The Wrath Of Khan Changed Star Trek Movies For The Worse In One Major Way
Part of the beauty of Star Trek as a franchise is that it's so expansive, with such a wide and diverse breadth of media that any two Trekkies' opinions on the best (and worst) content the saga has to offer are bound to differ drastically. That's what makes the overwhelmingly positive consensus among the fandom toward "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" that much more impressive. Many fans point to this 1982 classic as the best Star Trek movie ever made, with particular praise heaped on Ricardo Montalbán's nefarious antagonist Khan Noonien Singh. However, some have argued that "The Wrath of Khan" and its central villain actually ended up having a profoundly negative impact on the Star Trek franchise in one major way.
During an interview in the 2021 docuseries "The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek," longtime Star Trek screenwriter Ronald D. Moore spoke about how the success of "The Wrath of Khan" hampered the creativity of subsequent movies in the franchise. "I could easily make the argument that what 'Wrath of Khan' did was it permanently sent every Star Trek film down the same path," he said. "They all then, with the exception of 'IV,' went, 'We need a villain like Khan.' I can't tell you how many times I heard that. 'We need a Khan. Who's the Khan in this movie?' It all became about emulating that story."
Khan's specter looms over Star Trek
After hearing about the behind-the-scenes impact "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" and its titular antagonist had on subsequent entries in the franchise, it's easy to see how later films were pushed to emulate that winning formula. From General Chang in "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" to the Borg Queen in "Star Trek: First Contact," many central antagonists clearly took inspiration from Khan's archetype to varying degrees of success.
It took decades for the Star Trek film franchise to start fresh after "The Wrath of Khan," with a complete reboot of the continuity arriving in 2009's "Star Trek." However, even a complete overhaul couldn't last long without acknowledging Khan. Indeed, the sequel "Star Trek Into Darkness" serves as a quasi-remake of "The Wrath of Khan" and reintroduces the character, portrayed in this instance by Benedict Cumberbatch.
Even now, more than four entire decades since "The Wrath of Khan" first broke onto the scene, Star Trek still feels the influence of both the film and Khan as a character in various projects. The TV shows also draw inspiration, with "Star Trek: Picard" Season 3 taking a cue from "The Wrath of Khan" and "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" introducing a descendant of the antagonist as a major character. It seems that both Starfleet and the creative forces behind Star Trek will never be truly rid of the most iconic villain to ever hit the franchise.