Summary

• Nimoy turned down directing Star Trek Generations due to script issues and felt it was a marketing gimmick by Paramount.
• William Shatner, Scotty, and Chekov were the only original cast members to sign on for Generations, others felt their cameos were undignified.
• Nimoy returned to Star Trek 15 years later for J.J. Abrams' reboot, praising the new films in stark contrast to his feelings on Generations.

The late Leonard Nimoy hated Star Trek Generations, the first film starring the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Nimoy not only portrayed the Vulcan Mr. Spock in Star Trek: The Original Series, but he evolved into one of the franchise's most celebrated directors after helming Star Trek III: The Search For Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, which was the most financially successful movie starring Star Trek's original cast. Naturally, Nimoy was Paramount's first choice to direct Star Trek Generations, a job he turned down flat and ultimately went to director David Carson.

Star Trek Generations was conceived as the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation's jump to the big screen and the passing of the torch by The Original Series crew. Paramount wanted a team-up movie where the classic Star Trek actors would appear in the beginning before Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) teamed up with TNG's Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) in the final act, which would end with Kirk's death. However, most of Star Trek: The Original Series' actors turned down what they felt were glorified cameos, including DeForest Kelly and Nimoy. The TOS holdouts believed appearing in Generations would besmirch how they gracefully bowed out with Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.

Only William Shatner, James Doohan as Scotty, and Walter Koenig as Chekov signed onto Star Trek Generations.

The Reasons Leonard Nimoy Hated Star Trek Generations

Was Nimoy right about Star Trek VII?

The Star Trek oral history, The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years by Mark A. Altman and Edward Gross, candidly revealed the behind-the-scenes turmoil involving Leonard Nimoy's cold reception to Star Trek Generations. Nimoy's beef with Star Trek Generations was about its story and characterizations. Nimoy compared Generations to William Shatner's problematic directorial debut, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, which he preferred:

Bill's picture... had its own built-in problems... which he was never going to be able to surmount. But Generations bothered me. My God, what are they doing? Why that scene? What's this scene about? Where are they going with this? That was the reason I wasn't involved in making it.

In addition, Nimoy was dismayed at the way Spock was written in his intended cameo:

There was a character called Spock who had a dozen lines you could easily assign to anyone else, which they did.

Nimoy also saw Star Trek Generations as less of a true film and more as a marketing gimmick by Paramount:

Star Trek seven was a media event. Generations... two captains meet at the Nexus. Okay. Something to sell. And they sold very hard on it... But I don't think the picture was very good... My feeling about Generations is very negative.

Star Trek Generations Producers Agree With Leonard Nimoy's Issues

Although Rick Berman and Leonard Nimoy had a falling out over Star Trek Generations

Leonard Nimoy's anger partly stemmed from the fact that, as the intended director, he wasn't allowed to rewrite Star Trek Generations' screenplay to address his issues. Executive producer Rick Berman and co-writers Ronald D. Moore and Brannon Braga collaborated on Star Trek Generations' script. Paramount "loved it" because the writers fulfilled Paramount's many edicts as to what needed to be in the film. Only then was it brought to Nimoy, who was not pleased with what he read. Berman recalled:

When Leonard read it, he said, 'This needs a page-one rewrite'. I told him [no]... and we parted ways... It was unusual for us to write a script with no director involved at all. Mr. Nimoy is right that he probably should have had a pass at the script.

Berman and Nimoy had a falling out over Leonard's refusal to direct Star Trek Generations. As Brannon Braga tells it, "They never spoke again. They were both p*ssed at each other." Braga, who has his own regrets about how Star Trek Generations turned out, recalls:

[The] director... was initially Leonard Nimoy... Nimoy read the script and hated it and felt [the only interesting part] of the script was Data's emotion chip story. By the way, he probably wasn't wrong.

Leonard Nimoy Returned To Star Trek 15 Years After Generations... For J.J. Abrams

Nimoy reprised Spock in Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness

15 years after Star Trek Generations, a new Star Trek movie starred Leonard Nimoy and had his complete blessing. Nimoy reprised Spock in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek (2009) reboot film. Leonard's original version of Spock, dubbed Spock Prime, not only met the younger alternate reality Spock played by Zachary Quinto and Captain James T. Kirk played by Chris Pine, but the classic Vulcan was integral to the creation of the alternate Kelvin timeline setting of J.J. Abrams' Star Trek movie trilogy. Nimoy spoke effusively of Abrams' Star Trek, and Leonard changed his approach to playing Ambassador Spock.

Leonard Nimoy's feelings about J.J. Abrams' Star Trek were the opposite of his disdain for Star Trek Generations.

Nimoy played Spock Prime one final time in Star Trek Into Darkness. Leonard was supposed to appear in Star Trek Beyond as well but he passed away in February 2015. Star Trek Beyond revealed that Ambassador Spock died on New Vulcan, and the film was dedicated to the late Leonard Nimoy and to Anton Yelchin, who also tragically died in 2016. Leonard Nimoy's feelings about J.J. Abrams' Star Trek were the opposite of his disdain for Star Trek Generations. Ultimately, Leonard Nimoy was correct that Spock had no tangible role to play in Star Trek Generations, but audiences will never know if Nimoy could have improved the film if he were able to rewrite and direct it.

Star Trek Generations is available to stream on Max.

Source: Source: The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years: From The Next Generation to J. J. Abrams: The Complete, Uncensored, and Unauthorized Oral History of Star Trek by Mark A. Altman and Edward Gross