15 More Things You Didn’t Know About Star Trek III: The Search For Spock (1984)
8. Genesis Made Space “Plutonium”
Early on it was to be the Romulans who were the baddies in Return To Genesis, and their interest in Genesis was very different from the Klingons in the final film. Upon reaching the Genesis planet the Romulan Commander and a party beam down to investigate unusual life form readings (in other words, Spock), and make an amazing discovery beyond an empty burial tube:
Their scanners indicate unlimited amounts of raw dilithium (the 23rd century equivalent to plutonium).
Ergo, their interest in the planet is not so much for the destructive potential of the Genesis device, but that dilithium crystals are what powers their cloaking devices. This is such an issue that the Romulan Commander immediately commences a mining operation because his ship demonstrates cloaking limitations, and it runs out of this space “plutonium” whilst tangling with the Enterprise.
The Commander explains that since Genesis manufactures dilithium-rich planets, possessing it will give them unlimited quantities which will give them a tactical advantage that will allow them to rule the galaxy. Cue mustache twirling.