10 MORE Star Trek Moments That Broke Our Hearts

2. The Photo - Star Trek Beyond

Star Trek Beyond serves as a tribute to the franchise's fiftieth birthday and the passing of Leonard Nimoy, who died in February 2015. Though it remains the final Kelvin-era film at the time of writing, it managed to unite this universe with the Prime of yesteryear.

While examining Prime Spock's personal belongings, Zachary Quinto's Spock unearths an old photo. Opening its case, he is presented with the faces of Nimoy, George Takei, Walter Koenig, William Shatner, James Doohan, DeForest Kelly, and Nichelle Nichols, posed in a publicity still from Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.

Accompanied by a reprise of Alexander Courage's Original Series theme, this moment was designed to honour those cast members lost, as well as those still living. It honoured the series from which all other iterations of Trek came, as well as the teams behind them. 

It is not presented as a sad moment but rather as a chance to remember all that had come before. A later moment in the film sees Chris Pine's Kirk raise a toast to absent friends, while a smiling Chekov - played by the already-departed Anton Yelchin - is clearly visible on-screen. 

Star Trek Beyond raises a glass to its history, its contributors, and those who shared in the journey, no matter for how long a time.