Star Trek: United – Scott Bakula’s Comeback Reveals President Archer’s True Place In Federation History

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Scott Bakula has suggested a return to Star Trek in a story set many years after Star Trek: Enterprise. This new series could finally reveal how President Jonathan Archer is remembered and where he fits within the history of the United Federation of Planets’ leaders.

Created by Michael Sussman, who also worked on Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: United is a political and family drama following President Archer and his grown children as they strive to protect the young and vulnerable Federation.

The final episode of Star Trek: Enterprise showed the signing of the documents that officially created the Federation in 2161, with Captain Archer leading the process. Additionally, a background detail in a two-part episode from season four of Star Trek: Enterprise (written by Sussman) confirmed that Archer later became President of the Federation.

There’s a 101-year gap between the end of Star Trek: Enterprise and the beginning of Star Trek: Discovery, set in 2256, a period we don’t know much about. Star Trek: United aims to explore those missing years of the Federation’s history, and it might reveal if a long-held belief about President Archer is accurate.

Star Trek: United Can Reveal If Archer Was The First Federation President

Just like the famous phrase “Beam me up, Scotty!” – which isn’t actually said in Star Trek – many people think Jonathan Archer was the first President of the Federation.

There’s a 23-year gap between the creation of the Federation in 2161 and Jonathan Archer becoming President in 2184. According to season 4 of Star Trek: Enterprise, Archer served as President from 2184 to 2192.

As a lifelong Star Trek fan, I’ve always been fascinated by the early days of the Federation. It seems like Jonathan Archer might have been the first President, but not necessarily the first person to hold the office. The idea is that the position itself wasn’t really formalized until the 2180s, meaning there could have been others before him – maybe some who didn’t quite succeed or just didn’t leave a big mark before Archer really got things going.

Early planning materials for the film Star Trek Generations identified Thomas Vanderbilt as the first president of the Federation. While this detail appeared in a prop newspaper clipping, it wasn’t shown in the final movie and therefore isn’t considered part of official Star Trek history.

The new series, Star Trek: United, has a few options for establishing the first President of the Federation. It could officially recognize Thomas Vanderbilt as that first leader, or it could introduce a completely new character and family history for the role. Alternatively, the show could even decide that Captain Archer ultimately became the first President, retroactively establishing his postEnterprise* career.

Star Trek’s Federation Wasn’t Perfect From Its Creation

The United Federation of Planets wasn’t instantly established in 2161. It probably took a long time to form the alliance, gain everyone’s confidence, and welcome new planets. The Federation’s beginnings were likely unstable, and it could have easily fallen apart.

During an appearance on the Trek Politics podcast, Michael Sussman drew a comparison between the early United Federation of Planets and the history of the United States. He pointed out that the U.S. Constitution wasn’t adopted until 1788, after the initial Articles of Confederation proved unsuccessful, suggesting the Federation might have gone through a similar period of change and development.

What’s interesting about Star Trek: United is that it directly addresses questions Star Trek has avoided for over 60 years. While the Federation is often portrayed as a perfect society, particularly in Star Trek: The Next Generation, it wasn’t always that way.

The new series, Star Trek: United, might show us that the early years of the Federation weren’t easy. It could depict a time of struggles and near-failures, suggesting the peaceful future Star Trek fans are familiar with was hard-won.

Star Trek: United Story Makes Archer The Federation’s Most Important President

Despite the United Federation of Planets existing for roughly a thousand years (as shown in Star Trek: Enterprise and Star Trek: Discovery), very few Presidents have actually been named or appeared on screen.

Star Trek: United would explore the story of a Federation President for the first time, establishing Jonathan Archer as the most significant figure to ever hold that position, despite any presidents who came before him.

Michael Sussman says the story of Star Trek: United centers on President Archer working with his children to save the Federation. He describes the Federation as a life-long “project” for Archer, and in Star Trek: United, it’s facing collapse.

We don’t know what specific danger could destroy the Federation, but Star Trek: United will likely focus on political intrigue. Expect the conflict to come from within, involving negotiation and maneuvering rather than a straightforward attack from an external enemy.

Mike Sussman also hopes to start Star Trek: United by briefly showing events from the Romulan War that haven’t been depicted in official Star Trek storylines. This could establish the Romulans as antagonists, motivated by revenge and seeking to destroy the newly formed Federation.

We know that in Star Trek: United, President Archer will ultimately save the Federation, but the story will focus on the challenges he faces and the personal sacrifices he makes along the way. Despite everything, his success will establish him as the Federation’s most important leader, a figure comparable to Abraham Lincoln.

Who Are Star Trek’s Other Federation Presidents?

Most Star Trek episodes focus on starships discovering new planets and civilizations. Because of this, the President of the Federation – the leader of the entire organization – hasn’t often been directly involved in the action.

The first Federation President viewers saw was an unnamed leader portrayed by Robert Ellenstein in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. This President, along with the Federation Council, oversaw the court-martial of Admiral James T. Kirk (played by William Shatner).

I was really impressed with Kurtwood Smith’s portrayal of the Federation President in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country – he played an Efrosian, and it was a powerful moment when he insisted that he was accountable to the law. It was especially meaningful considering the whole situation: Captain Kirk and the Enterprise had just uncovered a plot to sabotage peace talks with the Klingons, and the President’s stance really underscored the Federation’s values.

In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, we meet President Jaresh-Inyo (played by Hershel Sparber), the leader of the Federation during two major crises: a failed attempt by a Starfleet admiral to overthrow the government, and the Dominion War, which the Federation and its allies eventually won.

The newest season of Star Trek: Discovery introduced President Laira Rillak, played by Chelah Horsdal. President Rillak, who has a mixed heritage of human, Cardassian, and Bajoran, was elected to lead the United Federation of Planets after Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and the crew of the USS Discovery resolved the crisis known as The Burn.

Although not all Federation Presidents have been equally memorable, Star Trek: United would focus on President Jonathan Archer, offering a fresh and exciting Star Trek narrative. This story would be quite different from his time as Captain on Star Trek: Enterprise.

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2025-11-01 13:00