How Sha Ka Ree got its name in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier producer, Harve Bennet, called this film the one that almost killed the Star Trek franchise. 

And the 63 million dollar box office draw remains the second lowest for any Star Trek movie in the franchise. It still comes in slightly higher than Star Trek: Nemesis, according to The Numbers.

As most know, William Shatner’s major motion picture director debut came as a result of a the “favored nations” clause in his and Leonard Nimoy’s contracts, which basically said that both actors got equal treatment. While Den of Geek reports that this was usually used so that both men received equal pay and and screen time, Shatner chose to use it to get to direct a movie since Nimoy had already directed two. And while the movie is considered a flop, Shatner had big plans for it, including a big-name star to play the role of Sybok.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier introduced Sybok as Spock’s half-brother

The part was played in the movie by Laurence Luckinbill, who Shatner offered the role to after seeing him portraying Lyndon B. Johnson in a one-man show. But Luckinbill wasn’t his first choice. He actually wanted Sean Connery to take on the role as Spock’s half-brother. Shatner even named the mythical planet Sybok needed to go to find God “Sha Ka Ree” after the renowned actor.

But Connery, who had had his pick of movies at that time after his successful run as James Bond, turned down the role. The name of the planet, however, stayed the same. And Luckinbill did a good job with the part. He was the least of the movie’s problems, but while there were certainly issues with the film, there were some highlights as well that, in my opinion, still makes it good viewing.