Star Trek: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Romulans

When the Romulans were reintroduced to galactic affairs in Star Trek: The Next Generation, their appearance had changed quite a bit. They were no longer almost indistinguishable from the Vulcans — a point made clear down to the ears in Star Trek: The Original Series, where budget would allow. In the 24th century, the Romulans had shoulder pads and forehead ridges!

According to Star Trek: The Next Generation 365, it was TNG producers who were behind the forehead ridge addition. They had wanted to make the Romulans "appear more menacing than their forefathers [in TOS]." As make-up artist in charge of the changes, Michael Westmore, put it, "From the very first moment they appeared on screen, the viewer had to take them seriously, rather than seeing them as stereotyped villains with pointed ears."

However, the changes weren’t well received by the writers. Ronald D. Moore, for example, unequivocally "hated the foreheads," adding in The Next Generation 365, "The backstory was they [the Romulans and Vulcans] were basically the same race, yet somehow the Romulans got these different foreheads at some point." He was definitely not a fan of the shoulder pads either!

An in-universe explanation for the extra-universal brow update wasn't given until Star Trek: Picard's The End is the Beginning. The solution was brief but relatively satisfying — perhaps a nod to another sci-fi colossus. Romulans with forehead ridges were said to be 'northerners,' and presumably those with smooth heads were, by extension, 'southerners.' The microevolutionary whys and wherefores were left unanswered. Given the history of the two peoples, we wonder, however, if that means there are, or were, Vulcans with forehead ridges?