Star Trekis one of the greatest science fiction franchises of all time. Its first version,Star Trek: The Original Series, appeared in 1966. Ever since then, the franchise has produced multiple live-action and animated shows as well as dozens of books, comic books, games, and much more content for the fans to enjoy.
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Star Treknot only influenced real science and the development of technologies, such as mobile phones but also inspired other TV shows and movies. Thebest sci-fi movies inspired byStar Trekwork even for the viewers who didn’t watchStar Trek– but if they did, they’re bound to enjoy the movies more.
5Galaxy Quest (1999)
What would happen if aliens came to Earth and kidnaped a group of actors from a science fiction show? What if they thought the actors were real space heroes and everything that happened in the show was true?Galaxy Questworks with this improbable concept and turns it into a fun, fast-paced movie with memorable characters.
The most notable isAlan Rickman’s Alexander Daneaka Dr. Lazarus who wants to have nothing to do with his most famous role. However, the movie is full of strong performances, from actors such as Sigourney Weaver, Tim Allen, and Sam Rockwell. It makes fun of typicalStar Trekand other sci-fi clichés but does so in an intelligent way.
4Jason X (2001)
At first glance, it might seem likeStar Trekand the sci-fi horrorJason Xhave nothing in common. That’s not quite the case. Even though the plot and mood are different,Jason Xdraws inspiration from the technology presented inStar Trekmovies and TV shows. More specifically,it uses holodecks that allowed the characters to enter virtual reality, and also draws inspiration from the computer and spaceship design.
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As the movie’s title suggests, it’s the tenth part in the seriesFriday the 13th, but it takes place in the future after Jason thaws out and starts killing a ship’s crew. The movie falls in the B-movie category but is campy enough to come across as enjoyable. It offers action scenes as well as dark humor and several known faces among the cast, most notably Lexa Doig (Andromeda,Arrow) and even the director David Cronenberg!
3Enemy Mine (1985)
One of the things that differentiateStar Trekfrom other, less optimistic science fiction worlds, is the fact it sees the future in bright colors. For the most part, that is. In the Federation space, people no longer wage wars, don’t have enough food to eat, or are discriminated against by others. Even then, there are some individuals andspecies (such as the Klingons or the Romulans)who aren’t as peaceful. The world ofEnemy Minetakes place in a similar universe. It’s set in the 21st century when wars are a thing of the past and humanity is focused on exploring space instead.
Despite that, the two main heroes are initially antagonistic but have to learn to work together to survive. Multiple episodes ofStar Trekshowed two different species or individuals finding their way to friendship or at the very least, respect, their differences notwithstanding. In this area,Enemy Minedoesn’t disappoint, partially thanks to Dennis Quaid’s and Louis Gossett Jr.’s performances.
2Deep Red (1994)
The 1994 TV movie is one of the lesser-known and underappreciated pieces, scoring a rating of 4.8 on IMDb. Despite that, it has the potential to entertainStar Trekviewers since there are some similarities. The plot itself - a story about a young girl who absorbed an alien substance that could lead to immortality - looks like something taken out of one of theStar Trekepisodes.
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What’s more, alongside other sci-fi icons, such as Michael Biehn (The Terminator’s Kyle Reese), the movie stars John de Lancie as the antagonist, Thomas Newmeyer. As allStar Trekfans will know, John de Lancie played the character Q inStar Trek… who happens to be as close to immortal as they come. Last but not least, the movie also clearly draws inspiration from the portrayal of technology inStar Trek.
1Ömer The Tourist In Star Trek (1973)
One of the most obscure movies heavily inspired byStar Trekis this Turkish parody that came out the same year asStar Trek: The Animated Series. The title speaks for itself. The titular Ömer is a space hobo who ends up on the Enterprise… and from there on, chaos ensues. The movie borrows heavily from multipleepisodes ofStar Trek: The Original Seriesand also works with sometimes renamed characters, such as Kirk and Spak (not Spock).
The movie is difficult to come across these days but the viewers that find it are in for a memorable experience. What makes it even more bizarre is that it’s the first feature film set in theStar Trekuniverse! So even though it’s not officially a part of theStar Trekuniverse, it still broke a record in this area.
