20 Things You Didn't Know About Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
13. It Couldn't Have Been Released At A Worse Time
The summer of 1989 was a goldmine for films. Tim Burton delivered his take on the Caped Crusader, starring Jack Nicholson as the Joker and Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne. The media storm around this film alone would have made releasing a film a challenge at this time, but it would not be the only contender for the box office that Star Trek had to worry about.
Ghostbusters II was also released. That franchise had dealt a number of blows to Trek already. Star Trek III: The Search for Spock suffered at the box office due to the release of the first Ghostbusters movie, with domestic gross receipts far lower than expected. The sequel not only affected V's profits but had already taken ILM from them as well.
Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade would also join this trifecta of villains to push Star Trek V into lower rankings at the box office. The release of these three movies, along with the film's perceived lower quality, contributed to The Final Frontier's position as the lowest-grossing Trek movie until Star Trek: Nemesis flopped in 2002.