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Easter eggs
Hidden details in every movie and series: 78 in total. Tap a poster to see its eggs. Titles you haven't marked as seen stay locked so nothing gets spoiled.
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- Referencenod to comics or other movies
- Cameoa familiar face shows up
- Setupplanted now, pays off later
- Behind the scenesproduction trivia
- Behind the scenesThe first sung opening
Enterprise swapped the orchestral theme for a pop song, "Faith of the Heart", over images of human exploration. It was the franchise's first series with a sung opening.
source ↗ - CameoRiker and Troi in the last episode
The final episode is framed as a holodeck program watched by Riker and Troi during a seventh-season episode of The Next Generation. Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis came back to their roles for it.
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- CameoHarry Mudd with a new face
Con man Harry Mudd, played here by Rainn Wilson, was born in the Original Series, where Roger C. Carmel played him. Discovery shows an earlier stage of the character.
source ↗ - ReferenceThe ship that shows up at the end
In the last scene, Discovery gets a distress call from another Starfleet ship, and the USS Enterprise appears on screen. Alexander Courage's Original Series theme plays over the credits.
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- ReferencePike, Spock and Number One from 1965
Pike, Spock and Number One were the crew of "The Cage", Star Trek's first pilot, which NBC rejected. Anson Mount, Ethan Peck and Rebecca Romijn inherit roles first played by Jeffrey Hunter, Leonard Nimoy and Majel Barrett.
source ↗ - ReferenceA "previously on" from 1965
The episode "If Memory Serves" opens with a recap built from actual footage of "The Cage". Soon after, Discovery visits Talos IV, the planet from that pilot.
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- ReferenceBalance of Terror again
The finale, "A Quality of Mercy", replays the setup of the Original Series episode "Balance of Terror": a duel with a Romulan ship at the Neutral Zone. The difference is who sits in the captain's chair.
source ↗ - ReferenceThe Gorn before Kirk
The Gorn debuted in 1967's "Arena", in a famous fight with Kirk. Strange New Worlds brings them back far scarier, as predators Starfleet barely understands.
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- CameoBoimler and Mariner in the flesh
In "Those Old Scientists", Lower Decks' Boimler and Mariner fall into the past and appear in live action, played by their voice actors, Jack Quaid and Tawny Newsome. The episode also has animated stretches.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesThe franchise's first musical
"Subspace Rhapsody" is Star Trek's first musical episode. The songs are by Kay Hanley and Tom Polce, and the cast does its own singing.
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- Behind the scenesFrakes directs a holodeck mystery
"A Space Adventure Hour", a holodeck murder mystery styled like 1960s sci-fi TV, was directed by Jonathan Frakes. He called it the best TV episode he has directed.
source ↗ - CameoTrelane and a familiar voice
In "Wedding Bell Blues", the reality-bending being is played by Rhys Darby, and his father is voiced by John de Lancie. The producers confirmed off screen that they're Trelane, from "The Squire of Gothos", and Q himself.
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- Behind the scenesThe crew turns into puppets
In "Level-Five Transporter Accident", a transporter mishap turns almost everyone into puppets. The puppets were built by Jim Henson's Creature Shop.
source ↗ - ReferenceTribbles and a Mugato on shore leave
In "Human Best Friend", shore leave on a pleasure planet nods to Original Series creatures like tribbles and the Mugato, the horned ape from "A Private Little War".
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- Behind the scenesThe rejected pilot that became an episode
The first pilot, "The Cage", starring Captain Pike, was turned down by NBC. Much of it was reused in the first-season two-parter "The Menagerie".
source ↗ - Behind the scenesKirk and Uhura's kiss
In the third-season episode "Plato's Stepchildren", Kirk and Uhura are forced by telekinesis to kiss. It's remembered as one of the first interracial kisses on American TV.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesFans saved season three
When the show was facing cancellation, fan Bjo Trimble and her husband ran a letter-writing campaign to NBC. The pressure helped secure a third season.
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- Behind the scenesIt started as a TV series
The film grew out of Star Trek: Phase II, a planned TV revival that was scrapped. Its pilot script, "In Thy Image", was rushed into a movie screenplay.
source ↗ - ReferenceV'Ger is a NASA probe
At the heart of the cloud is Voyager 6, a fictional probe from NASA's Voyager program. The name V'Ger comes from the letters still readable on its nameplate.
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- ReferenceHow does Khan know Chekov?
Khan comes from the 1967 episode "Space Seed". Walter Koenig hadn't joined the cast yet, so Khan recognizing Chekov is a famous continuity slip.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesThe first all-CGI sequence
The Genesis Project demo, with a dead planet bursting into life, was cinema's first entirely computer-generated sequence. ILM made it.
source ↗ - SetupSpock's "Remember"
Before going into the engine room, Spock makes a quick mind meld with McCoy and says just one word: "Remember". That moment comes back later.
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- Behind the scenesSpock in the director's chair
Leonard Nimoy directed the film, becoming the first Star Trek cast member to direct one of its movies. Spock is barely on screen, but the film is his.
source ↗ - CameoDoc Brown is a Klingon
Klingon commander Kruge is Christopher Lloyd, a year before Back to the Future.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesKlingon becomes a real language
Linguist Marc Okrand developed the Klingon language for this film, with its own grammar and vocabulary. That's the Klingon fans still study today.
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- CameoThe bus punk is a crew member
The punk with the loud radio who gets Spock's nerve pinch is Kirk Thatcher, the film's associate producer. He shaved a mohawk and also wrote and recorded the song, "I Hate You".
source ↗ - Behind the scenesA part written for Eddie Murphy
The scientist who helps the crew was first written for Eddie Murphy, as a college professor who believes in aliens. He passed, and the role became Gillian Taylor.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesThe whales aren't real
The humpbacks are mostly ILM animatronics and motorized models. The models were shot in a high school swimming pool in California.
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- Behind the scenesShatner's turn to direct
William Shatner directed this one thanks to a favored-nations clause with Nimoy, who had directed the two before it.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesSha Ka Ree and Sean Connery
Sybok was offered to Sean Connery, who turned it down for Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The mythical planet Sha Ka Ree is named after him.
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- CameoChristian Slater on the Excelsior
The officer who wakes Sulu aboard the Excelsior is Christian Slater. The film's casting director was his mother, Mary Jo Slater.
source ↗ - CameoA Worf in the courtroom
The Klingon lawyer defending Kirk and McCoy is Colonel Worf, played by Michael Dorn. The film never says so, but he was meant as the grandfather and namesake of The Next Generation's Worf.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesAn intergalactic Chernobyl
Nimoy pitched it: what if the Wall came down in space? Nicholas Meyer answered with an "intergalactic Chernobyl", which became the explosion of the moon Praxis.
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- ReferenceWhere no one has gone before
The opening narration repeats the Original Series one with one change: "where no man" became "where no one has gone before".
source ↗ - ReferenceTwo themes in one opening
The opening theme combines Alexander Courage's Original Series fanfare with Jerry Goldsmith's theme for Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesRoddenberry's middle name
Gene Roddenberry's middle name was Wesley. That's why many fans saw Wesley Crusher as a young stand-in for the show's creator.
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- Behind the scenesLines written for Spock and McCoy
In the Enterprise-B prologue, Scotty and Chekov join Kirk. Their lines were written for Spock and McCoy, but Nimoy and DeForest Kelley passed.
source ↗ - CameoCameron Frye in command
Young Captain Harriman of the Enterprise-B is Alan Ruck, Cameron from Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesKirk's end was reshot
In the first cut, Soran shot Kirk in the back. Test audiences hated it, so the scene was rewritten and reshot with Kirk sacrificing himself on the metal bridge.
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- ReferenceThe crew inside 1967
In "Trials and Tribble-ations", made for the franchise's 30th anniversary, Sisko and crew are digitally inserted into scenes from the Original Series' "The Trouble with Tribbles".
source ↗ - Behind the scenesSisko the sci-fi writer
In "Far Beyond the Stars", Sisko sees himself as Benny Russell, a Black writer at a 1950s science fiction magazine. Avery Brooks directed it, and the cast appears without alien makeup.
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- Behind the scenesThe first captain lasted two days
Geneviève Bujold was originally cast as the captain. She left after two days of filming the pilot, and Kate Mulgrew took over.
source ↗ - ReferenceTuvok served under Sulu
In "Flashback", made for the franchise's 30th anniversary, Tuvok relives his time aboard the Excelsior under Sulu, during the events of Star Trek VI. George Takei returns to the role.
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- CameoNeelix at the Dixon Hill club
The nightclub maître d' in the holodeck scene is Ethan Phillips, Voyager's Neelix, without makeup and uncredited.
source ↗ - CameoVoyager's Doctor on another ship
The Emergency Medical Hologram Crusher activates to stall the Borg is Robert Picardo, Voyager's Doctor.
source ↗ - ReferenceZefram Cochrane from the Original Series
Warp drive inventor Zefram Cochrane first appeared in the Original Series episode "Metamorphosis", played by Glenn Corbett. Here he's James Cromwell.
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- ReferenceGilbert and Sullivan to calm Data
To bring Data back to normal, Picard sings "A British Tar" with him, from Gilbert and Sullivan's H.M.S. Pinafore.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesSpace done entirely in CGI
Insurrection was the first Star Trek film whose space effects were done entirely in CGI, with no physical ship models.
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- CameoTom Hardy before stardom
Villain Shinzon is Tom Hardy, early in his career, years before he became a star.
source ↗ - CameoWesley at the wedding
Wil Wheaton appears as Wesley Crusher, in uniform, at Riker and Troi's wedding. His lines ended up in the deleted scenes.
source ↗ - CameoJaneway is an admiral now
The one who hands Picard his mission is Admiral Kathryn Janeway, with Kate Mulgrew back in her Voyager role.
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- ReferenceThe name comes from a TNG episode
"Lower Decks" is a seventh-season episode of The Next Generation focused on junior officers aboard the Enterprise-D. The animated series runs with the idea.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesCerritos, the car dealership town
The ship is named after Cerritos, California, a city known for its car dealerships. Fitting for one of Starfleet's least glamorous ships.
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- CameoChakotay returns
Robert Beltran returns as Chakotay, Voyager's first officer, for the first time since that series ended.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesSaved by Netflix
Paramount+ canceled the show with season two already finished. Netflix picked up distribution and released both seasons.
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- CameoWesley Crusher, Traveler
At the end of season two, Wil Wheaton returns as Wesley Crusher, now a Traveler who watches over the timeline itself.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesThe Enterprise-D bridge rebuilt
For the third season, the production rebuilt the Enterprise-D bridge set from The Next Generation.
source ↗ - ReferenceThe last poker game
The series ends with the old crew playing poker, just like the end of "All Good Things...", The Next Generation's final episode.
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- ReferenceThe Guardian of Forever
The time portal that closes Georgiou's story is the Guardian of Forever from the Original Series' "The City on the Edge of Forever". Here it takes human form, played by Paul Guilfoyle.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesAdira and Gray
Blu del Barrio as Adira and Ian Alexander as Gray gave the franchise its first explicitly non-binary and transgender characters.
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- CameoStacey Abrams as Earth's president
The President of United Earth in the finale is American politician Stacey Abrams. The cameo was kept secret, and her name was left off the shooting paperwork.
source ↗ - SetupTilly goes off to teach
This season, Tilly leaves Discovery to teach cadets at Starfleet Academy. That comes back later.
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- ReferenceThe Progenitors from The Chase
The season's hunt is for the Progenitors' technology, left by the civilization that seeded life across the galaxy. They were introduced in The Next Generation's "The Chase".
source ↗ - ReferenceWho Kovich really is
David Cronenberg's mysterious Kovich turns out to be Agent Daniels, the time traveler from Enterprise's Temporal Cold War.
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- CameoThe Doctor, 900 years later
Robert Picardo returns as the Doctor, Voyager's medical hologram, now an Academy instructor. He's around 900 years old.
source ↗ - CameoA new Dax
Tawny Newsome, Lower Decks' Mariner, appears as Illa Dax, the current host of the Dax symbiont. She was also the first Star Trek actor hired onto a Star Trek writing staff.
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- CameoMajel Barrett's last role
The Enterprise computer is voiced by Majel Barrett, Gene Roddenberry's widow. She recorded it two weeks before her death in December 2008.
source ↗ - ReferenceKirk cheats the Kobayashi Maru
The no-win test from The Wrath of Khan finally appears on screen: Kirk beats it by reprogramming the simulation, and Spock is the one who accuses him of cheating.
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- ReferenceThe scream in reverse
At the climax, The Wrath of Khan's radiation chamber scene is flipped: Kirk is inside this time, and Spock is the one who yells "Khan!".
source ↗ - ReferenceMcCoy's tribble
McCoy tests Khan's blood on a dead tribble, and it starts purring again. That clue saves the day.
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- ReferenceThe classic crew photo
Among Ambassador Spock's belongings, young Spock finds a photo of the original crew, played by the Original Series cast. It's the film's tribute to Leonard Nimoy.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesSulu's family
At Yorktown, Sulu reunites with his husband and daughter. The filmmakers meant it as a tribute to George Takei, who is gay.
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- Behind the scenesThe franchise's first Emmy
The animated series was the first Star Trek show to win an Emmy: Outstanding Entertainment Children's Series in 1975, for its second season.
source ↗ - ReferenceWhere Tiberius came from
It was here, in a David Gerrold script, that the "T" in James T. Kirk got a name: Tiberius. The detail stuck and became official.
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- CameoJamie Lee Curtis as Control
The Section 31 boss who shows up at the end, Control, is Jamie Lee Curtis in a quick cameo.
source ↗ - SetupA young Rachel Garrett
Officer Rachel Garrett, played by Kacey Rohl, has a name The Next Generation fans will recognize. She comes back later in the franchise.
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- Behind the scenesThe first post-credits scene
"The Trouble with Edward" gave Star Trek its first post-credits scene: a fake ad for a tribble cereal that multiplies on its own.
source ↗ - Behind the scenesA prize-winning novelist on script
"Calypso" was the first produced TV script by Pulitzer-winning novelist Michael Chabon. It's set in the far future.
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Timeline
when each title takes place22nd century
2151–2161
Star Trek: Enterprise · completeArcher and the first ship named Enterprise
23rd century
2256–2257
Star Trek: Discovery · S1Michael Burnham and the Klingon war
2257–2258
Star Trek: Discovery · S2Pike takes the Discovery after mysterious signals
2259
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds · S1Pike, Spock and Uhura on the Enterprise
2259
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds · S2More missions, a musical and an animated crossover
right after S2
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds · S3The Enterprise faces the Gorn again
before the Original Series
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds · S4Pike's crew heads toward the Kirk era
2265–2269
Star Trek: The Original Series · completeKirk, Spock and McCoy: where it all began
2273
Star Trek: The Motion PictureThe crew reunites on the big screen
2285
Star Trek II: The Wrath of KhanKhan returns for revenge
2285
Star Trek III: The Search for SpockKirk risks everything for his friend
2286
Star Trek IV: The Voyage HomeTime travel to 1986 Earth
2287
Star Trek V: The Final FrontierA search for God at the galaxy's center
2293
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered CountryPeace with the Klingons and the crew's farewell
24th–25th centuries
2364–2370
Star Trek: The Next Generation · completePicard and the new Enterprise
2371
Star Trek GenerationsKirk and Picard in one movie
2369–2375
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine · completeA space station on the edge of war
2371–2378
Star Trek: Voyager · completeJaneway stranded across the galaxy
2373
Star Trek: First ContactThe Borg try to rewrite Earth's history
2375
Star Trek: InsurrectionPicard defies orders to protect a people
2379
Star Trek: NemesisPicard faces an enemy with his face
2380–2381
Star Trek: Lower Decks · completeAnimated comedy about junior officers
2383–2385
Star Trek: Prodigy · completeYoung runaways find a Starfleet ship
2399–2402
Star Trek: Picard · completePicard returns, years later
32nd century
3188–3189
Star Trek: Discovery · S3Discovery jumps 930 years ahead
3190
Star Trek: Discovery · S4An anomaly threatens the whole galaxy
3191
Star Trek: Discovery · S5A hunt for an ancient secret
32nd century, after Discovery
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy · S1Starfleet Academy reopens with new cadets
Kelvin timeline (alternate reality)
Kelvin timeline, 2233–2258
Star Trek (2009)Young Kirk and Spock in a new timeline
Kelvin timeline, 2259
Star Trek Into DarknessA terrorist strikes Starfleet
Kelvin timeline, 2263
Star Trek BeyondThe Enterprise wrecked on a hostile planet
Original text by Sagaticket. Posters: The Movie Database (TMDB); character photos via Wikipedia. This site uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB. All trademarks and titles mentioned belong to their respective owners. Streaming availability may change.