After 37 Years, Star Trek Confirms A Fan-Favorite Movie Romance (But There's A Catch)
John Orquiola is a New & Classic TV Editor, Senior Writer, and Interviewer with a special focus on Star Trek. John has over 5,000 published articles at SR, and he has interviewed the biggest names in Star Trek on the red carpet and VIP events, among other beloved shows, movies, and franchises.
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Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4's Finale - "Tomorrow's Enterprise"37 years after Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds confirms Scotty and Uhura's romantic relationship, although there's a catch. Directed by Chris Fisher and written by Henry Alonso Myers and Robbie Thompson, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4's finale introduces Captain James T. Kirk's (Paul Wesley) USS Enterprise from one year in the future.
Directed by William Shatner, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier included a hint of affection between Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) and Scotty (James Doohan) when they were in the thrall of the Vulcan criminal, Sybok (Lawrence Luckinbill). The idea of a romance between Scotty and Uhura has tantalized Star Trek fans ever since, but it was only implied in the film and wasn't in Star Trek: The Original Series.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4's finale, "Tomorrow's Enterprise," centers on Lieutenant Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) working with her counterpart from Captain Christopher Pike's (Anson Mount) USS Enterprise one year in the past. The goal of the two Uhuras is to save Scotty's life when the young engineer dies in 2262. Future Uhura knows that Scotty isn't supposed to die, but she has another motivation to save her Enterprise's Chief Engineer.
Strange New Worlds Season 4’s Finale Confirms Uhura & Scotty’s Star Trek Movie Romance
Scotty and Uhura are a romantic item aboard the future USS Enterprise in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4's finale. Although Nyota and Montgomery think no one knows, their attraction is obvious. Captain Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia) hadn't seen Scotty and Uhura in a year, and she immediately saw the love shared by her two best friends.
The catch for Scotty and Uhura's romance is that Captain Kirk's Enterprise in "Tomorrow's Enterprise" happens in an alternate future timeline. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 takes place in 2262, but Kirk doesn't canonically become Captain of the Enterprise until 2265. Since "Tomorrow's Enterprise's" time difference is only a year, it means this is an alternate future where Kirk became Captain early.
Meanwhile, aboard Captain Pike's Enterprise in the 'present-day' of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4, Scotty is interested in Uhura, but Nyota has no bandwidth for romance. The younger Lieutenant Uhura worries more about her career and the future, and the lesson she learned from her future self was to prize today more than what lies ahead. Still, Nyota in 2262 doesn't reciprocate Scotty's feelings at the end of "Tomorrow's Enterprise."
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4's alternate future allows the prequel to explore Scotty and Uhura's romance without fully committing to it (yet) in the show's current, canonical timeline. On The 7th Rule podcast with Cirroc Lofton and Ryan T. Husk, director Chris Fisher talked about how Scotty and Uhura's romance "doesn't work out." See it below:
What Happens To Uhura & Scotty’s Star Trek Love Story
Scotty and Uhura were not a couple in Star Trek: The Original Series. Neither had a serious love interest in 1960s Star Trek, which left their characters in the background and largely undeveloped. Star Trek V showing sparks between Scotty and Uhura has excited fans for decades, and now Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is retroactively saying a romance did happen... at least in an alternate timeline.
Stardate 47988.1 · Crew Assessment
The Final Frontier
Trivia Challenge
🚀ShipsEnterprise!
⭐CrewMake it so
☠EnemiesResistance is…
⚡TechWarp speed!
📖LoreLive long…
01
The USS Enterprise is the most iconic starship in science fiction. What is the registry number of Captain Kirk’s original Enterprise from The Original Series?
✓ Correct! NCC-1701 is the registry of Kirk’s original Constitution-class Enterprise. The “-D” suffix belongs to Picard’s Galaxy-class ship, NX-01 is Archer’s Enterprise, and NCC-74656 is Voyager.
✗ Red alert! The answer is NCC-1701. Kirk’s original Constitution-class Enterprise carried this now-legendary registry. NCC-1701-D is Picard’s Enterprise from TNG, NX-01 is Captain Archer’s, and NCC-74656 belongs to Voyager.
02
Kirk’s most trusted officer is a half-human, half-Vulcan science officer famous for his logic and iconic salute. Who is this legendary character?
✓ Correct! Mr. Spock, played by Leonard Nimoy, is the half-Vulcan science officer whose “Live long and prosper” salute became a cultural icon. His struggle between logic and emotion defines the heart of the Original Series.
✗ Red alert! The answer is Spock. Data is an android from TNG, Tuvok is Voyager’s Vulcan tactical officer, and Sarek is Spock’s Vulcan father. Only Spock is the half-human, half-Vulcan first officer of Kirk’s Enterprise.
03
Starfleet’s most important regulation forbids interference with the natural development of alien civilizations. What is this guiding principle called?
✓ Correct! The Prime Directive (also known as General Order 1) is Starfleet’s most sacred law. It prohibits interfering with less-developed civilizations — though Kirk, Picard, and Janeway have all famously bent or broken it when lives were at stake.
✗ Red alert! The answer is the Prime Directive. While “General Order One” is technically another name for it, the Prime Directive is the universally known term. The Omega Directive and Temporal Accord are separate, more specialized Starfleet protocols.
04
“Resistance is futile.” This chilling declaration belongs to a cybernetic collective that assimilates entire civilizations into its hive mind. What is this fearsome species called?
✓ Correct! The Borg are Star Trek’s most terrifying villains — a hive-mind collective that forcibly assimilates species and technology. Captain Picard was famously assimilated and transformed into Locutus in the landmark TNG episode “The Best of Both Worlds.”
✗ Red alert! The answer is the Borg. The Dominion is the Gamma Quadrant empire from DS9, the Romulans are a rival empire, and Species 8472 is actually one of the few species that the Borg themselves fear. Only the Borg declare “Resistance is futile.”
05
Captain Jean-Luc Picard commands the Enterprise-D in The Next Generation and later received his own series, Star Trek: Picard. Which acclaimed actor portrays him?
✓ Correct! Sir Patrick Stewart brought gravitas, Shakespeare, and Earl Grey tea to the captain’s chair for seven seasons of TNG, four films, and three seasons of Star Trek: Picard. His “Make it so” is one of TV’s most iconic catchphrases.
✗ Red alert! The answer is Patrick Stewart. William Shatner plays Captain Kirk, Avery Brooks is Captain Sisko on Deep Space Nine, and Scott Bakula captains the NX-01 Enterprise. Only Sir Patrick Stewart portrays the legendary Jean-Luc Picard.
06
Starfleet vessels travel faster than light by bending space around them using a matter-antimatter reaction. What is this propulsion system called?
✓ Correct! Warp Drive is the standard faster-than-light propulsion in Star Trek, powered by dilithium-regulated matter-antimatter reactions. Zefram Cochrane invented it in 2063, which led to humanity’s first contact with the Vulcans.
✗ Red alert! The answer is Warp Drive. Transwarp is an advanced Borg technology, Slipstream is an experimental quantum drive, and the Spore Drive uses mycelial network navigation (from Discovery). Standard Starfleet vessels use Warp Drive.
07
At Starfleet Academy, cadets face a notorious no-win scenario designed to test their character under impossible circumstances. James Kirk is the only cadet who ever beat it — by cheating. What is this test called?
✓ Correct! The Kobayashi Maru is an unwinnable rescue simulation that tests how cadets handle certain death. Kirk reprogrammed it so he could win — earning a commendation for original thinking. It was memorably featured in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
✗ Red alert! The answer is the Kobayashi Maru. The Corbomite Maneuver is a TOS episode, not an Academy test. The Kobayashi Maru is the famous no-win scenario that Kirk defeated by reprogramming the simulation — because he doesn’t believe in the no-win scenario.
08
In the widely regarded greatest Star Trek film, a genetically enhanced superhuman from Earth’s past seeks revenge against Captain Kirk. “KHAAAAN!” Who is this iconic villain?
✓ Correct! Khan Noonien Singh, played by Ricardo Montalbán, is Star Trek’s greatest villain. First appearing in the TOS episode “Space Seed,” he returned in The Wrath of Khan (1982) for a devastating revenge plot that cost Spock his life.
✗ Red alert! The answer is Khan Noonien Singh. General Chang is a Klingon from Star Trek VI, Q is TNG’s omnipotent trickster, and Gul Dukat is DS9’s Cardassian antagonist. Only Khan inspired Kirk’s legendary scream across the cosmos.
Mission Complete Your Starfleet Record
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Are you an Admiral — or still a cadet on deck-scrubbing duty?
Nichelle Nichols' final performance as Uhura was in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. James Doohan's appearance as Scotty in Star Trek: The Next Generation's "Relics" is set in the 24th century, but he makes no mention of any romance with Uhura. Nyota is not mentioned in Star Trek Generations, where Scotty appears in the prologue set months after Star Trek VI.
Uhura and Scotty's romance is an undiscovered country for Star Trek. It's possible that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 5 will let Scotty and Uhura try their hand at a relationship during the show's final 6 episodes. However, even if it does happen, maybe their romance simply doesn't work out, like Nurse Chapel's relationship with Lieutenant Spock (Ethan Peck) ended.
Scotty and Uhura may get together in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' fifth and final season, and perhaps it fizzles out by the time of Star Trek: The Original Series. Scotty and Uhura are still professionals who worked together on Captain Kirk's Enterprise, and then feelings resurfaced decades later in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. It's also possible that Scotty and Uhura simply aren't each other's endgame.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 is streaming on Paramount+
- Release Date
- 2022 - 2027-00-00
- Network
- Paramount+
- Showrunner
- Henry Alonso Myers, Akiva Goldsman
- Directors
- Dan Liu, Amanda Row, Maja Vrvilo, Akiva Goldsman, Dermott Downs, Eduardo Sánchez, Jeffrey W. Byrd, Jonathan Frakes, Jordan Canning, Leslie Hope, Valerie Weiss, Sydney Freeland, Christopher J. Byrne, Rachel Leiterman
- Writers
- Onitra Johnson
-
Captain Christopher Pike
-
Spock
- Franchise(s)
- Star Trek
- Creator(s)
- Akiva Goldsman, Alex Kurtzman, Jenny Lumet
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