Star Trek: The Motion Picture was originally intended to be the pilot for a new Star Trek television series. The series, which was called Star Trek: Phase II, was in development in the late 1970s, but ultimately never made it to air. Instead, the pilot was expanded into a feature film, and the rest is history.
The idea for Star Trek: Phase II came about after the success of the Star Trek: The Animated Series in the early 1970s. The creator of the franchise, Gene Roddenberry, saw the potential for a new live-action series that would continue the adventures of the original crew of the USS Enterprise. The series was in development for several years–scripts were written, sets were built, and casting was underway.The original plan was for the series to debut in 1978, with a two-hour pilot episode called, “In Thy Image.” The writers planned to introduce new characters, including a Vulcan named Xon and a navigator named Ilia. The new series would also have featured the return of the original crew, with William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley reprising their roles as Kirk, Spock, and McCoy, respectively.
The production of Star Trek: Phase II, however, was plagued with delays and setbacks. The series was initially intended to air on a new television network called Paramount Television Service, but the network never materialized. As a result, the series was put on hold, and the script for the pilot episode was reworked into a feature film named, Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
Many elements of the original Star Trek TV series were carried over into the feature film. The new characters Xon and Ilia were incorporated into the movie, with Ilia becoming a key character in the story. The film also introduced new technology and design elements that were intended for the television series, such as the upgraded Enterprise and the new Starfleet uniforms.
Although Star Trek: Phase II never made it to air, many of the ideas and concepts that were developed for the series would go on to be incorporated into later Star Trek shows and movies. The themes of exploring the relationship between humans and machines, as well as the personal lives of the crew members, were central to both the planned television series and the feature film. Despite the setbacks and changes that occurred during the development of Star Trek: Phase II, the legacy of the series lives on in the continued success of the Star Trek franchise.