With four newStar Trekshows currently airing, many formerTrekcast members have returned to duty and reprised their roles. One pastTrekseries, however, has so far been left out: the misbegotten early-aughts prequel seriesStar Trek: Enterprise. If one cast member from that series can be believed, it’s likely to stay that way. In anew interview with Screen Rant,John Billingsley, who played the eccentric Denobulan physician Doctor Phlox on all four seasons of the series, threw cold water on the notion of a reunion; he believes that there are simply too many logistical problems to see the cast return to the NX-01. Says Billingsley, “I doubt very much thatEnterpriseitself could or would ever come back. I mean, there are just too many issues with it.Scott Bakulahas moved on. He’s always got a jillion projects in the works.Jolene Blalockmarried, had three kids, and has, I think, more or less retired from the business. I don’t think anybody’s in touch with her.” However, Billingsley does have a not-entirely-serious pitch for a Phlox spinoff: “Maybe you could just bring me back. And it could just be Old Fat Phlox, which is the show I’ve also pitched for many years, where I’m just sitting on a rocking chair on the porch going, ‘Back in the day when I was having intergalactic adventures…'”
Many actors and characters from previousStar Trekgenerations have returned to the franchise in recent years.Star Trek: Picardis based around the much-hyped return ofPatrick Stewart, with the rest of hisStar Trek: The Next Generationcastmates returning for the final season.Star Trek: Deep Space Ninehas been represented with a number of cast members, includingArmin ShimermanandNana Visitor, returning for episodes ofStar Trek: Lower Decks, whileStar Trek: ProdigyfeaturesStar Trek: Voyager’s Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) as one of its main characters. EvenGeorge TakeiandWalter Koenig, fromStar Trek: The Original Series, have returned for voice cameos.Enterprise’s participation in this has so far been limited to a small guest spot forConnor Trineer’s Trip Tucker in one of the surreal animated shorts ofStar Trek: Very Short Treks.
What is ‘Star Trek: Enterprise’?
Taking place a century before the events of the adventures of Kirk and Spock,Enterprisefollows the launch of the first starship Enterprise, captained by Jonathan Archer (Bakula). Over its first two seasons, the series struggled to attract viewers on UPN with episodic adventures. The third season changed course, and featured a season-long plotline where theEnterprisecrew raced to find the mysterious alien race who’d committed a deadly terrorist attack on Earth, mirroring the then-contemporary realities of a post-9/11 America and the War on Terror. The fourth season saw another creative reimagining that took a deep dive intoStar Trekcontinuity, revisiting fan-favorite concepts like theMirror Universe, the Romulans, and the origin of the Klingons’ changing appearance. While the fourth season was the best-received of the series, ratings remained weak, andEnterprisewas canceled. The series ended with “These are the Voyages…”, a finale that, despite cameos fromNext GenerationfavoritesJonathan FrakesandMartina Sirtis, remains controversial. The 2005 end ofEnterprisewas the death knell forStar Trekon TV for over a decade; the franchise wouldn’t return to the small screen until the 2017 launch ofStar Trek: Discovery.
All four seasons ofStar Trek: Enterpriseare available to stream now on Paramount+. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates, and watch CBS' trailer for the first season ofStar Trek: Enterpriseon Blu-ray below.
