Summary
WhileStar WarsandStar Trekare very different franchises despite their similar names, there have inevitably been many times when they have told the same story. This may seem unlikely at first glance, asStar WarsandStar Trekfans have been rivals for as long as anyone can remember.Star Warsleans more into space fantasy, telling a story about another galaxy in the distant past and creating new mythology to captivate modern audiences.Star Trek, meanwhile, is science fiction, offering humanity a glimpse of an optimistic future of exploration and technological innovation.
Of course, when both franchises rely on starships, alien races, and traveling faster than the speed of light, there are sure to be common elements. Some moments even go beyond similar names or designs to having the exact same plot and style of storytelling. Whether intentional or not, these examples are an opportunity to observe parallels between the two biggest names in science fiction. AsStar WarsandStar Trekcontinually release new movies and TV shows, viewers can continue to spot their similarities and not just their differences.
Star Trek: Voyager’s Tim Russ Hilariously Explains Star Wars
A video of Voyager’s Tim Russ hilariously explaining the plot of A New Hope reminds fans of the friendly rivalry between Star Trek and Star Wars.
Star TrekTV episodes often begin with a Captain’s Logto tell the audience everything they need to know without interrupting the story’s pacing. WhenStar Trek: Voyagerpremiered in 1995, however, the creative team needed to summarize the basic conflict between the Maquis and the Cardassian Empire for any new viewers who had not seenStar Trek: The Next Generationor its spinoffStar Trek: Deep Space Nine. The solution was to begin with three paragraphs of text, followed by a chase scene introducing three main characters and setting the show’s plot in motion.
It would be hard for any movie fan to miss the similarities between the opening ofVoyagerand the firstStar Warsmovie.A New Hopefamously begins with an opening crawlexplaining the conflict between the Rebels and the evil Galactic Empire, followed by a giant Star Destroyer chasing the smallerTantive IV. The next few scenes introduce three main heroes and lead to the droids fleeing in an escape pod to set the rest of the plot in motion. Considering this was the first scene of a newStar Trekseries, the decision to have a clearStar Warsparallel was interesting.
The Maquis are chased by"Gul Evek of the Cardassian Fourth Order,“which sounds similar to the First Order from theStar Warssequel trilogy.
Fans had waited 16 years for anotherStar Warsadventure on the big screen whenStar Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menacewas released in 1999. Rather than having another evil Empire, the main villains were the greedy Trade Federation, a galactic corporation powerful enough to have its own private droid army and a seat in the Republic Senate. Unknown to the Jedi, the Trade Federation leadership was under the sway of Darth Sidious, who promised them power but was using them to create a political crisis that would begin his eventual rise to power.
While the Trade Federation has very little in common withStar Trek’s United Federation of Planets, it’s curious that George Lucas used a name famously associated withStar Wars’s biggest rival.The Trade Federation is also controlled by the Neimoidians, which is hard not to see as a playful reference to Leonard Nimoy, famous for playing Spock inStar Trek: The Original Seriesand beyond. Qui-Gon Jinn emphasizes that the Neimoidians are cowardly and motivated purely by greed, a description that could easily apply to the Ferengi inStar Trek, whose entire civilization revolves around making profit.
6An Invading Army From Beyond The Known Galaxy
Star Wars: The New Jedi Order(Book Series)
Star Wars: The New Jedi Order- Vector Primeby R.A. Salvatore kicked off a new era ofStar Warspublishing in 1999, exploring the galaxy’s future while George Lucas' prequel trilogy was exploring its past.The New Jedi Orderfollowed Luke Skywalker and the next generation of Jedi Knights defending the New Republic from the Yuuzhan Vong, a brutal warrior race from beyond the galaxy. Told across 19 full-length novels and a few short stories,The New Jedi Orderwas an ambitious undertaking, telling one big story while allowing authors to explore individual conflicts and character arcs.
This premise and storytelling format is similar to the later seasons ofStar Trek: Deep Space Ninewhich, funnily enough, ended the same yearThe New Jedi Orderbegan.ManyStar Warsfans have criticized the Yuuzhan Vong for feeling more likeStar Trekvillains, and there are parallels to the Dominion inDeep Space Nine. The Yuuzhan Vong are divided into different castes and worship strange gods, while the Dominion has a hierarchy for their three main species who worship their founders like gods. Both stories end with various factions and former enemies working together to repel the invaders.
Known simply asEnterprisefor its first two seasons, this prequel series did more than addStar Trekto its title in season 3. The change came with a serialized plot spanning the entire season, a new group of aliens called the Xindi, and a race to find them before they could build a superweapon to destroy Earth. After convincing a group of Xindi that Earth was not a threat to them, Captain Jonathan Archer led the crew of theEnterprisein a final battle to defend their home and destroy the weapon from the inside.
The originalStar Warstrilogy had two Death Stars,Star Wars: The Force Awakenshad Starkiller Base, andStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerhad a fleet of 10,000 ships, each capable of destroying a planet.
While most ofEnterpriseseason 3 still felt likeStar Trek,superweapons are commonly associated withStar Wars. The originalStar Warstrilogy had two Death Stars,Star Wars: The Force Awakenshad Starkiller Base, andStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerhad a fleet of 10,000 ships, each capable of destroying a planet.Enterpriseseason 3 regularly features the Xindi leaders conferring about the weapon’s progress, much like the Imperials seen on the Death Star inA New Hope. The context may be different inEnterprise, buta superweapon will always screamStar Wars.
J.J. Abrams redefinedStar Trekin 2009 with a reboot that spawned a trilogy of films and eventually led to more TV shows. Rather than follow the example of the previous movies,Abrams and his team made their own version ofStar Trek, one with a different visual style and a greater focus on action and adventure. The movie created a new timeline separate from the previousStar Trekentries and focused on a younger version of theEnterprisecrew finding their place in this alternate reality. These changes madeStar Trekentertaining and much more accessible for new fans.
However, it didn’t take viewers long to realize that the newStar Trekdrew heavy inspiration from its biggest rival.Abrams admitted that he was not a bigStar Trekfan, aiming to create a version he would enjoy, and it’s easy to see elements taken straight fromStar Wars. Jim Kirk and Luke Skywalker are called to adventure among the stars, Vulcan and Alderaan are destroyed by superweapons, Captain Pike and Princess Leia are tortured for information, and theEnterprisecrew and the Rebels wage a final attack on their respective superweapons.
J.J. Abrams later wrote and directedStar Wars: The Force AwakensandStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Storyfeatured an impressive cast of new characters, including Cassian Andor of Rebel Intelligence. While the movie didn’t have time to delve into Cassian’s backstory, the character proved worthy of his own spinoff, leading toAndorseason 1 in 2022. The show’s darker storytelling, fully fleshed-out characters, outstanding production value, and Diego Luna’s compelling lead performance ensuredeveryone would associate “Andor” withStar Wars. The upcoming second season will surely bring in more viewers as the series ties into the events ofRogue One.
Even so, viewers tuning into newStar TrekTV shows may find themselves confused when they meet the Andorians. With their distinct blue skin and antennae,the Andorians are one of the most recognizable alien races inStar Trek, dating all the way back toThe Original Seriesin 1967.Andorians were explored in-depth inStar Trek: Enterprise, and new shows such asStar Trek: DiscoveryandStar Trek: Strange New Worldshave featured Andorian characters. Like the Neimoidians inThe Phantom Menace, it’s curious thatStar Warsgave Cassian a last name commonly associated withStar Trek.
While the first scene ofStar Trek: Voyagerfelt more like aStar Warsmovie, the first scene ofAhsokafelt more like aStar TrekTV show. Captain Hayle and his crew aboard a New Republic cruiser encounter a mysterious ship that transmits an old Jedi clearance code. While the rest of the crew is shocked, Captain Hayle is not so easily convinced, believing these “Jedi” must be impostors. He turns command of the bridge over to his first officer and greets Baylan Skoll and Shin Hati, who confirm they are not Jedi by slaughtering the entire crew.
Immediately following the episode’s premiere, some fans noted the similarities to aStar Trekscene. Aside fromStar Trekcharacters often saying"You have the bridge,“the lighting, set design, and camera angles all feel like a classicStar Trekcrew exploring the unknown. The Captain asks various officers for information, and casually decides to investigate, and the ship is overwhelmed when the crew realizes what they’ve found.The rest ofAhsokaseason 1 constantly references previousStar Warsmovies and TV shows, even if it started with something that felt likeStar Trek.
The most recentStar Warsstory to feel likeStar Trekhasn’t even premiered yet.Skeleton Crewwill follow a group of kids who find a starshipand travel the galaxy to find their way home. Jude Law will play a mysterious Force user, possibly a Jedi, who leads this young crew on their mission. While no one knows exactly howSkeleton Crewwill execute its premise, the plot is undeniably similar to the animatedStar Trek: Prodigy, which follows a group of kids who find a Starfleet trip and travel the galaxy under the guidance of Hologram Janeway.
Star Wars' Upcoming TV Show Sounds Like A Star Trek Ripoff - & That’s Perfect
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, set to premiere later this year, seems oddly similar to a recent Star Trek story, which may work to its advantage.
InSkeleton Crew’s defense,Prodigyfelt more likeStar Warsin its first few episodes. A group of ragtag heroes stealing a ship to go on an adventure has happened several times inStar Wars, and their inexperience means that they take a while to feel like a proper Starfleet crew. Even so, the similarities between these two shows are fascinating, and it will be interesting to see if there are more parallels whenSkeleton Crewpremieres. With no end in sight for either franchise, there will undoubtedly be more times whenStar WarsandStar Trektell the same story.
