Watch: Rare footage of Star Trek Phase II

Phase II was to be the continuation of Star Trek: The Original Series. 

Way back in 1977, after Star Trek: The Original Series had found a fan base long after its cancellation, a Star Trek revival was announced. Going by the name of Star Trek: Phase II initially, the name was later changed to Star Trek: II. Sets were built. Actors were hired (or re-hired in some cases), scripts were written, and footage was even filmed. The initial order was for a two-hour pilot, much like Star Trek: Enterprise’s “Broken Bow,” which would have then been followed by thirteen one hour episodes debuting each week. In August 1977, the television series was changed to a feature film series which was then changed to a big budget film in March 1978.

Though the footage that had filmed wasn’t used in Star Trek: The Motion Picture, various shots were kept on file, and the Youtube channel, Weird Nashville, compiled those shots altogether. They include silent film and footage with lines from David Gautreaux, who was supposed to be the new series’ Vulcan, Zon, as Leonard Nimoy had elected not to return as Mr. Spock. Though Gautreaux missed out on the role of Zon, he was given a small scene in The Motion Picture as Commander Branch.

It’s strange seeing the unused footage, especially considering this could have been a major break for Gautreaux. Knowing that the cancellation of this series meant he was out of a full-time job, at least for the time being, is a little disheartening. After all the promise, it looks like the producers of Star Trek could have found a bigger role for him in the first movie and in more than one of the films. Fortunately, Gautreaux has gone on to have a successful career in spite of this setback.

The shots in the engineering section of the Enterprise on Phase II were definitely different.

The footage shows shots of a man and a woman in engineering, but the man wasn’t wearing an official Starfleet uniform, and the woman’s was different than any uniform we’d previously seen on a female officer aboard the Enterprise. Still, they looked like they knew what they were doing in the section so it’s possible the series had planned to allow different or casual clothing in certain sections of the ship. There is a bridge shot with a man that Weird Nashville is unable to identify. So any of you experts that can help him out, he has asked for input.