10 Films That Wanted To Be Star Trek
9. The Questor Tapes
The Questor Tapes was a made-for-TV movie, written by Gene Roddenberry himself. The original idea was a reworking of his script for Star Trek's second season, Assignment: Earth.
In that story, a benevolent species sends Gary Seven to protect the Earth from its own mistakes. In the Questor Tapes, a benevolent race installed android protectors among humanity, there to guide and lead them away from harm. In both stories, the rapid advent of technology changes the parameters of the visitors' missions.
The televised version of The Questor Tapes also contains elements that would appear again in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Questor is an android, lost and looking for its creator. This is highly reminiscent of V'ger, though there are also shades of Data. When a situation arises the need to seduce a lady, Questor states that he is 'fully functional.'
The movie almost went one step further. Though Robert Foxworth, who would appear as Admiral Leyton and Administrator V'Las, played Questor in the film, Leonard Nimoy was originally asked to play the part. He went so far as to take part in make-up tests before he was passed over.