10 Darkest Star Trek Moments That You've Never Seen

2. World War 3

From the franchise's earliest days, Gene Roddenberry wrote that World War 3 would take place in the 21st Century and that it would be devastating. There are numerous references to it through The Original Series, and The Next Generation, with Star Trek: First Contact probably showing the best example of the aftermath.

As the years have passed, and real time has come a lot closer to the supposed years of World War 3, there have been clever alterations to Star Trek's history to tidy things up. First, the Eugenics Wars of the 90s - famous for seeing the exile of Khan Noonian Singh - have shifted in time. They now slide into the Second American Civil War, and eventually into World War 3 itself.

The Romulan Agent, known only as Sera, confirms to La'an and Kirk that the efforts of temporal agents have seen a shift in timelines - resulting, for example, in Khan's birth being pushed back by almost fifty years. 

It remains to be seen if April 4th, 2063 will remain the date of First Contact going forward, but one thing has never changed: despite the brighter future Star Trek promises we will get to, a third world war is coming.