10 Best Individual Performances In Star Trek

Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan

Oh come on, you knew it was coming. You may be surprised that it isn’t higher on this list – but bear in mind that there are sixty years of performances to judge here. Leonard Nimoy’s final scenes as Spock in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan will always rank among the most heartbreaking in the franchise, by why?

Simply put – we cared and we cared hard. There was the history of the character, who at this point was almost twenty years old in the public eye. Added to this were the rumours, allegedly circulated by a disgruntled Gene Roddenberry, of the character’s death, before the film’s release. Nimoy had a tall order going into the film – and he delivered.

Spock has never been an easy character to play, as the repressed emotions within place a massive weight on the performer’s shoulders. Zachary Quinto and Ethan Peck are both seriously impressive in their iterations of the character, but Nimoy’s struggle to stand, the tug to straighten his uniform, and sightless walk toward Kirk, never fail to elicit tears.

After all of the action and battles, after the death of Khan and the creation of a new world, Spock, the oldest character in the franchise, slumps to the ground, dying of radiation poisoning. Much praise is given to William Shatner’s reactions in this scene – and for good reason – but it is Nimoy’s rasping delivery of those infamous words, followed by his final “Live Long And Prosper” that rises above the rest in this film.

Of all the souls in our travels that we’ve met, his was the most…human.