Star Trek turns 60 this year, and the legendary sci-fi franchise is set to celebrate it with many events planned. The franchise first aired on September 8, 1966, with the episode ‘The Man Trap’. Since then, several shows have been made in the franchise, with The Next Generation reviving it for a decade.
Along the way, the franchise racked up a stack of Guinness World Records that no rival space saga, including Star Wars, has come close to matching. As Star Trek Day approaches, both those records and a new wave of global celebrations are putting the franchise’s staying power back in the spotlight.
Star Trek’s World Records Prove Its Dominance in the Genre
The cast of Star Trek | Credits: Paramount
Since 1966, the Star Trek franchise has explored all that could be in the sci-fi genre. The nature of the original series led the way to expand on the intricacies of space travel, the politics of interplanetary relations, and various philosophical thought experiments. The franchise has broken several world records just by the extensive time and themes it has explored.
Back in 2016, Star Trek was deemed the most successful sci-fi television franchise, with Guinness valuing the brand at roughly $6 billion, a figure covering syndication and DVD/home-video revenue, box office, book sales, and merchandising across its shows and films (Guinness’s most recent estimate puts the figure closer to $10.7 billion). The film series alone has grossed around $2.27 billion at the worldwide box office across its 14 movies, including J.J. Abrams’ reboot (via Box Office Mojo as of August 28, 2026). Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, was also part of the largest space funeral in 1997.
Klingon, spoken by the Klingon race, was deemed to be the most widely spoken fictional language in the world. There are books that have been translated into Klingon. Star Trek also had the longest-running video game franchise. The first game was a Starship simulator which was released back in 1972, while the second game, Star Trek: Phaser Strike, came out five years later. In 2009, the trailer of J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek was the most-downloaded trailer in 24 hours.
Twenty years ago, for the franchise’s 40th anniversary, a York/Yorkshire farmer converted his 18-acre farm into a Star Trek-themed maze. The maze was in the patterns of the Borg Cube, Spock’s head, and even the Enterprise. William Shatner holds the record for the most expensive kidney stone, auctioned off for $25,000 in 2006. NASA even earned Star Trek a nod for the largest tractor beam study, funding real research into the sci-fi staple (via Guinness World Records).
Here are all the records held by the franchise in 2016:
Most successful sci-fi television adaptation – Earned across 5 TV shows and 12+ movies since 1966
Largest space funeral – 24 pioneers (including Gene Roddenberry) had their ashes launched into space on the Pegasus rocket in 1997
Most widely spoken fictional language – The Klingon language, invented by linguist Marc Okrand
First Star Trek videogame – Shared by Mike Mayfield’s 1972 Starship simulator and the 1976 handheld game Star Trek: Phaser Strike
Largest Star Trek maze – An 18-acre corn maze created by farmer Tom Pearcy in York, UK, for the franchise’s 40th anniversary in 2007
Longest-running space video-game franchise – Spanning from 1971 to the present (45+ years at time of writing)
Most expensive kidney stone – William Shatner’s kidney stone sold for $25,000 in 2006
Largest tractor beam study – A $100,000 NASA research grant given to the Goddard Space Flight Center in 2011
Most downloaded trailer (24 hours) – JJ Abrams’ 2009 reboot trailer, downloaded 1.8 million times in 24 hours
Largest gathering of people dressed as Star Trek characters – 1,063 people at the Star Trek Convention in London, 2012
While ten years have passed since these records, Star Trek still holds the distinction of being one of the most successful sci-fi franchises, and surpasses Star Wars in just these records.
Multiple Fan Events and Screenings Planned for Star Trek’s 60th
Spock and Kirk in Star Trek | Credits: Paramount
As Star Trek celebrates its 60th anniversary, many events around the world are planned in honor of the sci-fi franchise. From episode screenings to themed game shows, September 8 is officially Star Trek Day. The Autry Museum in LA is set to host a fan screening of the pilot episode, ‘The Man Trap’, as well as the Strange New Worlds episode of the week.
Many theatres in the USA are set to screen the Star Trek films and 4K restorations of episodes. Unaired interviews of Gene Roddenberry, as well as archival footage, will be aired on Entertainment Tonight’s ‘ET Vault Unlocked’. Game shows like The Price Is Right and Let’s Make a Deal will reportedly feature Star Trek episodes and themed surprises.
Nick at Nite will reportedly air Star Trek-themed episodes of The Big Bang Theory. The Science Museum in London is reportedly set to attempt another Guinness World Record, with the event expecting the largest number of people attempting the Vulcan salute. Gene Roddenberry’s Hollywood Star on the Walk of Fame is also set to be renovated (via Variety).
Are you excited for Star Trek Day? Comment below.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
