Star Trek: 10 Secrets Of Enterprise NX-01 You Need To Know

10. Faith Of The Art

During the preproduction phase on Enterprise (remember it was just Enterprise in those days), producers Rick Berman and Brannon Braga requested ship configurations that ran the gamut of rocket ship-like designs to ones that hewed closer to Kirk's Constitution-class vessel. According to illustrator John Eaves in 2001:

"I did lots of sketches and they'd go too far Phoenix [from Star Trek: First Contact] or too far Enterprise [from Star Trek: The Original Series], and it wasn't really what Mr. Berman wanted to see."

Sifting through existing starship designs for inspiration, the producers stumbled upon the Akira-class USS Thunderchild from Star Trek: First Contact and suggested the art department simply reuse that ship for the NX-01. While this suggestion was roundly resisted by Enterprise's art department, it did determine the direction the ship's design would take. Using then brand new computer modeling technology, Doug Drexler conceptualized several different versions of the ship, incorporating modified elements of the Thunderchild.

While John Eaves' work on the NX-01 ultimately went unused in favor of Drexler's digital approach, Eaves' concepts would eventually inform the design for Star Trek: Discovery's take on the USS Enterprise – some 17 years later.