10 Star Trek Episodes That Paid Off WAY Later
1. The Cage
Quite frankly, of all entries on this list, The Cage is the one that began paying off from the moment it was created. However, as it was not officially aired until twenty years after its filming, not many people actually knew that. The introduction of Star Trek, the Enterprise, and of course Mr Spock, cannot be overstated. All of the ingredients for what Star Trek would become are present in this first hour.
However, it would be 2009 before Christopher Pike would be reimagined, appearing in the JJ Abrams film, played by Bruce Greenwood. While Sean Kenney had played the character in The Menagerie, that came at a time when not many audience members truly understood who Pike was. The character would return again, played this time by Anson Mount, for Star Trek: Discovery's second season.
The episode If Memory Serves features a convention-breaking moment, opening with clips from the original pilot, showing both Jeffery Hunter and Anson Mount, one after the other. The episode also sees the return of Vina, played in archive footage by Susan Oliver, and new footage by Melissa George.
The success of Mount's take on the character has directly led to a new series of Star Trek - this time called Strange New Worlds. Sixty years later, The Cage is continuing to deliver on its promise of a brighter future, helping to green light more and more content for the modern audience.