Star Trek: Phase II Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Star Trek: Phase II
Artist's illustration of the Phase II Enterprise
Created by	Gene Roddenberry
Developed by	Paramount Television
Starring	William Shatner DeForest Kelley James Doohan David Gautreaux Nichelle Nichols George Takei Persis Khambatta Walter Koenig Majel Barrett Grace Lee Whitney
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of episodes	Pilot, plus 13 scripts (planned)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Robert Goodwin Harold Livingston Story editor: Jon Povill
Running time	50 minutes (planned)
Release
Original network	Paramount Television Service
Original release	May 1978 (planned)

Star Trek: Phase II was a television show that almost happened! It was planned to continue the adventures of the famous Enterprise crew from the original Star Trek show. This new series was meant to air in 1978. It would have shown the crew on their second five-year mission exploring space.

What Was Star Trek: Phase II?
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What Was Star Trek: Phase II?

Star Trek: Phase II was a TV series that was going to bring back the original Star Trek crew. The first Star Trek show ran from 1966 to 1969. Fans loved it, and they wanted more space adventures.

Paramount Television, the company that owned Star Trek, decided to make a new show. They planned for it to be the main show on their new TV network. This network was called the Paramount Television Service.

The Story and Characters

The new series would have followed Captain James T. Kirk and his crew. They would start a second five-year mission. This mission was to explore new worlds and meet new life forms.

Most of the original actors were ready to return.

William Shatner would play Captain Kirk.
DeForest Kelley would play Dr. Leonard McCoy.
James Doohan would play Scotty.
Nichelle Nichols would play Uhura.
George Takei would play Sulu.
Walter Koenig would play Chekov.

However, Leonard Nimoy, who played Spock, decided not to come back. So, the creators planned a new Vulcan character. This character was named Xon. Actor David Gautreaux was cast as Xon.

Another new character was Lieutenant Ilia. She was an alien navigator. Actress Persis Khambatta was chosen to play Ilia.

Why It Didn't Happen

Even though plans were well underway, Star Trek: Phase II was never made. Paramount Television changed its mind. They decided that a new Star Trek movie would be better.

This was because another science fiction movie, Star Wars, was very popular. Paramount thought a big movie would make more money. So, the ideas and sets from Phase II were used for a movie instead.

The movie was called Star Trek: The Motion Picture. It came out in 1979. Many of the stories planned for Phase II were used in this movie. Even some of the costumes and sets were the same.

Legacy of Phase II

Even though Phase II was never shown, it was very important. It helped bring Star Trek back to life. It led to Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

It also paved the way for future Star Trek TV shows. These included Star Trek: The Next Generation. The ideas from Phase II helped shape the future of the Star Trek universe.