tell me about my past. Picard: I can tell you about my past. Shinzon: Were we Picards always warriors? Picard: I think of myself as an explorer . Shinzon: Well, were we always explorers? Picard: I was the first Picard to leave our solar system. It caused quite a stir in the family, but I'd spent my youth... Shinzon: ...looking up at the stars, dreaming about what was up there, about... Picard: ...new worlds.
One of the ships waiting for the Enterprise is the USS Archer .
A maneuvering pattern during the battle is called Kirk Epsilon , and is used while trying to locate a ship that can fire while cloaked .
Data finds B-4 fascinating.
A mention of the Dominion War and an appearance by Admiral Janeway .
Troi taking the helm when the first helm officer is sucked into space and consequently being given the order by Picard to ram the Scimitar with the Enterprise is a humorous nod to her similar actions on the Enterprise-D and its status as a meme among the fanbase.
The most subtle nod happens with Worf. While moving to intercept the boarding party Worf mentions that "The Romulans fought with honor." In the Next Generation episode "The Enemy", Worf went so far as to refuse to help save a dying Romulan's life (said Romulan made it clear he'd rather die than accept Worf's help in any case) while Dr. Crusher and Picard could not convince him otherwise (his family was killed in a Romulan surprise attack at Khitomer). The fact that the people he despised so much managed to impress him says a lot.
Another subtle reference is the planet Remus itself, which was first mentioned all the way back in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Balance of Terror" (and never mentioned again until now).
Riker recalls Data's failed attempt to whistle way back in the TNG pilot episode "Encounter at Farpoint", though he can't remember the song. For the record, it was "Pop Goes the Weasel."
Picard mentions Riker's refusal to let him lead away missions, also first mentioned in the TNG pilot.
A technological nod occurs when Geordi notes that the Scimitar 's cloak is perfect and doesn't leave any tachyon emissions or residual antiprotons, which were previous methods of revealing cloaking devices.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine : The now-concluded Dominion War is acknowledged, as is the Romulan involvement in the conflict (which is used as a plot point to help establish Shinzon's military background). However, Worf's post-series status quo as the new Federation Ambassador to the Klingon Empire isn't acknowledged at all. He simply rejoins his old crew without any on-screen explanation (though a deleted scene from the Wedding confirms Worf had resigned from the Diplomatic Corps prior to the film).
Star Trek: Voyager : The ship's triumphant return home to the Alpha Quadrant is non-verbally acknowledged by Janeway's cameo.
Constantly Curious : B-4 in the car-chase scene.
Cool Old Guy : Picard is 74 years old in the film ( Patrick Stewart was only 62), but you wouldn't know it judging by how active he is, including how he single-handedly takes out not only everyone on the Scimitar 's bridge, but also manages to defeat Shinzon in hand-to-hand combat .
The Scimitar is a decidedly evil-looking vessel, with forward-swept wings, dark gray hull, and an overall design that just oozes menace. It can also use its weapons and its shields while cloaked, something that, except for the Klingon Bird-of-Prey in The Undiscovered Country (the weapons at least, it still couldn't use its shields), is normally impossible. Picard: (awed) She's a predator.
Plus the Enterprise -E remains as cool as ever.
The Coup : At the start of the film, disgruntled Romulan senator Tal'aura and a group of Romulan military officers assassinate the rest of the Senate so they can install Shinzon as Praetor. They eventually turn on him (though to little effect) after realizing he's a genocidal maniac .
Creator Cameo : Director Stuart Baird provides the voice of the Scimitar 's computer.
Damn You, Muscle Memory! : When the Enterprise is hailed by the Romulans after the battle, Picard habitually says 'on-screen' despite a hole into space existing where the viewscreen once was - he quickly corrects himself with 'open a channel'.
Dawn Attack : Picard reflects on this trope while recording his Captain's Log during the Lock-and-Load Montage : "...and like a thousand other commanders on a thousand other battlefields, I wait for the dawn."
Demoted to Extra : Pretty much everyone except Picard and Data, but particularly egregious in the case of Dr. Crusher, who essentially disappears from the film after informing Picard of Shinzon's genetic problem, with a brief appearance in Data's wake scene (without any dialogue) being the only time she even appears after that. To a lesser extent this also applies to La Forge, who is mostly limited to providing bits of Technobabble and expository dialogue, and Worf, who is the butt of a few jokes early on and then has a minor action sequence late on, with neither getting any real character development. All three do get additional scenes in the novelization, though.
Diabolus ex Nihilo : The Scimitar . It breaks suspension of disbelief that the Remans could build, almost literally under the Romulans' noses (whose society's most prominent feature is Big Brother-level surveillance and paranoia), a starship custom-designed for their kind (it's noted that the controls are in Reman) and with the equivalent firepower of what has to be at least a few dozen top-of-the-line warships, not to mention its perfect cloak and primary weapon system.
Disney Villain Death : Vkruk falls to his death into a bottomless pit towards the end of the film.
Disposable Pilot : Poor Lieutenant Branson, who you knew would die the very moment you saw him.
Doomsday Device : The Thalaron radiation weapon.
The Dragon : Vkruk serves as Shinzon's second-in-command.
Dream Spying
Drives Like Crazy : Flying an attack craft through the corridors of a starship? Pretty crazy.
Driving into a Truck : The Argo Jeep and a cargo shuttlecraft play this role. Picard even drives the Argo over a ledge in order to park it in the shuttle. (They also drove out of the shuttle at the beginning of the scene.)
Dropped a Bridge on Him : Data 's death was generally considered an underwhelming one for such a long-established character. In fairness, it wasn't as severely anti-climactic as the Trope Namer , nor as much an utterly pointless Shoot the Shaggy Dog moment as Tasha Yar's or Jadzia Dax's deaths, since Data does at least go out in a Heroic Sacrifice while saving the Enterprise . It's more the execution that's at fault here, since his death is pretty abrupt and filmed more in the manner that you might expect some Red Shirt to meet their end in, rather than a main character.
Earth Is the Center of the Universe : Or, at least, The Federation , which is why Shinzon makes it his first target. Riker: Destroy humanity, you cripple the Federation.
Even Evil Has Standards : The Romulans start to side against Shinzon when they realize how genocidal he is. They want to conquer The Federation , not wipe it out completely.
Explosive Decompression : An energy torpedo from the Scimitar blasts a giant hole in the front of the bridge, obliterating the viewscreen. A hapless conn officer is sucked out into space, with another one holding onto his console for dear life, as well as the rest of the bridge crew. They are only saved by the timely activation of the atmospheric safety forcefields.
Fairytale Wedding Dress : Troi wears a pink one at her wedding.
Faux Affably Evil : Shinzon.
Five-Second Foreshadowing : The Enterprise is being stalked by Shinzon's cloaked ship, so it's hoping to rendezvous with the fleet for protection. On the way, they enter an area of space where long-range communications don't work. Data and Picard realize that this would be a perfect place for Shinzon to attack them. Guess what happens next?
From Bad to Worse : With the Enterprise already outmatched by the Scimitar , two more warbirds show up. Subverted when they offer to help fight Shinzon.
From Nobody to Nightmare : Shinzon may not have been the most competent Big Bad ever, but given that he started out as the weakest slave in the mines, getting as far as he did in life was quite an accomplishment.
Fun with Homophones : During the fight with the Enterprise , Shinzon slowly and viciously says "Fire at will." Followed immediately by a cut to a frantic Will Riker.
Generic Doomsday Villain : Shinzon. The extreme actions that actually relate to his supposedly well-intentioned goals occur entirely in the opening minutes of the movie: as he was raised by the Remans, he understandably doesn't like their status as the Warrior - Slave Race of the Romulan Empire. But when he assassinates the entire Romulan Senate and installs himself as the new dictator... he's already solved all the Remans' problems. At that point his only real explanation for wanting to destroy Earth is to eclipse Picard in the history books and make sure nobody ever subjugates the Remans again. For a poorly explained reason (to prove to everyone that the Remans are to be taken seriously), he has a super battleship way more advanced than every ship it comes up against. He also got a planet-destroying superweapon from... somewhere. The Star Trek Novelverse spent quite a few pages writing (non-canon) fix fics to explain this mess.
Grand Finale : For the Next Generation crew, and more: as the next film returns to the TOS gang in an altered version of history, it was the final entry of the Next Generation , of the whole 24th Century era, and of the entire Trek Verse as it has been from day one ... until Star Trek: Picard was announced in 2019.
Guns Akimbo : Picard wields two disruptors while Data figures out how to access the hangar on the Scimitar .
Hand Wave : Tom Hardy looking nothing like Patrick Stewart is handwaved during their characters' dinner scene where Shinzon notes "Not the face you remember? A life of violence can do that."
Hangover Sensitivity : Worf and Romulan ale do not mix very well.
Heel–Face Door-Slam : Subverted. Shinzon slams it himself.
Heel–Face Turn : The Romulans.
Heroic BSoD : After Shinzon dies, Picard suffers one. When Data appears, Picard barely registers his arrival at first.
Heroic Sacrifice : Data, homaging Spock's heroic sacrifice in Wrath of Khan .
Hoist by Their Own Petard : The Romulans create a clone of Captain Picard for a Kill and Replace gambit, only to have their tool kill and replace the Romulan Senate . So this is a case of Hoist By Their Own Picard .
So to be clear: the series has established that quite a few members of the Enterprise are geniuses, and they know, by this point, that Shinzon is literally out for Captain Picard's blood. And yet, it doesn't occur to any of them that flying the ship alone into a gas cloud which prevents them from calling for help is a really, really bad idea.
The last time they found a disassembled Soong-designed android, he turned out to be Data's Evil Twin and went on to nearly kill the crew on two separate occasions. Why not ONE of the senior staff, all of whom were present for both events, brings up even the vaguest mention of this...
So, Shinzon and the Remans discover B-4 somewhere, add programming to turn him into their spy, and plant his remains in the desert for the Enterprise to find. The goal here is to acquire the position of the Federation fleet, the same fleet the Scimitar can trivially bypass thanks to its perfect cloak. The whole thing failed anyway, but it's not made clear why he ever needed the data in the first place, given his plan never involved the fleet in the first place. Presumably this would have tied in to the deleted subplot where Shinzon intended to launch a full-scale assault on the Federation, and the information would have been for the benefit of the rest of the Romulan fleet, which would have otherwise been vulnerable to the Federation's normal methods of rooting out cloaked ships.
Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy : The Reman side of this is lampshaded early on when it's pointed out that the Romulans used Remans for cannon fodder in the Dominion War.
Inertial Impalement : At the climax, Picard inflicts this on Shinzon with a piece of broken-off metal.
He waits for two days to talk to Picard personally, along with other general procrastination ( due to Clone Degeneration , Shinzon at this point has something like a week to live ) because he was "curious" about Picard.
He unveils his secret flagship, the Scimitar , in a show of strength, not only nullifying the surprise of his trump card but also eventually revealing to Picard that he has a planet-killer weapon.
He leaves the Enterprise in orbit of Romulus after kidnapping Picard.
While ambushing Enterprise , he flies unnecessarily close to them, allowing them to hit him despite Scimitar's cloaking device.
He orders the Scimitar to move to port when he sees the Enterprise proceeding to ram it, rather than moving full reverse. Even if the Enterprise had inertia on its side, moving back would have softened the blow considerably.
Shinzon says the Remans are "A race bred for war", yet they get slaughtered easily in most of the combat scenes. To be fair, they do slightly better against the generic security team members on the Enterprise . It could be their problem is they constantly go into combat against main characters who are protected by Plot Armor .
Interface Spoiler : At one point, the subtitles spoil the surprise of Picard being beamed off the Enterprise mid-sentence a few seconds before it actually happens. The details may not be obvious, but it's clear that something critically interrupts him.
It's Personal : The only explanation for Shinzon's attitude towards both the Romulan establishment and Picard.
Kick the Dog : Shinzon's Mind Rape of Troi, which serves no real purpose except to demonstrate how evil he is.
Killed Off for Real : Data .
Kirk Summation : Picard gives Shinzon one during the climactic battle, trying to get him to see past his rage and become a better man. Unfortunately, Shinzon responds with a Shut Up, Picard!
The Last Dance : Shinzon: I'm glad we're together now - our destiny is complete.

Lightning Bruiser : The Scimitar is faster than the Enterprise while boasting more firepower and stronger Deflector Shields . Even the combined might of the Enterprise and two Romulan Valdore -class warbirds isn't enough to defeat it.
Lock-and-Load Montage : Picard: All hands... battle stations !
Looks Like Orlok : The Remans were explicitly designed to resemble Nosferatu .
Losing Your Head : B-4.
Made of Iron : The Enterprise . While she's not nearly as well-armed as the Scimitar , she takes a beating during the battle and keeps on going (granted, Shinzon wanted Picard taken alive). The only thing that stopped her was running out of torpedoes . And then when Picard decided to ram his opponent anyway, the Enterprise only loses about 1/6th of its saucer section while the Scimitar folds like cheap cardboard, losing all its disruptors and the cloaking device in the process. If not for his Wave-Motion Gun , Shinzon would have been defeated right there.
The Main Characters Do Everything : Riker and Worf leave their posts on the bridge during a battle to go shoot it out with the Reman boarding party below decks. Why the ship's senior officers needed to leave their posts in the middle of battle to go do basic grunt work is anyone's guess.
Meaningful Name : Shinzon is a Chinese name meaning "heart". It's also a Japanese name meaning "new existence".
Military Coup : The entire Romulan Senate is assassinated by Shinzon and a group of Romulan generals who were promised that he would invade the Federation.
Mind Rape : Shinzon and Vkruk use an unusually literal version on Troi, though she turns it back on them.
Misapplied Phlebotinum : Mr Plinkett went into a long rant in his review about the shuttle that brings the Argo buggy down to Kolarus III. Complaining that a flying space vehicle is vastly more useful than a car but they only use it to house and transport a vehicle that's less useful than itself.
Misplaced Retribution : Shinzon despises being Picard's clone and is willing to kill every person on Earth just to make sure that his name is the one history remembers.
Missile Lock-On : Averted for most of the Battle of the Bassen Rift thanks to the Scimitar 's advanced cloaking device. Similarly to General Chang almost a century earlier , Shinzon's firing through the cloak and thus Worf can't achieve targeting locks. He has to fire blindly and manually (which scores as many hits as misses). The Valdore has the same problem, necessitating Worf coordinating with them to triangulate fire on any shield impact. It's not until Troi telepathically locates the Viceroy that Worf's able to finally knock out the cloak and achieve automatic targeting locks — though by that point in the battle, the Enterprise has already expended most of its weaponry and is heavily damaged.
The Scimitar is more loaded for bear with more disruptors and torpedoes than almost any other Trek ship, not to mention its Wave-Motion Gun .
During the battle, when Troi gives Worf a solid point to aim at, he starts firing the Enterprise's quantum torpedoes. These are a lot more powerful than the standard photon torpedoes, and at this point the barrage succeeds in bringing down the Scimitar 's cloak, but it's still not enough to break through the shields and do any meaningful damage.
Named by the Adaptation : The Viceroy's true name, Vkruk, is given in the novelization.
No, Mr. Bond, I Expect You to Dine : Shinzon invites Picard to a private dinner, where he shares his backstory with him.
Non-Human Non-Binary : Data makes a brief reference to "invited transgendered species" early on in the movie, the franchise's first reference to transexuality. However, the word was badly misused. Instead of having anything to do with a person whose gender identity and physical sex do not match, it was added onto "Ladies and Gentlemen," meaning it referred to races whose physical sexes are not the same as humans. note If Star Trek has an example of transsexuality, it's the TNG episode where a member of a genderless race caused a stir by considering herself female; a failed attempt at an episode about homosexuality ( But Not Too Gay and Rule-Abiding Rebel were taken a bit too far; a nominally genderless character played by a woman who isn't being made to look or sound any less female and who identifies as a woman falling in love with a man is not even sorta homosexual-ish, it's just Riker getting his Kirk on one more time. However, they accidentally backed into having an episode about transsexuality that isn't the worst you've ever seen, at a time when it was hardly on the radar).
No OSHA Compliance : Not only is there nothing protecting anyone from coming into contact with the beam coming out of the thalaron generator, which is located in an anteroom just behind the bridge of the Scimitar , but firing a hand phaser into the beam is sufficient to blow up the entire ship. Downplayed a little in that the beam is only present when the thalaron generator is active, and it's still a much lesser case than what was in the original script, where it was the ship's warp core that was on the bridge.
No Seatbelts : A deleted bit from the ending would show that the Enterprise was finally being equipped with them, to which Picard even says "About time!"
"Not So Different" Remark : Picard and Shinzon, explored at some length. Shinzon claims that he is what Picard would have been under different circumstances, then brushes off Picard's attempt to turn the "mirror" metaphor around on him. Data later points out a key difference by comparing him to B-4: Neither makes any attempt to better themselves. Subtly lampshaded when Shinzon tells his ship's replicator to give him a hot tea.
Noodle Incident : The twelve major engagements Shinzon fought in the Dominion War. We don't learn any details, save that they establish his backstory and reputation as a young, capable, and successful commander.
Not Worth Killing : For obvious reasons, Shinzon doesn't want the Enterprise destroyed with Picard still aboard, and tells his gunners to focus on her weapons and shield emitters. When he then demands Picard's surrender, he claims that he has "little interest in [his] quaint vessel", implying that he'll let the Enterprise go.
Novelization : The film's novelization stays mostly true to the finished film, with several small scenes deleted from the film, but notably expands on Shinzon's motivations: Having bonded so much with the Remans after his years of slavery, he honestly wants the best for them, and intends to lead a galactic war to make them the dominant species in the universe, and it's made clear that with the Scimitar , and the Thalaron radiation, he could have pulled it off . The book also expands Worf's role during the final battle, and actually gives Beverly something to do: Worf battles a few more Remans, and chases one into a cargo bay that's been converted into a makeshift hospital, only to be near-fatally wounded. Beverly stuns said Reman soldier, and with the help of Romulan doctor, manages to save Worf's life.
When the Enterprise crew realize that the region of space they have just entered would be the perfect place for an ambush. Data: The rift will affect all long-range communica... ( Oh, Crap! face) Picard: (calls The Bridge ) Commander Riker, evasive maneuvers! ( Screen Shake )
When Shinzon realizes that the Enterprise is about to ram him. Shinzon: HARD TO PORT!
Orcus on His Throne : Shinzon needs a transfusion of Picard's blood to prevent his own Clone Degeneration . Despite having Picard prisoner for quite some time and being repeatedly told by Vkruk to begin the procedure, he does not... for some reason .
Out-of-Character Moment : The Dune-Buggy Scene. Picard apparently decides to screw decades of adherence to the Prime Directive and perform Car Fu on a pre-warp planet, despite being willing to condemn entire species to death rather than break it before.
Palm Bloodletting : Shinzon does this to provide our heroes with a blood sample so they can see that he is Picard's clone.
Phlebotinum-Proof Robot : Data, not needing to breathe, launches himself through outer space to go from the Enterprise to the Scimitar .
Pull Yourself Down the Spear : The last scene between Picard and Shinzon is a nod to King Arthur , as Shinzon pulls himself down the beam stuck in his gut to to make his final verbal attack against Picard, a poignant parallel to Mordred hauling himself down the spear to aim a final attack at his father Arthur.
Punny Name : B-4, Data's prototype. The name was planned to be B-9 but got changed. Lampshaded by Picard: Picard: Dr. Soong's penchant for whimsical names seems to have no end!
Ramming Always Works : Subverted. While the egg-like structure of the saucer section gives the Enterprise physical resilience against head-on impacts, and it did seemingly succeed in disabling the Scimitar 's primary weapons and destroy the hangar containing her complement of Scorpion -class fighters (hence why the Enterprise wasn't reduced to space dust for its failure), it also disabled the Enterprise completely while the Scimitar still had impulse and warp capability. In the long run, however, the Scimitar also had a damaged cloak, which would have rendered it a lot more vulnerable to the Federation fleet.
Rank Scales with Asskicking : By the end of the movie, Picard blasts his way out of prison, single-handedly wipes out the entire bridge crew of the Scimitar , and defeats Shinzon in hand to hand combat. Not bad for a 76-year old.
Redemption Rejection : Picard tries to convince Shinzon to see past his rage. It doesn't work .
Red Shirt : Lieutenant Branson gets sucked out into space when the Scimitar blows a hole in the bridge of the Enterprise .
Remember the New Guy? : The entire Reman species which, given its back story, should have shown up at least once or twice on the various series — especially given they fought during the Dominion War . Everyone just acts like they've always existed. The film does try to justify it by saying the Romulans consider Remans less than real people, and thus keep them locked away on Remus toiling in slavery, but it is a bit difficult to swallow.
Replacement Goldfish : It's implied that B-4 will become this to Data thanks to the memory download he underwent . Star Trek: Countdown , the non-canon prequel to Star Trek (2009) , embraced this and featured a restored Data, though Star Trek: Picard eventually confirmed that the download didn't take, and that B-4 was dismantled.
See the Invisible : Geordi tries this, but fails — Shinzon's Invisibility Cloak is just that good.
Self-Destruct Mechanism : Picard tries to activate it as a last-ditch attempt to stop Shinzon, but it's offline from the battle.
Picard, who has consistently been depicted as being willing to lay down his life before violating the Prime Directive , happily takes part in a car chase on a pre-industrial world. He's also violated it just about as much as Kirk did, but not so whimsically and randomly.
Also, the photo shows him in the Star Trek II -era trainee/NCO uniform, not the cadet/commissioned officer uniform.
While trying to reason with Shinzon, Picard tells him "Your heart, your hands, your eyes are the same as mine," despite the fact that TNG established that Picard has an artificial heart due to an incident where he was stabbed as a young man.
A deleted scene shows Geordi discovering the emotion chip in Data's quarters. By Insurrection , Data had figured out how to remove the chip, and seems to be using it less frequently. The fact that he displayed emotion at the end without the chip is the culmination of his Character Development .
Series Fauxnale : As the final theatrical Next Generation film, Nemesis would serve as the sendoff for the Enterprise -D/E family for two decades, until the final season of Picard in 2023 would deliberately affirm itself as the true Grand Finale for the TNG cast and story.
Shoulders of Doom : Shinzon. Lampshaded on-set by his co-star Frakes, who described his outfit as "a reject from Rollerball ."
Is B-4 hacking into the Enterprise computer or The Matrix ?
The Jackal knife in the film was a prop used in TV before. Who else wielded that weapon? Faith.
Sinister Scimitar : Shinzon's warbird, which proves to be more than a match for the Enterprise .
Soul Fragment : B-4 sings "Blue Skies" at the end.
Space Is an Ocean : Averted. The majority of the final battle takes place in mostly a flat plane but there is still plenty of swooping over and under each other. Also, a major part of the combat involves the Enterprise rotating damaged sections away from the Scimitar 's line of sight, which includes turning (relative to us) upside down.
Spotlight-Stealing Squad : The film plays out like a Picard and Data Fan Fiction , with most of the main cast limited to holding the floor down. They were the primary characters of all the TNG movies, but not quite to this degree of no one else having much to do at all.
Despite leaving Starfleet in the finale of Deep Space Nine , Worf is back in his old position of tactical/security officer on the Enterprise without so much as a line of dialogue to explain it. In the other movies he didn't belong in, we got an explanation: in The Undiscovered Country, the TOS era Colonel Worf is the guy TNG's Worf is an Identical Grandson of. In First Contact, the crew of the damaged Defiant was beamed onto the Enterprise . In Insurrection, he was asked what he was doing there but the action cuts away before he answers; we're given a humorous Un Reveal but the fact that he's stationed elsewhere and a reason why he dropped by this time exists in-universe. Here? He's just there, in full uniform from the start, manning his old station like it's still his station. Not even a Hand Wave , or events that make a Fan Wank easy. A deleted line had him saying that he wasn't suited to the life of a diplomat.
Despite their wartime alliance against the Dominion during Deep Space Nine , relations between the Romulans and Federation have reverted right back to their traditional cold war status quo within less than 4 years after the War ended. This at least can be justified in-universe, as it was made clear repeatedly on DS9 that the Romulans joining the War effort was an alliance of necessity (and that the UFP and Star Empire would be left as the major powers vying for control of the Quadrant in its aftermath).
Stealth in Space : The Scimitar can fire while cloaked and its cloaking ability was capable of countering previously established means of detecting cloaked ships. The Enterprise does manage to land a fair number of hits on it, though, suggesting that the Scimitar 's constant firing gave away its position. Not a big deal, however, since unlike most ships in Star Trek, the Scimitar also retains its shields while cloaked too.
Stupid Sacrifice : Several (attempted) times in fact. First Data tries to do this when saving Picard, but Picard tells him no. Then Picard attempts to do this when the Enterprise is disabled. Then Data comes to save Picard again , before following through on his initial plan to kill himself in a semi-heroic fashion. The latter two are because no member of the crew seems to realize that the Enterprise has functioning shuttles with functioning transporters .
Taken for Granite : The entire Romulan Senate (save for Tal'aura) are turned to stone at the beginning of the film. This is also the fate that Shinzon intends for the Enterprise crew, and then Earth.
This Is Something He's Got to Do Himself Picard: Data, this is something I have to do myself.
Thrown Out the Airlock : When one of the Scimitar 's torpedos hits The Bridge . Bye bye, Branson .
Tidally Locked Planet : The Remans evolved on the dark side of tidally-locked Remus, explaining their photosensitivity.
Timeshifted Actor : Technically, Tom Hardy as Shinzon, although they didn't bother to get an actor who actually looked anything like Patrick Stewart .
To Absent Friends : Borrowed from Star Trek III .
Trailers Always Spoil : The reveal of Shinzon being human was originally meant to happen quite early on, but was pushed back to much later in the film when the producers decided it'd be more dramatic if the audience found out about Shinzon at the same time that Picard did. Something that might have worked better if not for the fact that the first trailer showed a good chunk of Shinzon's original introductory scene.
Unspoken Plan Guarantee : Data's switch with B-4 .
Villain Opening Scene : But, y'know, who really liked the Romulan Senate anyway?
Weapon of Mass Destruction : The planet-killing ship.
Weld the Lock : Picard seals the door to the shuttle bay but discovers that that door is the only way out.
Whole-Plot Reference : To Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan .
Wounded Gazelle Gambit : Shinzon utilizes this in the finale battle. In a three-on-one fight against the Enterprise and two warbirds, it was becoming easier for them to track down the Scimitar even with the cloak. He lured in the lead warbird by dropping part of the cloak, making them think they were doing worse than they were. Once in close, a full weapon spread at close range quickly disabled them.
You Are Better Than You Think You Are : Picard attempts to convince Shinzon of this. He fails, miserably.
You Have Failed Me : Shinzon orders a Reman guard who failed to stop Picard shot. So much for that whole "freeing your Reman brothers" bit.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness : The Romulans pulled this on Shinzon before they even started using him — they abandoned their plans for him when he was still a boy and sent him to the Reman mines, not expecting him to survive.
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Patrick Stewart Admits He Initially 'Vetoed' a 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' Reunion on 'Picard'

Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes tell PEOPLE they are grateful for their characters' closure after the last TNG film bombed at the box office

Ryan Parker is the former Senior News Editor, Weekends for PEOPLE. He left PEOPLE in 2023.

When Patrick Stewart signed on to star in Star Trek: Picard , he was adamant that there would be no Star Trek: The Next Generation cast reunion — then an early scene between two old friends changed his mind.

Ahead of Picard 's third and final season premiere Thursday on Paramount+, the 82-year-old actor and his longtime costar Jonathan Frakes , 70, spoke with PEOPLE about the cathartic experience of getting the iconic sci-fi TV series crew back together for one final adventure.

Joining Stewart and Frakes (who previously stepped on the Picard set both as a guest star and director) are Michael Dorn as Worf, Gates McFadden as Dr. Beverly Crusher and LeVar Burton as Geordi La Forge. Brent Spiner, Marina Sirtis and Wil Wheaton — who previously guest-starred on Picard — also return for the final season.

The last time the entire cast shared a screen was for 2002's Star Trek: Nemesis . A critical and commercial failure, it led to a "brutal" axing of the TNG property. More than 20 years later, the cast were grateful for the chance to say a proper goodbye.

Below, Stewart and Frakes open up about the last season of Picard , the death of a beloved colleague and what TNG keepsakes they took from set.

I'm sad to start with this, but I wanted to express my condolences for the death of Annie Wersching . She was amazing, and I believe playing the Borg Queen was her final on-screen role. Would either of you like to share a memory?

JONATHAN FRAKES: I spent a lot of time with her, with Alison Pill when I directed last season. And I know, from having done First Contact with Alice Krige playing the Borg Queen, that there's no glamour in becoming the Borg Queen. It's four hours of makeup and prosthetics and hair and skin-tight costumes and tubes being stuck into your head. So it tries your patience before you've even set foot on the stage. And Annie never lost her sense of humor and never lost her focus. She was a beacon of joy on the set as an actor.

PATRICK STEWART: Well, I was very shocked by the news when it came through, although we had very little contact. But her work, which I have seen, was extraordinary. So it was sad and disappointing to hear this news because she was terrific in the series.

Did either of you have any idea that the series would ultimately lead to a full TNG reunion, or were you just pleasantly surprised as fans?

STEWART: No. Initially, my feeling had been — I had certain conditions attached to signing onto this. Though I was excited about the idea of a Star Trek series called Picard , Next Generation was something I thought we had done great work on, but this now was something very different. So even when we started shooting, there wasn't a plan about the assembly.

But then in season 1, I played one scene with Marina Sirtis and Jonathan as Riker. And little by little I saw that I had been wrong to put a veto on full TNG cast elements in this new series. And I think that it's worked out to everyone's satisfaction. I know I enjoyed it immensely.

FRAKES: Patrick had the good taste to initially gather us and say, "I'm doing a Picard series. It's after Picard has left Star Fleet, and I want to be the first to tell you that it's just Picard." So [a reunion] to come as a surprise is an understatement.

With the final TNG film, Star Trek: Nemesis , having such a rough go with critics and underperforming at the box office, was there a part of either of you that yearned for one last proper adventure and send-off for these characters?

FRAKES: Our TNG days ended because it was the first Star Trek movie to lose money. And Paramount cut their losses. I don't know what Nemesis cost to make, but it lost money, and therefore they were done with us. I never thought it was going to be the end until they said, "You're done." Did you, Patrick? Did you think we were done done?

STEWART: Oh no, on the contrary. And I have to say before I get into that: Nemesis , I think was a disappointment to all of us. It was not of the quality of what had gone before with the three previous movies, particularly the one that Jonathan had directed, First Contact , which was absolutely brilliant. They had already a draft of a movie project, which would follow Nemesis , but we just got kind of brutally axed.

FRAKES: Yeah, it was brutal.

So it's fair to say then that you did not have closure with these characters and that this must have been therapeutic, to say the least, to revisit them and close it out the way that you wanted to ?

STEWART: Yes. And certainly, in that, all of this came together and developed while we were shooting the first season of the Picard . Countless conversations with [executive producers] Terry Matalas and Alex Kurtzman about this. And we met and met and discussed and went through a whole series of storylines and ideas about reuniting. And eventually, we did. And it was wonderfully successful.

In my opinion, TNG had the perfect ending, with Capt. Picard finally joining the senior crew's poker game. Without any spoilers, do you feel this series ends as satisfying?

FRAKES: I'm too much of a spoiler mouth when someone asks me a question like that. I'm lucky I still work at CBS. I would say it's a very satisfying season with a very satisfying ending.

STEWART: Hear, hear. No blinds are drawn. But saying goodbye, that never happens anyway because one of the joys of this work that we've done from Next Generation right through to the end of Picard and all those movies is that we are a team. And we all have a relationship. I mean, we have a password, don't we, for all our online communications and so forth.

FRAKES: We have a very interesting group text, I will say.

Finally, do either you have any keepsakes from the original series in your office? And are there any keepsakes that you have from this series in your office?

STEWART: I have my last captain's suit from the series. And it hangs in my wardrobe. I have not actually put it on for a very, very long time. But the one person who, if I were to do this, I would want to surprise is my wife, who loved and adored TNG with her family. So one day, she will never know when, there might just be a surprise stored up — and I shall appear wearing my Picard uniform. I've also got the badge secretly stored away in a safe.

FRAKES: I stole my last TNG suit, and it hangs in my closet in a plastic bag. And one of my contractors saw it and borrowed it for Halloween one year, and I think that's the last time it was worn.

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Star Trek: Picard season 3 premieres Thursday on Paramount+.

This interview has been eedited for length and clarity.

Why Did Paramount Remove the Star Trek Movies?

Fans of Star Trek looking for the first 10 movies in Gene Roddenberry's universe won't find them on Paramount+. Here's where they can be viewed.

Paramount+ was billed as the "Home of Star Trek," yet the first 10 films in the franchise were removed.
Rather than being shelved for a tax write-off, the movies were licensed to Warner Bros. Discovery.
The Star Trek films are streaming exclusively on Max, and this is actually a good thing for the future of the franchise.

Star Trek fans who logged into their Paramount+ service to watch any of the original ten movies were disappointed to see them removed. With the way studios and streamers have been removing content, audiences might assume the movies have been shelved as some cost-saving measure. Thankfully, this is not the case, but it is bad news for any Star Trek fan who also doesn't subscribe to Max. For many studios, 2023 was a difficult year, especially in the streaming space. In fact, Paramount executives met with Warner Bros. Discovery executives to discuss a potential merger.

The CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, David Zaslav, has consistently removed content from Max in order to write them off as a loss. While it's possible that moving the first 10 Star Trek films to Max is a sign of the studios cozying up to each other, it could just mean Paramount is reverting to a pre-Streaming Wars business strategy. Earlier in 2023, the first 10 Star Trek films -- Star Trek: The Motion Picture through Star Trek: Nemesis -- were licensed to Max while also being available on Paramount+. They must have performed well on the other service, as the studio has again licensed the films to Max. This time, however, they are exclusive to the Max streaming service.

The First 10 Star Trek Feature Films Are Still the Franchise's Most Popular

Matt jefferies' final uss enterprise design was lost when phase ii fell apart.

After the success of Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind , Paramount went to Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry for their big-budget sci-fi franchise. The Great Bird of the Galaxy was already at work on a revival series, Star Trek: Phase II because Star Trek: The Original Series was the highest-rated scripted series in syndication a decade after its cancelation. The pilot episode of this revival was adapted into Star Trek: The Motion Picture . While a financial success, the film went massively overbudget and was a production boondoggle. Roddenberry was effectively demoted, and producer Harve Bennett took over the sequels.

Under Bennett's leadership, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan revitalized fans' love of the crew of the USS Enterprise . He turned to series star Leonard Nimoy to direct the next two features: Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home . The latter film (known to all as "the one with the whales") became the universe's biggest hit. It was followed by Star Trek V: The Final Frontier , a better movie than it gets credit for. The swan song for the original cast came via Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , a powerful film about the end of the Cold War and, more generally, how frightening change can be.

After the end of Star Trek: The Next Generation , producer Rick Berman took over the film franchise. Star Trek: Generations is infamous for "killing" Captain James T. Kirk and passing the torch from the old crew to the new. This was followed by Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek: Insurrection , directed by another former USS Enterprise first officer, actor Jonathan Frakes. Finally, Star Trek: Nemesis was released in 2002, becoming the first film in the franchise to "flop" at the box office, ending an incredible 20-year run of success.

Star Trek's First 10 Films

Why paramount sent the star trek movies to max, star trek's renaissance is so strong, it has its own awards show.

When the streaming service launched, then called CBS All Access, it was a hub for all Star Trek , from the series to the films. However, they were also found on other services like Netflix and Prime Video. Eventually, Paramount brought the series all to Paramount+ exclusively hoping these shows and movies -- along with the new entries in the universe -- would bring the Trekkies, Trekkers and casual fans to the service to continue boldly going on space adventures with friends old and new. However, as Paramount+ has failed to hit the subscriber goals needed to justify expenditures (on projects more expensive than Star Trek shows ), the plan has changed.

First, Star Trek: Prodigy -- an animated series for kids made in concert with Nickelodeon -- was removed from the service. Paramount licensed Prodigy to Netflix , which will debut Season 2 exclusively. Similarly, series like Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: The Original Series can be found on free ad-supported television streaming service, Pluto TV. Yet, these shows are (for now) still available on Paramount+. When the first 10 Star Trek movies were on Max earlier in 2023, they were also still available on the service. This time, they're only found on Max, which suggests the films were strong performers on Max previously.

Fans who know their Constitution-class ships from Galaxy-class ones are likely subscribed to Paramount+ already. However, people who "used to" love Star Trek may not be. Finding these beloved films on a streaming service like Max could be just the thing to hold them over until the next season of House of the Dragon or some other original release debuts on the service. This marks a return to Paramount's old Star Trek business model. Almost all the films turned a decent profit, but the real money comes from the repeat viewings. Just as Star Trek: The Original Series was a hit in syndication, these classic stories may be "worth" more to the studio as something to license rather than a franchise to keep locked behind its own paywall.

Paramount Could Face Backlash From Star Trek Fans for Removing the Films

What are the best actor-hosted star trek shows covering franchise history.

For the Star Trek faithful, the central appeal of Paramount+ was a one-stop shop for all their streaming needs. From the classics to the newest entries in the third wave of the series, fans enjoy the convenience of having the entire saga all in one place. The removal of Prodigy already annoyed fans, though they are likely just happy the series was rescued by Netflix and can now see Season 2. However, not being able to cue up The Wrath of Khan or First Contact might be enough to turn the passionate fandom on the studio. There is a long history of Star Trek fans being upset with Paramount, from when the series was first canceled to bristling at each new series in the universe, starting with The Animated Series in 1973 .

However, for those invested in the future of Star Trek , this is a good thing for the studio and the franchise itself. First, it means that Paramount is able to recoup some losses from not hitting their streaming goals. While Star Trek fans often show up, other big-budget franchises, like Taylor Sheridan's cowboy sagas, eat away at the studio's bottom line. No one is campaigning for more Yellowstone , but a petition asking the studio to greenlight Picard spinoff Star Trek: Legacy currently sits at more than 63,000 signatures. That Warner Bros. Discovery is willing to pay to stream a series of decades-old movies further shows just how strong the Star Trek brand is in the 21st Century.

It's okay for fans to be disappointed that Paramount+ is no longer the "home" of Star Trek they were promised. Yet, the movies will be back on the service someday. While they are over at Max, it simply means others' love of Gene Roddenberry's universe can be reawakened. Beyond the immediate licensing fee, these films serve as a reminder that Star Trek is as vital and relevant as ever before. It could bring in more subscribers, in the long-run, to Paramount+, which means the studio will continue to invest in its most profitable property.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture through Star Trek: Nemesis are currently streaming on Max .

The Star Trek universe encompasses multiple series, each offering a unique lens through which to experience the wonders and perils of space travel. Join Captain Kirk and his crew on the Original Series' voyages of discovery, encounter the utopian vision of the Federation in The Next Generation, or delve into the darker corners of galactic politics in Deep Space Nine. No matter your preference, there's a Star Trek adventure waiting to ignite your imagination.

Court is the final frontier for this lost ‘Star Trek’ model

The original model of the U.S.S. Enterprise from the 1960s TV series "Star Trek."

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In April, Heritage Auctions heralded the discovery of the original model of the U.S.S. Enterprise, the iconic starship that whooshed through the stars in the opening credits of the 1960s TV series “Star Trek” but had mysteriously disappeared around 45 years ago.

The auction house, known for its dazzling sales of movie and television props and memorabilia, announced that it was returning the 33-inch model to Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry Jr., son of series creator Gene Roddenberry. The model was kept at Heritage’s Beverly Hills office for “safekeeping,” the house proclaimed in a statement, shortly after an individual discovered it and brought it to Heritage for authentication.

“After a long journey, she’s home,” Roddenberry’s son posted on X , (formerly Twitter).

Two men shake hands next to a model of the U.S.S. Enterprise

But the journey has been far from smooth. The starship model and its celebrated return is now the subject of a lawsuit alleging fraud, negligence and deceptive trade practice, highlighting the enduring value of memorabilia from the iconic sci-fi TV series.

The case was brought by Dustin Riach and Jason Rivas, longtime friends and self-described storage unit entrepreneurs who discovered the model among a stash of items they bought “sight unseen” from a lien sale at a storage locker in Van Nuys last October.

“It’s an unfortunate misunderstanding. We have a seller on one side and a buyer on the other side and Heritage is in the middle, and we are aligning the parties on both sides to get the transaction complete,” said Armen Vartian, an attorney representing the Dallas-based auction house, adding that the allegations against his client were “unfounded.”

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The pair claimed that once the model was authenticated and given a value of $800,000, they agreed to consign it to an auction sale with Heritage planned for July 2024, according to the lawsuit. However, following their agreement, they allege the auction house falsely questioned their title to the model and then convinced them, instead of taking it to auction, to sell it for a low-ball $500,000 to Roddenberry Entertainment Inc. According to the suit, Eugene Roddenberry, the company’s CEO, had shown great interest in the model and could potentially provide a pipeline of memorabilia to the auction house in the future.

Top view of the original model of the U.S.S. Enterprise from the 1960s TV series "Star Trek."

“They think we have a disagreement with Roddenberry,” said Dale Washington, Riach and Rivas’ attorney. “We don’t. We think they violated property law in the discharge of their fiduciary duties.”

The two men allege they have yet to receive the $500,000 payment.

A surprise discovery in a Van Nuys storage unit

For years, Riach and Rivas have made a living buying repossessed storage lockers and selling the contents online, at auction and at flea markets. In fact, Riach has appeared on the reality TV series “Storage Wars.”

“It’s a roll of dice in the dark,” Riach said of his profession bidding on storage lockers. “Sometimes you are buying a picture of a unit. When a unit goes to lien, what you see is what you get and the rest is a surprise. At a live auction you can shine a flashlight, smell and look inside to get a gauge. But online is a gamble, it’s only as good as the photo.”

Last fall, Riach said he saw a picture of a large locker in an online sale. It was 10 feet by 30 feet, and “I saw boxes hiding in the back, it was dirty, dusty, there were cobwebs and what looked like a bunch of broken furniture,” he said.

Something about it, he said, “looked interesting,” and he called Rivas and told him they should bid on it. Riach declined to say how much they paid.

There were tins of old photographs and negatives of nitrate film reels from the 1800s and 1900s. When Rivas unwrapped a trash bag that was sitting on top of furniture, he pulled out a model of a spaceship. The business card of its maker, Richard C. Datin, was affixed to the bottom of the base.

A Google search turned up that Datin had made “Star Trek” models, although the two men didn’t make the connection to the TV series.

“We buy lots of units and see models all of the time,” Riach said. He thought they would find a buyer and decided to list it on eBay with a starting price of $1,000.

At once, they were deluged with inquiries. Among Trekkies, the long-lost first starship model had attained a mythical status.

The original “Star Trek’’ debuted in 1966 and aired for three seasons. Although its original run was brief, the show has generated numerous films and television spinoffs and is one of the most lucrative entertainment franchises, with an enormous fan base.

Gene Roddenberry, creator of "Star Trek," with an image of the starship Enterprise in 1984.

In 2022, at a Heritage auction of 75 props and items, a Starfleet Communicator from the 1990s series “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” sold for $27,500 while a pair of Spock’s prosthetic Vulcan ear tips from the original series went for $11,875, more than twice the amount they brought when they were sold in 2017 for $5,100.

The starship’s design was crucial to the series’ success. “If you didn’t believe you were in a vehicle traveling through space, a vehicle that made sense, whose layout and design made sense, then you wouldn’t believe in the series,” Gene Roddenberry said in the 1968 book “The Making of Star Trek,” according to the auction house.

For years, the show’s creator had kept the 33-inch model on his desk. It became the prototype for the 11-foot model used in subsequent episodes. That version was later donated to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. But that first model disappeared around 1978 when the makers of “Star Trek: The Motion Picture” borrowed it.

A missing starship model

In 1979, Roddenberry wrote to then Paramount executive Jeffrey Katzenberg stating that he had “loaned” the model to the studio more than a year earlier.

“My problem is simply that of getting my model back,” Roddenberry wrote, according to a copy provided by Washington. “It is a fairly expensive piece of model making but its real value to me is what it represents.” He added that no one he had spoken with “had the slightest hint as to who got it or what happened to it.”

Roddenberry died in 1991 .

After the massive interest sparked by the eBay listing, Riach and Rivas pulled the sale and began researching the model more intently. They discovered the connection between Datin and the TV series but also learned that the original model was the same size as the one they had found and it had gone missing. “I said wow, do we have something here?” said Riach, and then reached out to Heritage.

Riach admitted that “Star Trek” wasn’t really on his radar. He was a die-hard “Star Wars” fan, having collected vintage memorabilia from the space films since he was 8 years old.

But given the treasure he unearthed, he now says, “I love ‘Star Trek.’

“There are people buying storage units for 20 years and you will never find anything this great,” he said. “It’s like buying a lottery ticket. It was a very great find.”

Things took an unexpected twist, Riach said. In March, he and Rivas signed an agreement to sell the model for $500,000 after it was pulled from the planned auction and they were told Roddenberry Entertainment had a “strong claim” to the model’s title and “would tie them up with its ‘powerful legal team.’” But then they were given a new transfer agreement to sign with a new set of terms. Riach declined and, instead, he and Rivas called Washington.

Heritage “moved the goalposts,” said their attorney. Under the new agreement, Riach and Rivas would be paid a “finder’s fee,” which Washington called a “reward,” converting it from a transactional payment to a potentially voluntary payment.

They claimed that by April, when Heritage announced the model had resurfaced, the pair came to believe the house failed to disclose the item’s value was much greater than they had been told.

Joe Maddalena, Heritage’s executive vice president, made public statements calling it “priceless.” “It could sell for any amount and I wouldn’t be surprised because of what it is,” he told the AP . “It is truly a cultural icon.”

They also had not been paid.

On April 28, 10 days after Heritage announced it had returned the model to Roddenberry, Riach and Rivas’ lawyer sent a letter to the auction house’s attorney outlining their claims and asking for the payment promised; they also proposed mediation.

Vartian, the lawyer representing Heritage, said that Riach and Rivas became “impatient” about getting the transaction done, and disputes the house had a fiduciary duty to them.

“This is an arm’s-length business relationship,” Vartian said. “They bring something to the auction house and are trying to get the most possible amount as quickly as possible, that is [Heritage’s] position and what they did.”

Still, Vartian is confident that they will soon conclude the transaction, saying, “Various things including scheduling have taken longer than it would.”

For his part, Riach says this experience is much like that of the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise — “a strange new world.”

“I’ve never experienced anything like this. I’ve sold fine art at auction and other places, I got my check and went on. I’ve never had this roller coaster.

“Storage is a hard game. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose,” he added. “We’ve bought a $10,000 unit and everything was complete garbage. But if you play long enough, you can get lucky.”

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Stacy Perman is a Company Town reporter working on investigations and enterprise stories covering the entertainment industry. Before joining The Times in 2018, she was a writer and correspondent for Time and Businessweek; her work has appeared in a number of publications including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Fortune and the Hollywood Reporter. She is the author of three books including the New York Times bestseller “In-N-Out Burger: A Behind-The-Counter Look at the Fast-Food Chain That Breaks All the Rules.”

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IMAGES

What Went Wrong With Star Trek: Nemesis, According To Jonathan Frakes
'Star Trek: Nemesis' 20 Years Later Reveals TNG's Biggest Flaw
Star Trek: Nemesis Movie-tie In Audiobook by J.M. Dillard, Boyd Gaines
Star Trek: Nemesis
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)
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VIDEO

Remastered version
STAR TREK: NEMESIS
Update! TNG Already Did Star Trek: Insurrection's Story & Never Mentioned It Again
Star Trek Nemesis
Star Trek
Geeky AF

COMMENTS

Star Trek: Nemesis
Star Trek: Nemesis was born. The film, released in December 2002 in the US, would go on to take $67 million at the global box office, off the back of a $60 million budget. It'd sell 1.3m DVDs in ...
Spiner On Nemesis Failure: The fans were done with us
In the latest issue of Star Trek Magazine, Brent Spiner (Data) talks about the last Trek movie, Star Trek Nemesis. Not only did Spiner star in Nemesis, but he co-wrote the story (along with ...
Star Trek: Nemesis, and when salary negotiations went public
But their voyages were really supposed to have stopped in 1999, when the ninth film - Star Trek Insurrection - arrived. It duly landed, made a little bit of money, but lost the momentum from its predecessor, Star Trek: First Contact.Post-Insurrection, the contracts of the crew were up anyway, and that was that.It was assumed it'd be quite the costly exercise to bring the gang back together.
Star Trek: Nemesis at 20: The film that killed the franchise?
Yet Nemesis would become the movie that effectively killed Star Trek on the big screen. Grossing just $67 million (£41 million) against a $60 million (£37 million) budget (to put it in perspective, the Borg-centred First Contact raked in a cool $146m - £90m) it put a final full stop on a run of movies that had been a multiplex mainstay since 1979.
Ranking Star Trek Movies By How Much They Made At The Box Office
All that good financial fortune would come grinding to a halt with "Star Trek: Nemesis," which ended its worldwide box office run with a dismal $67.3 million, including an atrocious $43.2 million ...
8 Ways Star Trek Has Made Sure Nemesis No Longer Matters
The recent Star Trek: The Next Generation cast reunion has ensured that the major events of their final movie, Star Trek: Nemesis no longer matter. Nemesis made some questionable decisions from the horrific sexual assault of Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) to the death of Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner). Instead of being a joyous celebration of the TNG era, it felt like a miserable and ...
Remembering Star Trek Nemesis
However, Nemesis was part of 18 years of constant Star Trek, no Sci-Fi series has gone on for 18 years and been as successful as Star Trek so even though Nemesis did poorly for its time, for what ...
Star Trek: Nemesis
Star Trek: Nemesis is a 2002 American science fiction film directed by Stuart Baird.It is the tenth film in the Star Trek franchise, as well as the fourth and final film to star the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation.It was written by John Logan from a story developed by Logan, Brent Spiner, and producer Rick Berman.In the film, which is set in the 24th century, the crew of the USS ...
'Star Trek: Nemesis' was the end of an era 20 years ago today
Final frontier: 'Star Trek: Nemesis' marked the end of an era 20 years ago today. Overshadowed by competition and often unloved by fans, "Star Trek: Nemesis" celebrates its 20th birthday today as ...
A Look Back at Star Trek: Nemesis, the Film That Killed a Franchise
Nemesis has aged abysmally. Its box office failure made it a franchise killer back in 2002, but its narrative failures make it a never-ending source of disappointment. On February 1, Star Trek ...
Star Trek Nemesis
"A generation's final journey begins." A coup d'état on Romulus brings a new praetor, Shinzon, to power. However, Shinzon is not a Romulan, but rather a genetic duplicate of Captain Jean-Luc Picard. After being banished to the planet Remus for years, he now plots to draw the Starship Enterprise and her crew into a deadly confrontation and destroy the Federation once and for all. On Romulus ...
"We Are Going To Fire You": $60m Star Trek Flop Almost Removed A TNG
Marina Sirtis wasn't the only member of the Star Trek: The Next Generation cast who disputed the salaries offered on Star Trek: Nemesis.In a way, it's unsurprising that Paramount weren't keen to invest a substantial amount of money into Nemesis.Star Trek: Insurrection grossed $118 million on a budget of $70 million, which is a modest profit, but far from a box office smash.
Why did "Nemesis" Fail : r/startrek
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and James Bond in Die Another Day competed directly with the film. In addition the story was poor, there was psychic rape, and Romulans were taking an important role in the movie franchise for the first time ever. It just didn't feel right.
Does Star Trek: Nemesis Deserve Its Reputation?
Data's handling was all over the place because he had a major role in each film, even when the film had nothing to do with him. His emotion chip was a mistake in Generations, and its absence a ...
Why The TNG Cast Hated Star Trek: Nemesis
Star Trek: Nemesis is one of the most disliked movies in the Star Trek franchise, with even members of its cast leveling criticism at the sequel.Nemesis was the fourth and final film featuring the cast of The Next Generation, which was the second TV series in the franchise and one of the most popular Star Trek series of all time. TNG was about the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and his ...
20 Things You Didn't Know About Star Trek: Nemesis
It's not controversial to say that Star Trek: Nemesis is just about nobody's favourite Trek film. Released in 2002, the fourth and final big-screen outing starring the cast of The Next Generation ...
Did Star Trek (2009) lose money at the box office? : r/boxoffice
Basically the title. We all know that Star Trek 2009 was massively successful at the Domestic box office (considering that it got 2 sequels), but the international numbers for it are a different story. The entirely of the Star Trek film series has never done amazingly internationally, but the $127 million that 2009 made wasn't even enough to ...
Star Trek's 2009 Reboot Changed Everything
But in both the movies and TV, the early 2000s weren't kind to the franchise: 2002's Star Trek: Nemesis was a critical and commercial disaster, and Star Trek: Enterprise had a respectable four ...
Star Trek: Nemesis (Film)
The One With… Picard's younger evil clone.. Star Trek Nemesis is the tenth movie in the Star Trek film series, released in 2002, and serves as the big-screen Grand Finale for the Next Generation crew. It is directed by Stuart Baird, with the screenplay by John Logan and the story by Logan, Rick Berman and Brent Spiner, who also played Data.. After a coup, the new leader of the ever ...
Star Trek: Nemesis Movie Official Website
In the wake of a joyful wedding between Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Troi (Marina Sirtis), Picard receives another reason to celebrate: the Romulans want peace and the captain will be the Federation's emissary. But as the EnterpriseTM heads toward the Romulan Empire, a brilliant villain awaits - harboring a diabolical plan of destruction and an ...
Star Trek Franchise Box Office History
As expected, Star Trek Beyond earned first place on the weekend box office chart and while it didn't live up to my lofty predictions, it still did very well with $59.25 million. The next two wide releases, Lights Out and Ice Age: Collision Course , had nearly identical openings with $21.69 million and $21.37 million respectively.
Patrick Stewart Said No to a Star Trek: The Next Generation Reunion
The last time the entire cast shared a screen was for 2002's Star Trek: Nemesis. ... Our TNG days ended because it was the first Star Trek movie to lose money. And Paramount cut their losses.
Just watched deleted scenes from Nemesis : r/startrek
Thanks for sharing. I hadn't seen these. I liked the alternate finale scene much better. I also did like having some clue what happened to Wesley. Nemesis was such an awful way to end TNG. If they had only written the movie knowing it was going to be the last one with the crew like Star Trek VI I think it would have been more enjoyable.
Why Did Paramount Remove the Star Trek Movies?
Summary. Paramount+ was billed as the "Home of Star Trek," yet the first 10 films in the franchise were removed. Rather than being shelved for a tax write-off, the movies were licensed to Warner Bros. Discovery. The Star Trek films are streaming exclusively on Max, and this is actually a good thing for the future of the franchise.
Court is the final frontier for this lost 'Star Trek' model
The 33-inch original model of the U.S.S. Enterprise from the 1960s TV series "Star Trek" resurfaced decades after it disappeared. But then an auction house gave it to the son of Gene Roddenberry ...