Every so often, a news item cuts through the subspace noise and sends a shockwave through all of Trek fandom. Last August at Creation’s STLV convention, Scott Bakula casually stepped onto the Las Vegas stage... and broke the internet. In response to a fan’s question, Bakula revealed that he, along with veteran Star Trek writer-producer Mike Sussman, had developed a pitch for a potential new series called Star Trek: United. 

Set during the early days of the Federation, this Enterprise spinoff would see Bakula reprising his role as Jonathan Archer, now as President of the United Federation of Planets, the alliance he helped forge. 

The reaction, to put it mildly, quickly grew legs. The existence of this fully-developed series concept starring one of the franchise’s most beloved and bankable actors launched fans into high orbit, and many of them still haven’t come down. The question now: has the studio, which has been consumed by billion-dollar merger talks, been paying attention?

In this “Memo to Paramount,” we’re making the case that the answer to Trek’s TV future may be right in front of them. With no new Trek series currently in production in this, the 60th anniversary year of the franchise, there is a gap in the market that needs to be filled. 

Uniting behind this idea seems the perfect next step for Paramount. 

Star Trek: Enterprise debuted in 2001, originally airing without any competing Trek series alongside. While Deep Space Nine had arrived during The Next Generation's penultimate season, and Voyager spent several years overlapping with the former, Enterprise was out there on its own. Sadly, while it had a strong start in terms of numbers, those viewing figures dwindled over its four-year run.

However, while there were several contemporary reasons for this, the show found a new life when it arrived on streaming. This, when combined with much of the cast's ongoing visibility and popularity, has led to a reassessment of sorts for this prequel series. As it turns out, Enterprise was never bad; it simply arrived at the wrong time.

2026 sees the 25th anniversary of Broken Bow, with celebrations planned for the Trek to Vegas convention in Las Vegas. While Star Trek: United would not necessarily be a revival of Enterprise in the strictest sense, it has quickly found itself tied to the overall Enterprise discussions. 

In terms of timing, now seems the best time to strike forward with United. Starting any show comes with myriad difficulties, not least of which is securing an audience from the beginning. This struggle is all too common, as the recent Starfleet Academy experienced during its debut season. With so many eyes focused on Enterprise this year, there may never be a better time to begin production on a show that features at least one (if not more) of the original cast. 

This is, effectively, a case of strike while the iron is hot. Paramount and CBS are, to put it bluntly, floundering when it comes to Star Trek right now. This could also go a long way to mending some very burnt bridges. 

Contributor

Sean Ferrick

Contributor

Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"

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