We may earn a commission when you buy through links in our articles. Learn more.

No one ever said Star Trek’s most iconic line

Star Trek fans may do a double take after learning how the franchise's most iconic line was actually never said in the TV series or science fiction movies.

No one ever said Star Trek's most iconic line

Quotes have become a staple in the land of hit TV series and new movie franchises. The Star Wars movies had “No, I am your father”, and the Terminator movies had “I’ll be back”. However, sometimes iconic lines are altered by the fandom, or in the case of Star Trek – were never uttered on screen in the first place.

 

According to TV Tropes, the hit sci-fi series Star Trek has never actually said the famous line “Beam me up, Scotty”. For those of you who may not know, the Star Trek character Lt. Commander Montgomery ‘Scotty’ Scott, is the chief engineer of the Enterprise during The Original Series. Scotty handles all the technical and engineering departments on the ship and, on rare occasions, helps transport his crew members via the device the transporter.

Whenever crew members wanted to return to the ship, they would say “Beam me up”, so it is easy to see where the “Beam me up, Scotty” confusion began. However, the famous quote that has become tied to the IP was never mentioned during Star Trek: The Original Series, nor was the line was also never fully said in any of the Star Trek movies.

In fact, the animated series, Star Trek: The Animated Series, got closest with the line “Beam us up, Scotty” – but still, no dice. The well-known phrase actually originated from a car bumper sticker which read: “Beam me up, Scotty, there’s no intelligent life on this planet.”

William Shatner, who played the Star Trek captain, James T. Kirk, did acknowledge the line during the audiobook version of his 1995 novel The Ashes of Eden. However, the phrase has still never been said in the Star Trek canon.

YouTube Thumbnail

And considering how Scotty is the chief engineer and is busy with duties above handling the transporter, it doesn’t seem like this line will be said anytime soon. Still, the upcoming science fiction movie Star Trek 4 may break expectations.

For more space antics, here are our guides to every Star Trek series ranked, and the Star Trek timeline explained.