10 Star Trek Characters That Just VANISHED

Saavik only appeared in three Star Trek films, and one incredible OTOY short, with one quick name check along the way. However, the canon of the OTOY short is open to debate, so technically Saavik just vanished once that Klingon Bird-of-Prey took off into the sky, bringing Spock and the others back to Earth. 

Kirstie Alley originated the role in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, introducing a young officer who was determined to impress on her first mission. 

Alley’s Saavik was young and inexperienced, clearly established as a protégée to Spock, and looked set to become one of the main cast members in any future sequels. She was also portrayed with more open emotions than Robin Curtis’s version, who would appear in the subsequent sequels. This was due to an initial plot line that would have revealed Saavik as half-Romulan. This was abandoned in The Search For Spock. 

The Voyage Home sees Saavik departing the crew, staying behind on Vulcan when the rest of crew head home. In the original script, Saavik would have been revealed to be pregnant, as a result of her assistance during the reborn Spock’s Pon Farr. This was never filmed, but was incorporated into her appearance in OTOY’s Unification short film.

Outside of this on-screen appearance, Saavik was never given a proper goodbye. This was, however, a bit of a blessing. When Nicholas Meyer returned to direct The Undiscovered Country, he initially sought to bring Saavik back, filling the role that would of course become Valeris. This led to a big blow up with Gene Roddenberry, who hated the idea of Saavik turning traitorous. As it happened, Saavik didn’t return. 

Expanded canon establishes Saavik as a Starship captain of the USS Titan, which is commemorated in Star Trek: Picard’s third season. The shuttle that Picard and Riker take over to the SS Eleos XII is, in fact, named the Saavik.