Leonard Nimoy may have saved the franchise by standing up for Nichelle Nichols and George Takei

Few icons in the world of science fiction can rise to the level of Leonard Nimoy. The first man to ever play Spock in a Star Trek property became a megastar during his time with Star Trek. He, alongside William Shatner, helped set the franchise up for years if not decades to come. Yet, it wasn't just his acting and his ability to bring Spock to life that may define his career.

Nimoy saved Star Trek. We're used to Spock saving the Enterprise and his friends regularly but Nimoy saving an entire franchise? Well, it may seem far-fetched but it's essentially true.

In an article from TrekMovie.com in 2014, Walter Koening, who played Pavel Chekov in the original series, credited Nimoy for getting himself and Nichelle Nichols paid what they deserved for their work on the Animated Series. TrekMovie.com followed up with Nimoy and found out that not only was Koening being underpaid, but Nichelle Nicoles (Uhura) and George Takei (Sulu) weren't even being brought back for the animated series.

""There was also the case where George and Nichelle we’re not hired to do their voices in the animated series . I refused to do Spock until they were hired. Mr. Roddenberry started calling me the conscience of Star Trek.""

Frankly, it may seem overblown (but I don't think it is), but this sounds like Nimoy saved Star Trek to me. Had Nichols and Sulu not been brought back for the animated series of the early 70s, coupled with Koening's poor pay, there exists a chance (and a good one at that) that the films wouldn't happen at all. At the very least, not as we've seen them.

There is every possibility that Nichols, Koening, and Takei won't come back for the films, forcing Gene Roddenberry to either abandon his plans for the film or go further into the idea of Phase II. Which, if you remember, saw characters like Spock phased out and limited to minor roles.

That takes us to another major potential moment. Assuming Nimoy was true to his word, then there exists a universe where Nimoy, Nichols, Takei, and Koening are done with Star Trek before the films ever become a thing.

That means no cultural touchtone like The Wrath of Khan and no brilliant end like we saw in The Undiscovered Country. Without the success of the film franchise, there may have been no The Next Generation and further Star Trek series.

Maybe Star Trek becomes a "remember when" relic like that of Battlestar Galactica or "V". So if not for Spock, then who knows how this whole thing would've played out.