10 Star Trek Re-Shoots That Totally Changed The Ending

Reshoots are common enough in the world of film, though often times the production schedules on television series don't allow for them. So, when reshoots work their way into the various Star Trek series, it's clear that there definitely is a need for them. The movies, while reshoots are slightly more expected, still face the issue of what they will mean for the end of the film overall.

Some are far more drastic than others. Some characters, such as Spock, Kirk, or God, come out of these changes for the better, while others, such as Kirk, come out slightly worse. No, that's not a typo!

Many issues with the story can be caught in the scripting phase, or even in the editing phase. But having sit through reshoots can be costly, time-consuming, and, though only occasionally, self-defeating as a means of fixing something that simply was never meant to work in the first place. While the quality of each of these choices may simply come down to the opinion of the audiences in each case, it's quite clear to say: those rock men were never going to be good.

Star Trek: Insurrection is nowhere near as bad as its reputation would have you believe. For example, while it is often criticized as being an overlong episode of The Next Generation, it is also a comment on the aging cast, the pursuit of unattainable goals, and also offers scene-stealing performances from F. Murray Abraham.

It is Abraham's Ru'afo who suffers the most from the reshoots in this film. Originally, his villain would be confronted by Picard on the Collector; the massive device used to harness the fountain of youth energy from the Bak'u planet's rings. However, in traditional Starfleet style, Picard would offer the hand of friendship, only for this to be turned away.

Ru'afo would then ascend into the rings' radiation, finally achieving the youth he so desired, before dying. This entire sequence was reshot. In the final version, Picard sets the Collector to self-destruct, watching on as Ru'afo is consumed by the flames, disappearing in a transporter beam. It is a far colder ending to the film - despite the fire - which is at odds with the tone of the film overall. The original ending is far stronger, with the film ending up a little weaker due to its removal.